Jack
Senior Member
The Norcold 3-way fridge does work - if you watch it carefully.
We got an external fridge thermometer (from Campingworld, I think), so we can easily check the internal temperature without opening the door.
What we found is that the fridge, which has no thermostat, really reduces the outside temperature by a fixed amount. The trick is to monitor the fridge temperature periodically and adjust the propane setting accordingly (minimum on a cold night, maximum in the heat of the day). Check it every several hours or so, and it's contents will survive for many, many days. On hot days, you want to travel on propane, as it is the most effective at keeping the inside temperature at 36' to 38'.
Due to the nature of the technology, the fridge is marginal at high altitudes (7000+ft).
By the way, if the Japanese ever get into RV fridges, sell Norcold stock short and you can retire. There is no technical excuse why the Norcold fridge can't be a whole lot better.
We got an external fridge thermometer (from Campingworld, I think), so we can easily check the internal temperature without opening the door.
What we found is that the fridge, which has no thermostat, really reduces the outside temperature by a fixed amount. The trick is to monitor the fridge temperature periodically and adjust the propane setting accordingly (minimum on a cold night, maximum in the heat of the day). Check it every several hours or so, and it's contents will survive for many, many days. On hot days, you want to travel on propane, as it is the most effective at keeping the inside temperature at 36' to 38'.
Due to the nature of the technology, the fridge is marginal at high altitudes (7000+ft).
By the way, if the Japanese ever get into RV fridges, sell Norcold stock short and you can retire. There is no technical excuse why the Norcold fridge can't be a whole lot better.
