Coach: 2006 Winnebago Journey 34H
Old Refrig: Norcold N842IM (two door model)
New Residential Refrig: Whirlpool WRT111SFDM
Back in June 2014 (
Here) I started a thread about cooling concerns with my Journey's Norcold (NoCold - as John says) Refrig. The original subject was cooling issues I thought I was having with my Norcold N842IM refrig. The thread's direction changed to a discussion about Inverters and Modified Sine wave vs Pure Sine wave. The thread was very informative - I learned a lot about the operation of my Norcold (49 hour defrost cycle) through my own testing and data collection and about inverters from other members' posts.
Since then I have made some changes so felt it is justified to post an update.
Last year on a trip I lost my Dimension 2000w Inverter and replaced it with a new 2000 watt pure sine wave inverter. This opened the door for me to change from my Norcold to a Residential Style Refrig. After my last trip this summer (GNR-2016) and having issues with the Norcold do to its defrost cycle I decided it is time to move to a Residential Refrig.
My desire was to find a residential refrig that would fit into the existing opening with minimal modifications so that I did not loose the two slide out Pantries or the drawer below the Refrig (directives from my DW). After some research I settled on a Whirlpool WRT111SFDM 10.7 cu ft refrig as it appeared that all I needed was about 1 inch more width and about 3/4 of an inch more height.
In prep for getting the old and new refrig out of the coach I removed the passenger seat. Both the Norcold and the new Refrig fit thru the Coach Door with the seat removed.
Getting the Norcold out was relatively easy -
-Disconnect LP (shut off a Tank first)
-Shut off Refrig Circuit Breaker and Unplug 120vac
-Disconnect 12 volt feed (+ (yellow) and ground (white))
-Disconnect Ice Make Water feed
-Remove 4 Bolts on rear sides of Norcold
-Disconnect Upper Strap (access thru Roof Vent)
-*** REMOVE AC Receptacle from left side as it is screwed thru the left rear mounting plates
-Remove Refrig Doors
-Remove upper and lower black plastic trim pieces and mounting screws
New Whirlpool Installation:
-I removed a 1/2" from each side and 3/4" across the top edge
-I removed the side and upper rubber seals that contacted the top and sides of the Norcold
-I removed both Front Feet and Rear feet (rollers) from the new Refrig
-I screwed two 1.25 " Steel straps to the floor of the Refrig area
-After the Whirlpool was in place and level (coach was leveled) I bent the bottom rear straps over the refrig frame/base
and screwed them to the frame
-I attached the Upper (original) strap to the top of Whirlpool
-Attached existing water supply to Ice Maker Solenoid
-Remounted 120vac receptacle and plugged in refrig (I had the Refrig Circuit Breaker - Off)
-Added trim to cover gap around refrig
- I did added a 12 volt DC Muffin Fan in the Roof Vent (switched) to assist with exhausting heat on hot days from the back of the refrig (optional) I left both original Vents intact for air flow.
Absolutely love this latest Coach Modification. Now to go and purchase Ice Cream
Here is a link to a number of photos I took during the Swap.