Our 97 u270 has a Frigidaire refrigerator. I think it is a 10 cubic foot. It doesn't cool very well. Never gets below 40 degrees in the refrigerator section. It fits in the space where the rv refrigerator had been. There is no air space on the sides. When it gets hotter during the afternoon, the temperature gets around 50. Has anyone else had a problem like this? My wife wants me to replace it with a rv refrigerator. So far I haven't done that.
Are the coils on the back or underneath? My opinion is the refrigerator has a problem not the installation.
I replaced the original Norcold with the Haier 10.1 residential in Jor's old rig. Just got back from Kentucky where it was around 100 several days. It worked great, kept my beer very cold and the ice cream very frozen. I just left the top,
outside access open. I made the fridge fit with about 1/2 inch air gap along sides.
I have a13 cubit foot residential Frigidaire and it's coils are in the sides and when I installed it
it was tight on one side but worked perfectly and then from somebodies post I realized that it
was too tight so pulled the fridge out far enough to pull out all the Styrofoam and cut a vent at
the top so the air could vent out. The vents for the old fridge are completely sealed and
insulated.
Best Buy has the Insignia brand at about 10CF. Mine is 5- 6 yrs old. had to build a base to raise it up about 10 in. . Look for "Dorm fridge." This one is bottom freezer . which works great for us . look for " which fridge fits through the 24 in door? .
Mine is 23.77 in wide and fit by removing the inside hand rail .
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insignia-11-5-cu-ft-bottom-mount-refrigerator-stainless-steel/6461499.p?skuId=6461499&ref=212&loc=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwxuCnBhDLARIsAB-cq1q3G3E9pn1-BL358ncmlzpUX-b6B6_Zf8WdY8T1bijhBe3RBEDrTvIaAloDEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
We've got a 23 cuft Frigidaire from 2018 in our FT320. We've never had issues with it staying cool, nor do I ever hear the compressor kick on. Ice cream is rock-hard and food stays cold.
I imagine there is an issue with your fridge like craneman said. I have at most an inch of space on the sides. I can feel heat coming through the bottom of it while the compressor is working and there seems to be plenty of air space behind the unit.
An RV fridge will struggle on hot days moreso than a rezzy fridge will. We just went through a week of 100+ days with 120+ heat index and there was no change in the fridge temps. In our last RV, the propane fridge struggled with direct sun above 85F.
Zach
I would love to see pics of the 23 cu ft fridge install. I had thought the 17.5 Samsung and similar were the only ones that fit without getting rid of the the 3 side pantry side storage areas
Not Zach but this is my 22 cu. ft. with the side drawers still intact.
Samsung residential refrigerator 21.8 instead of 17.5 (https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=34949.msg324333#msg324333)
It may depend on the floor plan if it would fit. Not sure if they make a comparable model these days.
Here is a link to my installation. I have a 98 36' U270.
Magic Chef 10.1 Residential Fridge Install (https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=44640.msg452326#msg452326)
Not everyone, including professionals, study the manuals closely and if it fits they install with little thought of cooling. If you pull it try running it in the floor of the coach, put your hand on the sides and feel for the heat from the coils which tend to be in one side wall or another. If it cools properly then there is probably a double layer of rigid foam insulation in the original fridge cavity. Remove a layer from each side and then make sure it has some airflow at top and bottom of the fridge when re-installed. There is a fair amount of space in the fridge cavity side to side that Foretravel filled with foam. I also installed a computer muffin fan on the floor of the fridge area to help pull air from underneath to top of fridge. My original vents are blocked off because the installation manual did not recommend use in unconditioned space.
Thanks to all the suggestions. I will give it a shot. I figured maybe the coil was in a side because I didn't see any underneath.
Hi Zach
My floor plan is exactly the same. I am going to look it up and check to see what an install would intail
I just installed a Haier 15cuft bottom freezer unit...so far so good.