Norcold 1200 NOCO Error Caused by a Failed Control Board - Replaced with a Dinosaur Board 

Thank you, I followed your video and replaced my bad board with a dinosaur board. You made it so much easier to work on and in a form i could follow. Thank you from Missouri.

Perfect video for my needs. Here it is 10 PM and I'm about to go to bed, but know I won't sleep until I figure out my issue. After the Rolling Blackouts here in Texas last month I went out to my refrigerator to check on it and found my refrigerator was no longer cold. I started runnning through all the steps I could find to verify the obvious stuff (Fuses and stuff) were still good. Then suspecting the circuit board fried I started searching the internet and found this. Now I'm armed with the information to check out the board, AND how to replace it with the right board. So I'm going in. Thanks you very much for doing these videos. All well within my skill set, (retired Power Company Tech) and armed with what little things to look for and how to circumvent,(In emergency conditions) there is no reason why I can't fix it.

You are really good at teaching. I appreciate that you are very knowledgeable at repairing these sometimes challenging RV systems. Thank you

OH YEAH, just turned on my NorCold 1200 refrigerator. It was running with LP, but the AC would not work. I went through your trouble shooting steps, and after going through the steps about 10 times, pulled the trigger and ordered the dinosaur board. It took about 15 minutes following your instructions to install the new board. And it works. Thank You so much from Southern California.

Thank you so much My RV Works, I have been following you every time I need RV help with diagnosis and repair. This here video helped me narrow down my problem. You're a very good teacher Darren! Take care my good man!

I want to thank you for the demonstration on how to Fix my refrigerator. I’m going to attempt it as soon as possible after watching your video. I feel real confident that I can do it. Thanks again.

OMG I followed everything you said to do and I got the fridge to work. The Dinosaur Board was so easy to order and install. Thank you!!! Freezer is very cold but I might have to replace the thermostat but will wait a day to see if fridge temperature is colder. Again you ROCK!!!!!

Your emergency work around literally saved our bacon. Woke up this am to a totally dead refrigerator. No lights on display. Power outlet was good. Fuses were good. Elements were good. Must be the control board. Of course it is Sunday and 1200 miles from home and 3 more days on this trip! I really appreciate the knowledge that you share.

This was very helpful, I followed your instructions step by step and now I have a working fridge. Thanks!!Will be watching more of your how to videos.Thanks!!!!!

Enjoyed watching your very detailed inspections. My Norcold 1200 would not turn on. This video shows my same unit. I bypassed the recall box (something I read) to make sure that it was not causing the problem and to continue with the testing. It now comes on but came up with an error AC HT. I tested both heating elements because of the code. They were both within specs. I then removed the power board and found a burned area on the backside of the circuit board where the relay sits for the heater elements. I replaced the board following your process and now everything is working. Thanks again! You save me several hundreds of dollars along with educating me. I will continue watching more of your videos so I can learn more. You're a great teacher. You really took the mystery out of diagnosing a problem.

This is the best video I've seen on troubleshooting an RV refrigerator... and repairing it. I'm dealing with a 13-year old Norcold exactly like the one in this video. I feel confident (now) that I'm going to be able get to the bottom of my problem, and if it is the circuit board, I'll know that for certain, and how to replace it. Thanks for a truly excellent video!

Darren, This finally explained everything to me. Thank You Very much. When you broke the info down it was all I needed. Great Job! I am looking forward to more informative bits from you.

Well Darren, I did it, changed out my control board and it went just like you said it would. I ordered the board off of Amazon from dinosaur and it could not have been more straight forward. So thanks to your video I gained the knowledge to do. Thank you so much, Doug.

Thank you Darryl, especially for introducing me to Dinosaur Electronics and that quiet little trick which I suspected would word! Great Job! Dave WRØX

Holy Crap............you saved my bacon. Followed exactly the troubleshooting methods you showed and it worked like a charm. Replaced the motherboard, and on came the refrig. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING YOUR KNOWLEDGE.

Once again, great detail on frig diagnosis and repair!! Thanks so much for your video!

Very well done and explained in terms that most all can understand,,, Great Video!

Darin, just found your site yesterday, I've watched almost every video you had out by the next night.I'm a stihl small engine wrench. And bought a used camper last year and I just didn't have a clue about how any of it worked.What a blessing your channel is, your not just very knowledgeable, but the way you lay everything out, makes it possible for a novice like me to somewhat follow you. I plan on learning a lot from you.Can't thank you enough.Please keep the videos coming. I live in Georgia so will never be able to use you personally. I love to camp, and what i will do is give out your you tube channel to every camper i talk to. I hope it helps. And one last thanks for not blasting rock music in your videos. Your friend in Georgia Darryl

My parents were convinced that it was going to be major repair but when you talk about the corrosion and the brown behind the transistor and the relay not kicking on I was mid argument with mom. Thank you for the ridiculous amount of information. The board is shot

Nice logical diagnostic method. Very thorough.

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with us!

Fantastic teacher. Thank you for your time and experience.

Excellent step by step, video, Great information. Thank you in advance if I ever need to know this.

Amazing! Doubt I’d be able to actually do all that but it demystified the process. Thanks!

Nicely done. That's some solid diagnostic testing. Greetings from down south in Bremerton.

Thought I'd update. There is yellow magic fairy dust under the heating element. So now I get to replace the cooling coil. Thanks to giving the the tools I needed to test out my system. The control board works and the heating element ohms out good. Even the gas side calls for start when the electric is unplugged. Then shuts off when plugged back in. Funny thing though. Mine is one the recall list..... So now I've got to find what the recall parts are and how they are done. My issue is my Coach is undergoing a major remodele so it's not drivable. Doing a transmission upgrade, and full on remodel. So will call and see what the Factory prefers I do about getting my unit recall repairs done. Thanks again for the instructional vidoes.

Great video, Darren. I wish I had this video when I had the same problem a few years ago on my Lance camper. I had to learn the function of every component on the frig. Luckily, we were not on a trip when it went out. I always bring my RV in from storage one month before our trip and go through every appliance to make sure they are working. Just in case something it's out, then I have time to troubleshoot and replace the part. I am sure many people will appreciate your video, since these 3 way refrigerators can end up with these type of troubles at any time. One of the things that I suspected that affected my board was that at that time I did not use a surge protector. I have had one ever since. I encourage everyone to have a surge protector, it could prevent very expensive damages.

thanks, I needed that. A good teacher you are.

I was in the service industry before my retirement, I only referenced the timer so that you need not plug and unplug. Of course it is only a temporary measure until you can have the unit repaired by a pro like you. I did refrigeration on a small scale. Could have used that cheat on the one and only 2 way I tried to fix.

Daren your video help alot I'm not forsure I can do what you did your very knowledgeable about that meter and all them wires I'm going to watch the whole video about ten times first and then try it. Thanks for showing details keep making video there very helpful

Wow i like your diagnostics and how to fix great job sir

based on the first 12 minutes of this video , I've become a subscriber 💕. If you do videos in the 'For Dummies' mode like this it is especially helpful to anyone-especially most woman- who may not have the base knowledge of electric testing. In a short 4 minutes you explain more about troubleshooting the electric side than any of the five videos I watched right before discovering this one. I'm an extremely mechanical woman but the electrical testing is my weakness and through this video pretty confident I can diagnose my Norcold problem right now. TY! I also noted the work around in an emergency as I usually end up helping other women in my RV Club with their RV issues. in that club I've seen so many control boards go down it's nice to know there's a way to limp through until you can get to control board on him cuz we don't have the ability to just keep a control board on hand most people probably should. I keep a sales switch for my furnace and the thermostat for the water heater things like that in a kit cuz I boondock a lot and I think that having a control board on hand for your fridge is probably just a good idea for anybody so you can stay ahead of problems especially if you're full-time.

great video, very good at explaining where to look and why. perfect thx

Great video! Looks like I've got a little work to do 👍

Thank you for the video. I have a Norcold also, the power side wouldn't work it would go to LP right away. then a code would flash on the auto On light 3 times on a row. took it to a Norcold repair person and it was the board also fixed in 1 day and working great. was great seeing how it was done will do it my self next time Thank you

Totally alsome video , new to the RV world, have a Winnebago Chieftain 35u that needs a lot of work that i acquired an has been setting a long time , maybe 5 or 6 years , was told frig didn't work, now have something to go on , thanks .

Great video, also many thanks for the "emergency" heating element fix tip. Before the RV I owned a sailboat and there were times I needed to employ unconventioal emergency repairs way offshore. Many thanks!

I did enjoy your video I found it interesting and informative

Excellent video👍

Thank you for this video it help me out a lot

Darren; I basically had a model 1210 Norcold that would default to LP only and would not go to AC. I checked the fuses on the board - all were good using my VOM. When I went back together with everything, the unit would not even power up! No power to the eye-level display at all. The 20-amp cb in rear compartment of bedroom was not tripped either, nor did I get a "NOCO" indication. I ordered a new control board (#628661) and control board base as my old base had broken mounting ears thus allowing the board to shift around some (not good!).

Excellent video!

Your a good teacher!!

Great video thank you for all the info

I just now saw your video, my control board went out 4 days ago. After finding out it was the problem, I simply pulled the ac input from the board and connected it to the heating element, no need for a separate cord. Just a 3" jumper with spade lugs. I had to put a Bluetooth thermometer in the fridge to monitor the temp and turn off the breaker a few hours now and then to keep the temp in acceptable range but it works fine, until the board arrives anyway.

Thanks for the video!! I have this problem, except when the board was unplugged, the gas did click on so it would work on LP. So I was told to replace the curcuit board. So if it works on gas do we still replace the circuit board??

Loved the video. Any chance you can do one on just the wiring on the back of the fridge?

Thank you so much for your videos.

Great video. We have the Norcold N3104 and last week while on a trip, the eye brow panel began flashing. The N3104 will run on a/c, dc or propane and for us, we normally just run it on a/c and DC. Driving, it works on DC with the vehicle charging the batteries. When parked it we use shore power. Well, stopped for resupply and came back and the eye brow was flashing. Now, the only time the fridge works is on shore aka a/c power. I’ve checked the small fuse in back of the fridge and it’s good and I’ve confirmed our lithium batteries are good. What I haven’t checked and just learned about is the small glass fuse on the circuit board. I’m going out to check that tomorrow as well as the main fuse box. I also have an appointment to have the unit checked at a local RV shop but my thoughts are if all the fuses are good, I might just ask them to put in a new Dragon circuit board. Any thoughts to troubleshooting that I’ve missed would be appreciated.

Excellent! I'd tackle a control board myself, I guess if there are no signs of the refrigerant leaking one can hope that the sealed system is still working and look for a lack of heating in the boiler.

Love this video and found it extremely helpful. I have a 2005 Itasca Sunrise M 33V that the board got fried because who ever worked on it years ago, failed to tighten the ground screw do. I need to determine how to locate the board I need. S/n on fridge is 8067255, model N8421M. Wondering if you could help me identify the part number I need to replace the board. Norcold said to use 621269001 but that board says it is 2 way. This unit runs on ac, dc, and lp; doesn’t that make it a 3 way? Thanks

Nicely done! Understand your hesitation giving ppl advice on gerry rigging a/c directly to the heating element. I don't know if that's prudent but its obvious your heart is in the right place. Keep up the terrific work.Really enjoy your vids!

Thankyou for this video!

Great video, thank you

Thank you very much this was very helpful

Great video, I have one question, what is a code four? It flashes the light in the fridge when you open the fridge door.

Great video Darren!! Excellent diag! My question revolves around the HVAC tape. My Norcold frig does not have it covered. Is that something that should be done? I've check other frigs and most are not covered. Thanks for your valuable information! Ed

Great vid.

You are the man!!!

My fridge wasn't cooling but my freezer was working. I was told to disconnect the thermistor in the fridge and give it 24 hrs. Sure enough the fridge went down to to 41.4 degrees. That proved the problem was it. Replaced with one from Amazon and is now working great

Very nice job bro🌹

My RV NorWood refrigerator is dead today I have look it it tomorrow. thanks for sharing video.

I Had to bypass my board when away mid summer i did what you said I connected the 240 vac to the heater element but i also closed the Gas pet cock to make sure it didn't try and start the Gas up at the same time ,,,, it was the coldest my fridge had ever been ,, my drama was the thermostat , open circuit , Great vid buddy , B.J.T , new south wales Australia , 32 "C" Class elite RV ,

Hey Darren. Great teachings. My norcold 1200 2005 model when yo close the refrigerator doors the open door chimes even though there closed and sealed. Is there a way to turn this off with the buttons. Thanks mayor of Astoria Oregon

Great video. Thanks! 😀

Do you have a source for boards for the Atwood helium refrigerators?

Thanks for taking the time to record and narrate this repair. It has been very informative.

Saw your video on the sputtering. It ended up being a valve that you cleaned can you show that in a video please.

Great info!!!!

Wow what a great video.Darin I do have a question My Norcold N61v works but the light on the fridge stays orange unless I am using land power. Do I a a bad board on fridge door?

If I get flame but no heat on lp mode or ac mode, does that mean a cooling unit failure?

Thanks for the tip

You are the best thank you so much

Well done! Thanks!!

The chip is a gates chip. Boolean Algebra will determine your in's and out's. Of course, one would be voltage and one would have a negative or ground. It seems very confusing but in electronics, it is quite fascinating. You have OR, NOR, AND, NAND, XNOR, XOR, types of gates inside of the chip. These are just zero's and one's. Great video with the Watt's Law then moving it to Ohm's law, (Two different pyramids). Great video to help those RV'ing.

Connections....taking cell phone pic of orginal wire position, helps sometimes. Great work, thanks for all your tips, invaluable information when on the road.

Very Good. Thank You.

great guy. thankyou. you are verry helpfull

Hey Darren, great videos and Channel. Really appreciate you putting your knowledge out there. One question though. What if I am getting 120V on both sides of fuse but not getting it coming out to feed heating elements, but also my control at the fridge has no lights, i can't change it from auto to gas or change the cold settings. What powers that board. Thanks

My norcold 1200 has 110 volts ac/ propane. Is it possible to convert to accommodate 12 volt dc also?

Hello sir Are you services Seattle areas? Please let me know

Great tip on using an extension cord on the heaters. Only question is how long should I cycle it on and off? Seems when you turn the fridge on it runs continuously until reaching the desired temp so cycles could vary quite a bit.

Darren, Thanks for the awesome content. Question….do you carry around an assortment of dinosaur boards? Or do you order when you need them?

I have a 2000 Cedar Creek Travel trailer. The refer stopped working. I have checked the breakers, fuses and GFI. The batteries are fully charged. At the back of the Dometic RM2852 refer. The 110 out has power. However, the 12v DC / 6v AC terminal block does not have any power. The block has a white wire on the negative side and a white/yellow wire on the positive side. I would like to trace the two wires back to their source connection(s) but I do not know where that is. I pulled the converter but did not see any white/yellow line. I figured the line would be fused. If I could access both ends of the wires I could test for continuity and voltage. Could you please tell me where these two wires connect at the other end from the terminal block?

Hey there. Have a question if you don't mind. Did trouble shooting on my norcold. it gets hot in the back where electric rod is located. but the fridge not only doesn't get cold, it is hot on the inside. Any idea? No yellow residue nor hissing sound. But I heard the griglining sound long when we fist got it.

do you have any videos showing how to replace the power board?

if I am not getting a fault code on the display and the refrigerator is not cooling and everything else checks out, its got to be the display unit or the board??

VERY NICE... thanks for time

I've replaced my control board since I wasn't getting to electricity to anything. It now powers up but im getting a L1 oP when I tried the magnet trick to test the switch. I hear the switch click and propane kicks on if I remove the magnet the switch goes back off and propane shuts off. What can I check next? Is it possible threat I crossed the in and out on the limit switch?

It looks like you unplugged the black cord from the black receptacle and then later plugged it into the white receptacle???? I thought one was DC and the other was AC. What happens to the DC side of the unit when you plug the 110 ac into it?

This video was a great start for troubleshooting my problem 1201LRM. I replaced the board but it is still blowing F3. Both heating elements are ~50 ohm and neither is shorted to ground. I can run either one (hi or lo) but when they are both plugged in F3 blows. Ever seen anything like that?

Hello. I had to change both heating elements i my norcold 1200. I had to cut the insulation from the stack to get them out. How do i get the insulation back in place? do i need to buy a small section and replace? Or can I just fold it back around and tape it? If I replace the piece what type of insulation do I use? And what type of tape do I secure it with. Thanks

How do test circuit to the gas valve, I have a Domestic RM2652. It runs fine on electric but trips on gas.I have 12 volts to the solenoid, pulled the coil I don't feel any magnetic field

Looked at a friend's travel trailer fridge it did not have 12 volt at the board and it also branches off to something else tried find where it connects to battery to see if there was another fuse somewhere but could not find it's source any suggestions

i wonder if u could just bypass the controle board to operate the LPG ... my be good to learn how before problems to operate in an emergancy situation... im going to go look at mine now :)

"... carry the 1 and ummm... theres an app for that ..." lmao i cant find the "bla bla bla " on my keyboard... :) i would guess the ice makers been wrkn overtime ... ty for ur vid

EPIC. Thanks.

Great Video Fantastic T/S techniques. I hope to see you my next trip through. PLEASE PLEASE keep the videos coming, HONEST RELIABLE repair places are hard to come by prior experience I was told the electrical boiler elements caused the board to short out. Looks like the problem was T/S wrong and I paid for parts and labor probably NOT NEEDED!

For me I tought is was a unstable controlboard. The fridge and freezer didn't work on auto with fridge and freezer when unplugged from shorepower. I did replace the controlboard without to solve this problem. It can work for a periode, and then turn off and get to hot in fridge and freezer. I has ''reset'' with the control module inside RV and turned between AC, gass and auto. It can work when doing this. Im thinking of some issue with the Control module for this Norcold? Has also add a ventfan in top of slideout for better cooling.The temp has worked fine when electroncs works properly.

If a Norcold N8X freezer/fridge heats up on gas really hot but doesn't do any cooling what could be wrong?