7/29/16 Response to [redacted] We have been in business since 1984, specializing in the RV refrigerator repair and are also a state licensed school training others around the world in the field of comprehensive RV Refrigerator Reconditioning. We have written two books on this...
subject which are being sold worldwide, and have given many seminars to the RV community, plus we have written educational articles on the RV refrigerator for many RV industry magazines and RV clubs. We have never taken advantage of a customer and are not doing so now. The steps taken on Mr. [redacted]s RV refrigerator are as follows: When Mr. [redacted] brought the refrigerator in for service, his complaint was that the refrigerator control lights would not come on and the refrigerator would not work on the electric mode or the LP mode. During the diagnostics of Mr. [redacted]'s Norcold refrigerator, which has a minimum fee of $95, I found that some of wires to the 12 Volt recall kit had been cut and others had been disconnected. This recall kit is a safety designed by Norcold, the refrigerator manufacturer, and is there to shut off the refrigerator in case it over heats which could cause a fire. I contacted him and told him that the first step is to replace the recall kit and there would be no cost to him for the recall part or installation. Once this step was completed, we would then continue our diagnostics. He approved. When doing further diagnostics, we checked the 12 volt circuit. Then I found he did not have 110 volts going to his refrigerator. I checked the simplest possibilities and found no problem with them. I bypassed the Coaches 110 electrical system by connecting an extension cord directly to the refrigerator from our shops 110 volt plug in. I completed the diagnostics on the 110 volt mode by checking voltage, amperage, proper connections, thermistor, and examining the lower control board. I found that the refrigerator had no problems on the electric mode. From here I switched the refrigerator to the LP mode to check that side of the refrigerator. I found that the orifice, burner, and flue desperately needed to be cleaned and adjusted. The burner flame was very erratic and fluttering. It was so severe I made a video of it to use in our training. I contacted Mr. [redacted] and informed him that the electrical problem was in the coach not with the refrigerator and we only specialize in the RV refrigerator, not the entire coach. He said that was no problem and he would take care of the coaches electrical problem. I then explained the problems I found on the LP mode, which could possibly be taken care of by cleaning the burner and orifice but it may be possible they would have to be replaced. I also told him that I may have to remove the refrigerator to make these repairs. He said to try to clean it, if it did not work do whatever was necessary to repair it. I took steps to do the cleaning and adjusting. First, let me say that the access panel to the back of the refrigerator does not line up with the refrigerator. In other words, the refrigerator sits lower than the access panel making it very difficult to do the steps for the cleaning and adjustments. At that time, we discovered that someone before us had tried to remove the burner and stripped out the head of the screw to the burner. So with the limited working space I tried everything possible to remove it. I used a screw extractor which was unsuccessful. I tried drilling it out, still unsuccessful. At this point I knew the only way to complete this service was to remove the refrigerator. I disconnected the 110 and 12 Volt, did an LP drop test, disconnected the LP, and removed the screws from the rear of the refrigerator. We then went to the inside of the RV and laid down our drop clothes to protect the RV. To help assist in the removal of the refrigerator, we had to bring in and set up our lift so that we would not scratch or dent anything. I then removed the screws and trim from the front of the refrigerator. With one tech on the inside and one on the outside, we tried to remove the refrigerator from the opening in the RV as we have done thousands of times on other refrigerators. The two of us were not able to force the refrigerator out of the opening without using excessive force. In examining the situation, I noticed that the slide-out in the RV had damage on it where it looked like it had hit the frame holding the refrigerator into place. I was afraid that this damage had moved something in the refrigerator compartment which was restricting the release of the refrigerator. I did not want to damage Mr. [redacted]'s RV. I called him and explained the situation. He said I will get someone else and we will come up and help you remove it. I said this is great since I am afraid forcing it will cause damage and I want you to be here to witness it in case that happens. I said we would be closed the next week, he said he would call me the following Tuesday and give me a time when he and a friend could come help remove it. On Tuesday, while I was out of the office, Mr. [redacted] arrived alone and said he wanted to pick it up. He said he couldn’t get anyone to come and help during our open hours. He was told we could be here anytime that worked for him; he just needed to let us know when that was. He was told he could not take the unit that day because we would have to reassemble everything we had disconnected in order for it to be safe plus we would have to remove the lift and drop cloths but we could have it ready the next day. The next day, Mr. [redacted] called and said he wanted to pick up the coach. I again told him that we would still be happy to remove the refrigerator with him here to assist and witness the removal whenever it was convenient for him. He said he wanted to pick it up. I said that was fine. He asked what he owed. At this time I had the diagnostics plus nearly three hours of labor in this job. This does not count the changing out of the recall kit as this is a separate issue handled through Norcold. The time for the recall kit installation is not factored into the diagnostics or the approximate three hours and it was not included on his bill. Norcold will pay us $50 for the 30 minutes of installation time on the recall kit. Norcold will not pay for the diagnostics even if the recall kit had been the only thing we did. Therefore, Mr. [redacted]s portion of the bill should have been $380.00, however, because of the unusual situation; we only charged him $285.00. Mr. [redacted] was upset that we did not complete the job and I pointed out that I would be happy to complete it and that he had said he would help and bring a friend. He was now refusing what he suggested and did not want to pay for the work I had invested in his refrigerator. I’m sorry, but no business operates that way and no reputable company is going to do something they believe could cause damage when the owner has indicated they want to be there for that procedure. When Mr. [redacted] arrived to pick up the RV on Wednesday, July 27th, he was irate and when I tried to explain everything to him so there would be no hard feelings, he got more upset and said he didn’t want to talk about it. We completed the transaction and he left. I would like to make a not here that when Mr. [redacted] left, the refrigerator worked fine on Electric which it did not when it first came in. The LP mode will work, but the refrigerator will not cool sufficiently until the problems we found have been corrected. In closing, we are sorry Mr. [redacted] feels the way he does, but we are a business and we did not create the problems his refrigerator has and we did everything we could to help him including giving him a discount that we did not have to give. We would still be glad to help Mr. [redacted] providing he will not hold us responsible if there is damage incurred to get his refrigerator out of the RV refrigerator space by using excessive force.
7/29/16 Response to [redacted] We have been in business since 1984, specializing in the RV refrigerator repair and are also a state licensed school training others around the world in the field of comprehensive RV Refrigerator Reconditioning. We have written two books on this...
subject which are being sold worldwide, and have given many seminars to the RV community, plus we have written educational articles on the RV refrigerator for many RV industry magazines and RV clubs. We have never taken advantage of a customer and are not doing so now. The steps taken on Mr. [redacted]s RV refrigerator are as follows: When Mr. [redacted] brought the refrigerator in for service, his complaint was that the refrigerator control lights would not come on and the refrigerator would not work on the electric mode or the LP mode. During the diagnostics of Mr. [redacted]'s Norcold refrigerator, which has a minimum fee of $95, I found that some of wires to the 12 Volt recall kit had been cut and others had been disconnected. This recall kit is a safety designed by Norcold, the refrigerator manufacturer, and is there to shut off the refrigerator in case it over heats which could cause a fire. I contacted him and told him that the first step is to replace the recall kit and there would be no cost to him for the recall part or installation. Once this step was completed, we would then continue our diagnostics. He approved. When doing further diagnostics, we checked the 12 volt circuit. Then I found he did not have 110 volts going to his refrigerator. I checked the simplest possibilities and found no problem with them. I bypassed the Coaches 110 electrical system by connecting an extension cord directly to the refrigerator from our shops 110 volt plug in. I completed the diagnostics on the 110 volt mode by checking voltage, amperage, proper connections, thermistor, and examining the lower control board. I found that the refrigerator had no problems on the electric mode. From here I switched the refrigerator to the LP mode to check that side of the refrigerator. I found that the orifice, burner, and flue desperately needed to be cleaned and adjusted. The burner flame was very erratic and fluttering. It was so severe I made a video of it to use in our training. I contacted Mr. [redacted] and informed him that the electrical problem was in the coach not with the refrigerator and we only specialize in the RV refrigerator, not the entire coach. He said that was no problem and he would take care of the coaches electrical problem. I then explained the problems I found on the LP mode, which could possibly be taken care of by cleaning the burner and orifice but it may be possible they would have to be replaced. I also told him that I may have to remove the refrigerator to make these repairs. He said to try to clean it, if it did not work do whatever was necessary to repair it. I took steps to do the cleaning and adjusting. First, let me say that the access panel to the back of the refrigerator does not line up with the refrigerator. In other words, the refrigerator sits lower than the access panel making it very difficult to do the steps for the cleaning and adjustments. At that time, we discovered that someone before us had tried to remove the burner and stripped out the head of the screw to the burner. So with the limited working space I tried everything possible to remove it. I used a screw extractor which was unsuccessful. I tried drilling it out, still unsuccessful. At this point I knew the only way to complete this service was to remove the refrigerator. I disconnected the 110 and 12 Volt, did an LP drop test, disconnected the LP, and removed the screws from the rear of the refrigerator. We then went to the inside of the RV and laid down our drop clothes to protect the RV. To help assist in the removal of the refrigerator, we had to bring in and set up our lift so that we would not scratch or dent anything. I then removed the screws and trim from the front of the refrigerator. With one tech on the inside and one on the outside, we tried to remove the refrigerator from the opening in the RV as we have done thousands of times on other refrigerators. The two of us were not able to force the refrigerator out of the opening without using excessive force. In examining the situation, I noticed that the slide-out in the RV had damage on it where it looked like it had hit the frame holding the refrigerator into place. I was afraid that this damage had moved something in the refrigerator compartment which was restricting the release of the refrigerator. I did not want to damage Mr. [redacted]'s RV. I called him and explained the situation. He said I will get someone else and we will come up and help you remove it. I said this is great since I am afraid forcing it will cause damage and I want you to be here to witness it in case that happens. I said we would be closed the next week, he said he would call me the following Tuesday and give me a time when he and a friend could come help remove it. On Tuesday, while I was out of the office, Mr. [redacted] arrived alone and said he wanted to pick it up. He said he couldn’t get anyone to come and help during our open hours. He was told we could be here anytime that worked for him; he just needed to let us know when that was. He was told he could not take the unit that day because we would have to reassemble everything we had disconnected in order for it to be safe plus we would have to remove the lift and drop cloths but we could have it ready the next day. The next day, Mr. [redacted] called and said he wanted to pick up the coach. I again told him that we would still be happy to remove the refrigerator with him here to assist and witness the removal whenever it was convenient for him. He said he wanted to pick it up. I said that was fine. He asked what he owed. At this time I had the diagnostics plus nearly three hours of labor in this job. This does not count the changing out of the recall kit as this is a separate issue handled through Norcold. The time for the recall kit installation is not factored into the diagnostics or the approximate three hours and it was not included on his bill. Norcold will pay us $50 for the 30 minutes of installation time on the recall kit. Norcold will not pay for the diagnostics even if the recall kit had been the only thing we did. Therefore, Mr. [redacted]s portion of the bill should have been $380.00, however, because of the unusual situation; we only charged him $285.00. Mr. [redacted] was upset that we did not complete the job and I pointed out that I would be happy to complete it and that he had said he would help and bring a friend. He was now refusing what he suggested and did not want to pay for the work I had invested in his refrigerator. I’m sorry, but no business operates that way and no reputable company is going to do something they believe could cause damage when the owner has indicated they want to be there for that procedure. When Mr. [redacted] arrived to pick up the RV on Wednesday, July 27th, he was irate and when I tried to explain everything to him so there would be no hard feelings, he got more upset and said he didn’t want to talk about it. We completed the transaction and he left. I would like to make a not here that when Mr. [redacted] left, the refrigerator worked fine on Electric which it did not when it first came in. The LP mode will work, but the refrigerator will not cool sufficiently until the problems we found have been corrected. In closing, we are sorry Mr. [redacted] feels the way he does, but we are a business and we did not create the problems his refrigerator has and we did everything we could to help him including giving him a discount that we did not have to give. We would still be glad to help Mr. [redacted] providing he will not hold us responsible if there is damage incurred to get his refrigerator out of the RV refrigerator space by using excessive force.