We have a 2004 45" Sea Ray Sedan...

[KnotHome]

We have a 2004 45" Sea Ray Sedan Bridge.  Have gone through 2 upright refrigerator/freezer in 5 years.  Has anyone found a decent refrigerator out there that they are happy with and you don't have to defrost every few weeks?  How many have just put in a household refrigerator and if happy with that - what brand / model?  Thanks

[PETERW]

I replaced the NeverCold refrigerator in my last boat with a regular apartment type frost free refrigerator. I was fortunate enough to find a size that fit the hole perfectly. Took a bit of searching but happened to find one at Home Depot of all places.I attached angle stock to the box and fastened the unit to the cabinetry that way and covered it with nice moulding matching the cabinet. Looked like a perfect original installed unit. I powered it with a 1500 watt Xantrex modified sine wave inverter. You need to have good ventilation at top and bottom and on sides. The sides should also have at least a 1" clearance from the inside of the cabinetry. I was able to cut 4x8 vent openings on the bottom side and back of the cabinet enclosure. The top had a one inch gap which is adequate. I was really happy the way this worked out and will do the same kind of install when the refrigerator in our 2005 340 quits.
The only issue that I noticed while in the frost free mode the drip tray could be larger. On two occasions we found a little water on the cabin floor when we had extreme high humidity.

[wingless]

Welcome to the forum.

The Nocold 'fridge installed by Sea Ray when they built the boat was replaced by me about a decade ago w/ an Isotherm.

That has been a great upgrade.

The Isotherm, plus other brands, have a Danfoss compressor system. The Danfoss refrigeration is the only one appropriate for our marine application.

In my case the Danfoss refrigerator controller gave up the ghost and I swapped it w/ a new replacement part. It has been fine for years after this fix.

[KnotHome]

Thanks so much for the replies. This is very helpful.

[Dani-Lu]

I replaced my upright norcold with a vitrifrigo. Its deeper and roomier than the norcold. An quieter! Very happy with it.

[justone]

KnotHome, Please let me know if you find a refrigerator that works for you! I have the same problems with my Norcold. I have been researching this for along time and through reviews, I haven't found one that would be better than the one I have. My Norcold is NORDE-0061R. Any suggestions would be great!

[osully]

interesting comments - I've a 14 yr old norco which struggles to keep the temperature when its hot (+27 or more) and thinking about replacing so may look at vitrifigo. - they also seem a LOT cheaper? thx

[uncle_buck]

I have novakool ac/dc so far so good they are made in Vancouver Canada side by side

[wingless]

If the 'fridge already has a Danfoss compressor, then it may be possible to add a current limited LED to discover the detected flashing fault codes.

This topic has related information.

It may be possible to restore normal operation by swapping the controller.

https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f115/wingless-danfoss-bd50f-101n0500-refrigerator-problems-218711.html

[KnotHome]

Thanks everyone for the advice/suggestions. We are still figuring out the best options but the suggestions were appreciated.