Door on Freezer spring has slipped so door does not stay closed. Any Ideas?

The freezer door spring has slipped so door does not stay closed. Nothing broke other than the spring has slipped. Any ideas on how to get it back in position so it stays closed? Tried to force it to one side while rotating the spring, no go. Don't want to break it for sure.

[Padgett]

One without the spring is handy to hold the door open when needed. I'd just use some weatherproof Velcro to hold it closed (needs about a 1/4" dot, use alcohol to clean the surfaces first).

ps where do you carry the generators en route ?

Good idea about fridge. Generators are in the back of the SUV. Kind of a pain there, but I do not have a better idea.

[Padgett]

That is why I bought the Predator, it should fit in the rear battery compartment. May need to rig some sort of derrick to get in and out or a LOT of sound deadening and an exhaust pipe out the side by the battery vent. Not sure yet how 75 lbs there will affect sway though.

Bill - I see in the thread you posted that you have had this same problem with the freezer spring, did you get your spring to tighten or have you found some jury-rig that helps? Our freezer door also has "open mouth disease". I haven't tried the velco dot yet but think I might try it before our next trip.

I don't understand the hinge fix suggestion and don't have the TM here at home in order to better look at the hinges(?), but is the suggested procedure to remove a hinge and then twist the hinge itself in a tightening direction? Sorry to be so dense.

[davlin]

This probably isn't the answer that everyone is looking for, but on our old 3326 the freezer door spring gave up while we were camping. For whatever reason, I had a little wooden shim (about an 1/8th of an inch thick as I recall) in the kitchen drawer nearby. I slid that shim between the freezer door and the refrigerator wall to hold the freezer door shut. Every time we opened the freezer door (which is not all that often) we would just remove and replace the shim.

I always meant to look for a better solution when we got back, but time passed, and we just continued using that shim....for years! When we sold the 3326, I pointed that out to the new owner and told him the story. He said he doubted he would change it out for anything better.

Dave

[Kidkraz]

Some times the simplest solution is the best solution.

[Lindaloo58]

I used the Velcro, but used a strip instead of dots to fit across the top of the freezer and then put another strip across the gasket on the freezer door. It stays closed. We've had it like this for years. I did use extra glue on the back of the Velcro to make sure it sticks.

I too used Velcro, but if anyone wants the part numbers to replace the springs they are:
Norcold 6163293G and 6163303G left and right (I think)

Camping World SKU 43297 and 24081 again, left and right...although I have yet to come across a CW that has both parts in stock.

[Bill]

My freezer door lost its closer a couple years ago, and I didn’t do anything about it until today. Once I discovered the proper technique, it is not difficult to fix, but it is an annoying job. Annoying first because you are working with small spring-loaded parts. And second because you have to work while lying on your back. Not only is this uncomfortable, but it means that left becomes right, and right becomes left, so instructions can get confusing. Sorry I don’t have better pictures.

You will need two tools, shown in the first picture - a ¼” nutdriver, and a block of wood an inch or two square, and 3/8” or 7/16” thick. The length and width don’t matter, but the thickness does. I didn’t have a block of the right thickness, so I taped two thinner strips together. Here are the steps that worked on my door.

Underneath the bottom edge of the door are four screws, two on each end as shown in Picture 2. Remove them. The door will fall out of the opening, along with the metal bracket pieces that held the screws. As you can also see in Figure 2, each piece consists of a flat area with the two screw holes, and a round area at one end. Left and right brackets are not interchangeable.

Notice that the round area of each bracket meshed with a white nylon toothed wheel on the side wall of the refrig. The reason the door won't close is that it slipped a cog on the bracket. Notice also that the nylon wheel on the left is longer than the wheel on the right. Furthermore, the wheel on the right is solidly mounted, while the wheel on the left can move left and right against a spring.

Now set the door back in the proper closed position in the frame. Insert the wood block into the gap on the left end of the door (Picture 3), to force the door to the right and hold it there.

Get on your back, looking upward. Position the right bracket under the lower edge of the door, at the place it fell out of, but with the screws pointed inward toward the back wall of the refrigerator. Slide the bracket to the right, so that the round part of the bracket slips over the white nylon wheel and the teeth engage. Now the fun part. While you continue to push the bracket to the right, twist it ¼ turn to make the screws point upward. Don’t let it disengage the white nylon teeth! When the screws are pointed upward, hold the bracket in place while you insert and tighten the two screws.

Now do the same thing on the other end. Hold the bracket with the screws pointed at the back wall of the refrig, push it left to engage the white nylon teeth, then twist ¼ turn to make the screws point upward. Insert the screws and tighten them. At this point you are done. You should be able to remove the wood block, and the door should close normally. Mine does. But if you choose to stay with velcro or wedges, rather than doing this, I certainly understand.

Bill