Norcold Burner | Orifice - Jet | Igniter | Flue Tube, Baffle, Cap

This video is included on this page because it teaches how to: turn off the gas to the burner to test the igniter, shows the flue tube, baffle (diffuser), why there should be a flue baffle, how to remove the burner orifice (or gas jet) for cleaning.

Please read on to solve all your burner problems:

Burner Assembly Drawing

This is a drawing of a typical Norcold burner assembly, see image below for location of orifice. This drawing identifies the burner orifice (sometimes called the burner jet) & the burner. Before cleaning the orifice, please see the companion page Gas Valve | Gas Valve Filter | VIDEO

ORIFICE CLEANING & INSPECTION

To clean the orifice or burner jet, remove the orifice from the assembly and soak in 90% isopropyl alcohol. It is best to look through the orifice, into the light, before cleaning so one can see the before and after results of cleaning. The orifice can be gently blown out after soaking, if any obstructions are seen, continue the soaking and blowing routine.
CAUTION: Never use high pressure compressed air to blow out the orifice, only gentle blowing of the burner jet is allowed.

If a new orifice is needed, there are numbers stamped on the orifice, typically these are the Norcold orifice part numbers:

N6xx & 8xx series: LP16

N7v, N7x, N7lx, N8v, N8x, N8lx, N10xx: LP18(non replaceable)

1200 & 1210 series: LP18

2118: series: LP22

Any time the propane piping or system is opened, perform a bubble test to confirm that there are no leaks, or do the NFPA 1192 Standard on Recreational Vehicles 2021, section 5.3.20.6 Pressure Drop Test.

BURNER FLAME & IGNITER

This is a photo of the burner flame and igniter. The first thing to note is the color of the flame and the fact that it is going up the flue tube. The next very important point is that one cannot look at the flame and know that the flame has the proper quality of heat. Only the Fridge Defend can detect this due to boiler overheating. Often folks look at the flame and say that it is OK, but the fridge is not cooling. This is a quality of heat issue.

If you do not have a Fridge Defend to read the boiler temperature, and your fridge is not cooling properly on propane (LP gas), one must follow the procedures for cleaning the LP filter Gas Valve | Gas Valve Filter | VIDEO & clean the burner orifice to know that the proper 'quality of heat' is delivered to the flue tube.

IGNITER ADJUSTMENT

This drawing shows how to adjust the igniter gap and adjust for proper function. The value for ‘d’ is 3/16” to 1/4” from the burner.

When the igniter probe is adjusted properly the tip will glow red in the flame (this is important). By turning off the valve on the gas valve, one can view the igniter arcing without ignition of the flame. Sometimes it is best to view the arc at night because the arc is hard to see in bright sunlight.

Another advantage to testing the igniter at night is so the igniter wire between the fridge controller and burner can be inspected for arcing. If there is no arc at the burner, and you can see an arc jumping from the igniter wire (or both), the wire may need to be replaced.

Typically, the flame should ignite within 2 strikes of the igniter.

FLUE, BAFFLE & CAP

This drawing is of the burner assembly along with the orifice location. Also, this drawing shows the chimney or flue tube. It is important to understand that there is a baffle (diffuser), which is seen in the video above. The baffle is required for proper propane operation. Ordinarily the baffle only needs to be removed for cleaning or replacement of the cooling unit.

On top of the flue is a cap that prevents wind from blowing down the flue while driving. Without this cap folks often have problems with the flame blowing out when driving.

Cleaning the Flue

In order to clean the flue, the burner assembly needs to be opened, we suggest to use a vacuum cleaner to suck out debris as the flue is being cleaned, thus this is best as a two person operation.

Next the flue baffle needs to be removed, therefore access to the top of the flue tube is critical. Some RVs, it is just not possible to access the top of the flue with the fridge in place. Scooting the fridge forward is the solution to this problem.

Once the flue cap is removed, one can access the Flue Baffle Wire to remove and inspect the baffle. Use a brass 12 gauge shotgun cleaning brush to clean the rust from the flue tube. Push the brush to the bottom without striking the igniter, this is where a helper comes in handy. Work from the bottom up with 1” back and forth strokes until you get to the top, shower, rinse and repeat 😁 That is, repeat the operation a number of times until no more debris drops down the tube.