Furrion Camera Adapter and Refrigerator Temperature Issues While Towing

Question

Question:

Hello, we have a 2021 F350 short bed diesel truck pulling a Cougar 36foot fifth wheel. We installed the adapter and the rear camera on the fifth wheel now works great - no more jumpy video. But weve noticed issues with our Furrion 12 Volt side-by-side refrigerator after were done traveling for the day - its warmer inside than on non-travel days sometimes 44-49 degrees inside the frig. The freezer works fine. Weve defrosted it several times. Is there a chance that this adapter is affecting the power to the frig, since it seems to happen when the trailer has been plugged into the truck with the adapter? If not, then Im guessing the fan in the freezer is going out. Thank you.

asked by: April R

0

Expert Reply:

April, that is actually a really good observation. Since the part # FR87PR plugs into the truck's 7 way connection, and many 12 volt refrigerators rely on the trailer battery system while traveling, I cannot completely rule out a power related issue without a little more information. The truck's charge line through the 7 way helps maintain the trailer batteries while towing, so if there were a charging issue, it could potentially affect refrigerator performance.

Because the freezer is staying cold, I am still leaning more toward an airflow issue inside the refrigerator itself. Many 12 volt refrigerators use a circulation fan to move cold air from the freezer into the fresh food compartment. One easy thing to check is whether you can hear that fan running when the refrigerator is actively cooling. If the fan is intermittent, making unusual noises, or not running at all, that could explain why the refrigerator section is warming up while the freezer remains cold. I would also inspect the vents between the freezer and refrigerator compartments for any frost buildup, food packaging, or debris that could be restricting airflow. Since the problem seems to show up after towing, I would also check any visible fan wiring and connections for signs of a loose connection that could be affected by road vibration.

One thing that would really help narrow this down is whether the refrigerator section cools back down normally after you arrive and plug into shore power. I would also be curious what your trailer battery voltage looks like at the end of a travel day. If the batteries are arriving low despite being connected to the truck, then I would start looking more closely at the charging circuit and power delivery through the 7 way. If the batteries are staying healthy and only the refrigerator compartment is warming, then I would still suspect the circulation fan or airflow system inside the refrigerator.

Can you tell me how the batteries in your Cougar are charged? Do you have solar, an inverter system, or are you primarily relying on the truck's charge line while traveling?

expert reply by: Heather A

0

Larry

5/31/2026

Sounds like the fan motor is bad. Freezing top but not blowing to fridge.

Heather A.

6/4/2026

@Larry Thanks for sharing your thoughts! That's certainly one of the possibilities we're considering. The fact that the freezer continues to stay cold while the refrigerator compartment warms up does point toward an airflow issue, and a circulation fan that isn't moving cold air from the freezer into the fresh food section could definitely cause those symptoms. Have you experienced a similar issue with your refrigerator, or are you basing that on troubleshooting you've done in the past? I'd be interested to hear more, since real-world experiences can be really helpful when tracking down intermittent problems like this.

Paul C.

5/31/2026

We haven’t noticed our freezer not getting as cold from travel days. We did however notice it not working as well when we had it packed too tight and it wasn’t getting the correct airflow. We had issues with ice cream being too soft for sure. However when we changed how we packed that freezer, it did work better for us. I will also say that we have 600 ah lithium batteries, so the chances of us going flat on a day drive is very low. I can tell you that we get about 5 amps an hour from the truck over the 7 pin. So if your batteries aren’t holding charge and the freezer is using more than 5 amps an hour, it could be possible that isn’t a power issue. And that 5 amps is with 1 rear camera. When we had the rear and the 2 side cameras on our 28 cougar. We were only getting about 2 amps an hour from the 7 pin. I would definitely consider the airflow and the power draw. I hope this helps.

Heather A.

6/4/2026

@PaulC Thanks for chiming in, Paul! That's actually some really helpful real-world information, especially the part about seeing reduced cooling performance when the freezer was packed too tightly. Airflow is easy to overlook, but it can make a huge difference in how well the refrigerator section stays cool. I also appreciate you sharing your charge-line observations. Knowing you were only seeing about 5 amps from the truck with one camera and closer to 2 amps with three cameras is interesting. That definitely highlights the importance of having a healthy battery bank, especially for 12V refrigerator systems. Out of curiosity, how full was your freezer when you noticed the ice cream getting soft? I'm wondering if April might be seeing something similar, especially if the freezer is staying cold while the refrigerator compartment is the one struggling. Thanks again for taking the time to share your experience!

April R.

5/31/2026

Thank you, Heather! The trailer has solar and an inverter.

Heather A.

6/4/2026

@AprilR That helps quite a bit. Since your refrigerator is a 12-volt model, it's actually running directly from the trailer's battery system, with the solar helping keep those batteries charged. If the refrigerator performs normally while you're camping and not connected to shore power, that would suggest the batteries are generally keeping up with the refrigerator's power demands. With the freezer continuing to cool properly, I'm still leaning toward an airflow issue inside the refrigerator itself rather than the camera adapter affecting power delivery. The fact that the issue seems to show up after towing makes me wonder if a circulation fan, wiring connection, or airflow damper could be getting affected by road vibration and then recovering later. Just out of curiosity, once you're set up at camp, does the refrigerator section eventually return to its normal temperature on its own? Also, have you noticed whether the cooling fan inside the unit sounds different after a travel day compared to when the trailer has been sitting still? I'd be interested to hear what you find, because the freezer staying cold while the refrigerator warms up is a pretty important clue. Let me know what you find, we can keep troubleshooting until we get it figured out.

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Furrion Camera Adapter and Refrigerator Temperature Issues While Towing

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