Your Fridge Is Noisy

Is your fridge making a noise and you don't know why? We're going to tell you the various factors that could be causing this, and how to solve them.

THE POSSIBLE CAUSES FOR THIS FAULT :

• The appliance isn't stabilised

• The condensor coil tubes are touching

• The shelves are poorly positioned

• The fan is rubbing against something

• The electric damper is worn out

• The thermal fuses are defective

• The defrost heating element is faulty

• The defrost timer is broken

• The sensors are damaged

• The thermostat is no longer regulating properly

• The motherboard is faulty

• The compressor is damaged

• The coolant is having trouble circulating

WARNING
Before you do anything to your appliance, make sure you disconnect it from the power supply.
There is a risk of electric shock.

The appliance isn't stabilised

Your fridge can start vibrating if it isn't stable. To sort out the issue, you can use a spirit level to help you stabilise it.

The condensor coil tubes are touching

The tubes and the black condensor coil at the back of your fridge may be loose and may start vibrating. It may also be the case that these tubes are touching each other or touching something else like the wall for example, which could also be creating noise. Try separating them by gently pulling them apart a few millimetres.

The shelves are poorly positioned

If the shelves or the drawers at the bottom of your fridge aren't level they will vibrate when your fridge's compressor is operating. You can use little bits of foam to stabilise everything.

Purchase a shelf for your refrigerator

The fan is rubbing against something

Your fridge's fan may be noisy, if it is rubbing against another component. You can dismantle it and and check there's nothing in the way. If this isn't the case, you will need to replace it. If not, you can always apply a little silicon grease to the axles to reduce the noise.

The electric damper is worn out

On fridge-freezers equipped with No Frost (frost free) technology, each time the fridge compartment requests more coldness, the fan on the freezer compartment begins operating. At this point, the electric damper opens and lets the coldness through. It may be that the damper has started groaning and creaking. If this is the case, you can try greasing it with silicon grease. If it has trouble opening or keeps opening and shutting all the time, you must replace it.

Purchase an electric damper for your refrigerator

The thermal fuses are defective

The thermal fuses are thermal protection components. If they are defective, no defrosting can take place which creates excess ice, which will end up rubbing on the fan blade and creating a noise. You can test your fridge's fuses by using a multimeter set to the ohmmeter position. Locate the thermal fuses which are usually near the evaporator and the defrost heating element. Disconnect all the connectors and place both the tester's tips on the thermal hose's two terminals to check for continuity. If there is no continuity then you need to replace them.

Purchase a thermal fuse for your refrigerator

The defrost heating element is faulty

The defrost heating element is for defrosting any potential ice formation on the frost compartment of your fridge. If the defrost heating element is defective it will lead to excess ice which could touch the fan turbine and then make a noise. You can test this using a multimeter in ohmmeter mode. Locate the defrost heating element which is usually fixed onto the evaporator. Disconnect all the connectors and place both the tester's tips on the heating element's two terminals to check for continuity (it should give a reading). If there is no continuity, you will need to replace it.

Purchase a defrost heating for your refrigerator

The defrost timer is broken

The defrost timer allows your fridge to defrost automatically. If the defrost timer is defective it will lead to excess ice which could touch the fan turbine and then make a noise. To test it, you can manually turn the timer yourself until the defrosting process begins, at which point you'll hear a click. Wait to see whether the heating element starts heating up. If this is not the case, and the thermal fuses aren't defective, then you need to replace the timer.

The sensors are damaged

The sensors on the fridge and freezer are used to take readings of the temperatures in the different compartments. They also serve to turn off the heating elements at the end of the defrost cycle. If the sensors are defective it will lead to excess ice which could touch the fan turbine and then make a noise. You can use a multimeter set to ohmmeter mode to check them. Locate the sensors (usually one is near the evaporator, one is in the freezer cavity and the last one is in the fridge cavity). Disconnect all the connectors and place both the tester's tips on the sensor's two terminals to check their values (there should be a precise reading for both. Get in contact with us or the manufacturer to find out these values.). If these sensors are the cause, you need to replace them.

Purchase a sensor for your refrigerator

The thermostat is no longer regulating properly

If the thermostat is faulty, it will no longer be able to regulate the temperature in your fridge properly. In that case, the excess coldness will create a build-up of ice which will end up touching the fan turbine and creating a noise. To test it, you can put the thermostat bulb in a very cold glass of water (except freezer thermostats) and set the thermostat to minimum. If the thermostat does not switch on, you will need to replace it. You can then use a multimeter to check its continuity.

Purchase a thermostat for your refrigerator

The motherboard is faulty

If the motherboard that regulates the temperature is faulty, the fridge will run non-stop and get too cold. This can cause excess ice, which will end up touching the fan turbine. Before deciding to replace the motherboard, make sure you've first carefully checked the sensors, thermal fuses and heating element that are upstream of it.

Purchase a motherboard for your refrigerator

The compressor is damaged

If the compressor is faulty it may be due to the internal valves which are worn out. It will have trouble circulating the coolant inside the circuit, which in turn leads to excess ice which ends up rubbing against the fan turbine and making a noise. If you have to replace the compressor, you will need to call in an engineer who has been approved by the brand.

The coolant is having trouble circulating

L’huile du moteur peu s'infiltrer dans le circuit du fluide frigorigène. La rencontre entre le fluide et l’huile du moteur peut boucher le circuit. Le fluide va donc avoir des difficultés à circuler et peut créer un excès de givre qui finira par frotter contre la turbine du ventilateur, et donc faire du bruit.
Le circuit peut être légèrement chargé d’huile ou d’humidité. Il se peut aussi que votre circuit frigorigène soit bruyant ou que la dilatation des parois crée de drôle de bruit : chuchotement, glougloutement, bruit d’eau qui coule, petite pétarade et craquement. Ce type de bruits sont très difficiles à retirer et généralement font partie de la conception de votre réfrigérateur. Le bruit peut apparaître au bout de plusieurs mois, les techniciens vous diront que c’est normal n’ayant pas vraiment de solution.