Knocking Sound

I say this a lot, but it depends. How old is the refrigerator? What style (top freezer, bottom freezer, side-by-side)? How long has it been making these sounds? How loud are they? How long do they last? When in the cycle do the sounds occur?

My refridgerator makes that sound.  The technician told me it is do to ice build up behind the shield.  When he opened it, i could actually see ice behind the back panel.

I don't think that is a desirable thing.  Mine was do to the thermostat not working properly.

We bought a Kenmore Elite...2 months ago....bottom freezer..couldn't stand the whirring and loud knocking..returned it and got a replacement..this one #59676052702 is even louder! Every 15 mins or so it starts..whirring gets louder and then the knocking, and then a bang as it finishes its cycle..this noise lasts anywhere from 60 to 90 secs..day and night every 15 minutes! We are having a repairman in next week to see if it is fixable..very disappointing since now we have had two models, same brand, etc with same problems..why are they still being sold?

The noise your refrigerator makes when it goes through the defrost cycle seems to concern people the most. All self-defrosting refrigerators go through a defrost cycle about every 6-15 hours and it lasts for approximately 30 minutes each time. During this time you will hear gurgling, popping, sizzling, hissing and water running. In fact, if you open your freezer door and look inside at just the right time, you will see a reddish orange glow emitting from the back of the freezer wall. All of this is absolutely normal, and prevents ice from building up in the inside of the refrigerator. So don't panic if your refrigerator is gurgling, check it again in 30 minutes when defrost cycle is complete. Even after it is complete, you will hear gurgling every once in awhile when the refrigerant flows through the tubes in the refrigerator.

Icemakers make a lot of weird noises. You might hear a buzzing when it is calling for water and the sound of water running when the icemaker is filling. In addition you will hear clicking snapping of water valve and bail arm and creaking cracking of ice being ejected. You can also get a hammering or thumping noise during fill of the icemaker or if your water line is bumping against the cabinet during fill. In addition, you will also get a grinding noise if you get a cube of ice stuck in the ice ejector arm. An important point to remember is that your icemaker can make noise even if it is not hooked up to water. If your icemaker is not hooked up to water but is on, it will still make that grinding noise when it is calling for water (even if no water is there). So the solution to that, is simply turn your icemaker off if it is not connected to water.

I am afraid ths isn't relevant..we are getting these noises every 15 minutes..not hours so seems to be a different  problem...we are trying the other idea..of putting the arm up in the freezer even with the ice-maker not hooked up.

I can't believe it was such a simple solution..we clicked the icemaker arm into the Off  position and have had no weird noises since then..a couple of hours ago, so we are sure it has been solved. Thank you so much, will cancel the repair guy! In the brochure it mentions turning it On or Off but not that you HAVE to turn it off if it is not connected to water..and we've had lots of discussions with the sales people but they obviously didn't know about this. Again, many thanks.

ggbrax said…

My refrigerator makes a knocking or clicking sound when it is going through the cycling process.  Is this normal?

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You do not provide enough info to know exactly what 'cycling' you mean - defrost or refrigeration or are you refering to ice maker cycling? Until you say, any comment is pure guesswork.

I do believe it is fixed..because we turned the freezer arm to OFF. On reflection, the installer should have set this up and explained it also..neither of which happened..with the first fridge or the replacement.

Hope all is well..

It is indeed..Sears needs to tell the installers to switch off the ice maker arm and inform the customer that they are doing so. We returned the first fridge for no good reason because we didn't have the correct information...a waste of time for all.

I just purchased a Kenmore 253.68979802 fridge and have had it for almost 2 weeks.  It is so noisy and I can hear it in the living room even when I have the TV on.  We bought the extended warranty (5 yrs) and made an appt with a tech to come see if something is wrong with it.  He informed me that it was fine, that *new* refridgerators are just noisy! It runs for 15 min or so everytime we open the door.  I called the Sears store and was told that we bought a *lowend* appliance and that they tend to be noiser.  I am so frustrated.  I think I am going to have to return it because I am just not adjusting to the rackett it makes.  Any advice from anyone out there on what to buy?  I have a limited amount of space and can not have the side by side type.  My biggest fear is that I will invest an additional $500 and still have a noisy fridge.  And we already paid a $60.00 delivery fee!!!  Please help.

The 253 model is made by frigidaire corporation its a great fridge, but I think your correct you could exchange it & still have the same issue. Is it possible you could turn the thermostat down a little mabe it wont run so much.. just a thought 

Thanks for your reply.  We did that :(

We solved our noisy fridge by clicking off the ice-maker arm..we didn't have it hooked up (by choice) but we weren't told it had to actually be switched OFF or it still acts like an icemaker. This was a replacement fridge..we returned the first one..same problem..

Got a new bisque Kenmore 20.6 top-mount  (46-78234) 3 weeks ago and it "knocks" 15-20 seconds into the compressor start-up cycle.  Repairman and I isolated the noise to be coming from the center-to-upper part of the sealed rear cabinet.  All accessible lower workings are quiet.  The EnergyStar fridge is quiet and seldom runs otherwise.  Build date is a very fresh 09-09 and they say they don't have another to replace it anymore.  Very disappointing.  The noise is nothing I ever heard in other new or old fridges, NOR has the Sears repairman ever heard such a knock.  Perhaps the freon line is rubbing internal case as it gets cold? (FYI: No ice-maker installed)  Knock goes away after 20-30 secs of cooling until the next time the compressor starts.   Shouldn't have to listen to this all day & night.  My now gone 27 year old GE purred along, although it ran more! 

sounds like the compressor is going bad.  i had the same problem with my 8 year old kenmore. The sounds got worse and louder until the frige just broke.  call another repairman unless you have a warranty or are sure what is going on, it could save you a bunch of money.

 now I am buying a new refrigerator and it wont be at sears.

The directions for clicking-off the icemaker can be found ON the icemaker, inside of the freezer, behind a little door that holds the sliding ice compartment.

I will advise the Blue Crew at the store to ask if the water is "hooked-up" to the refrigerator and wheter the icemaker is turned on, if the water is NOT hooked up.

Thank you for the tip.

I have the same knocking noise. I purchased this refrigerator in June. Made in Mexico. This is a ****** refrigerator. Had my previous Sears refrigerator for 15 years and never heard a knocking noise.

Is the icemaker ON, without no water hooked up?