The short answer
On a freight-delivered cabinet, early noise is nearly always installation: packing not removed, feet not levelled, or a door reversed slightly out of true. Work through the setup before you suspect the appliance.
What you actually see and hear
- Noise from the first day it was switched on — Installation, not wear. Something is still where the shipper left it.
- A rattle from the back or underneath — Packing material, a loose rear pan or tubing that shifted in transit.
- A drone that changes when the cabinet is rocked — Feet not levelled on the floor where it ended up.
- A tick or tap when a door closes — A reversed door that no longer sits quite square.
- Clicking with no sustained run — The start circuit - and on a newly delivered cabinet, worth reporting straight away.
Causes, most likely first on this machine
- Transit packing not fully removed — First on a freight-delivered appliance. Blocks, foam and tape inside the compressor area and behind the cabinet are routinely left in place.
- Feet not levelled — Second. The delivery crew sets the cabinet down; levelling is the owner's job and it is skipped more often than not.
- Tubing or pan displaced in transit — Third. A cabinet carried on its side can leave a pipe touching the shell, which buzzes whenever the compressor runs.
- Doors reversed out of square — Fourth, and specific to online purchases: reversal is an owner job on most of these cabinets and a slightly misaligned door taps and leaks cold air.
- Normal fan and defrost sounds on a frost-free cabinet — Fifth. Worth recognising rather than repairing.
- Start relay or compressor — Last, but on a newly delivered appliance it is the one to report immediately rather than investigate.
Check in this order, and why
- Check the manual's list of transit packing and confirm every piece is out — This is the first thing to do on any freight-delivered appliance.
- Level the cabinet on all four feet — Rocking is both a noise and a door-alignment cause.
- Look behind for a pipe or pan touching the shell — A cabinet that travelled on its side is the usual reason.
- If the doors were reversed, check they sit square and close cleanly — A tap on closing is the tell.
What an owner can safely check
- Remove every piece of transit packing listed in the manual — Check the compressor area at the back as well as the interior.
Tools: torchAbout 20 min
- Level the cabinet on all four feet with a slight backward tilt — It cures noise, door swing and drainage together.
Tools: spirit levelAbout 20 min
- Pull the cabinet clear of the wall and check nothing touches the shell — Nudge suspect pipes gently with a wooden handle while it runs.
Tools: torchAbout 15 min
- Check reversed doors for square and adjust the hinge if the kit allows — A door that taps on closing is not sitting right.
Tools: screwdriverAbout 25 min
- STOP HERE if the compressor clicks without running — On a new appliance, report it rather than investigating it.
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the appliance or switch off its breaker before removing any panel - a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off. A freight-delivered cabinet should be stood upright and left to settle before it is switched on for the first time. The compressor and relay at the back stay live until the unit is unplugged, and the defrost heater on a frost-free cabinet sits behind the freezer rear panel - never chip ice with anything metal.
When to call a technician
Contact the seller rather than an independent technician for anything that looks like a fault on a recently delivered cabinet - freight damage and early failures are their responsibility and going elsewhere can complicate a claim. Report a clicking compressor immediately. For packing, levelling and door alignment, do the work yourself: those are setup tasks the delivery did not include, and they account for most early noise complaints.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
This page is written for the freight-delivered full-size refrigerator class, not for one family or model line. Where a brand- or model-specific page exists for your unit it is the more specific answer and it is linked above, so go there first if your machine is named. What is deliberately not here: compressor and fan part numbers, thermostat ranges, door reversal instructions and shelf dimensions, all of which differ by family and belong on the page for that family.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
