The short answer
On the Black Decker BCD refrigerator an unfamiliar noise is usually something inside or behind the cabinet being shaken by a machine that is working normally. The BCD table covers several distinct stems, so the checks below hold for every model in the table and the fastest of them need no tools at all.
What you observe
- A buzz or drone that comes through the floor — Loudest in the room next door or in a cupboard, quieter beside the cabinet itself.
- A rattle that starts and stops with the compressor — Something loose is being shaken by a part that is behaving perfectly.
- A whirr, chirp or scrape that stops when the door opens — That is the cabinet fan, and a fan that only complains under load is either touching ice or running on a worn bearing.
- NEAR MISS — noise with a cabinet that is also warming — Then the noise is a symptom of the cooling fault, not the complaint.
Causes, most likely first on the BCD family
- Loose contents, shelves and the drip pan — First on this family — the BCD table covers several distinct stems — and it is a question of layout: the mechanism is small and the shell is thin, so a bottle against the rear wall or a drip pan sitting proud of its rails is enough to turn a normal cycle into a rattle that sounds terminal.
- Cabinetry contact and an unlevel floor — Second. A side panel touching a worktop or a unit standing on an old floor transmits the compressor hum into the building. The tell is a noise that is louder one room away than it is beside the appliance.
- A fan touching frost or its shroud — Third, and the first of the causes that is an actual fault. It tracks the fan rather than the compressor, and on most builds it stops the moment the door is opened.
- Compressor mounts, tubing contact and bearing wear — Last. These are steady, unchanging and indifferent to what you do with the door or the contents — which is exactly how you tell them apart from the three above.
Check in this order, and why
- Empty the cabinet and run it for one cycle — First because it is free and because a startling share of these complaints end here: nothing inside, no noise, done.
- Check the drip pan and every removable tray — Second: they sit directly on the part that vibrates, so a pan slightly off its rails is the loudest possible version of a healthy machine.
- Pull the cabinet clear and level it — Third — this both removes cabinetry contact and tells you whether the room was amplifying the noise all along.
- Now time the noise against the cycle — Last, with the easy causes gone: a noise that starts with the fan, survives an empty cabinet and ignores where the unit stands is the one worth paying to fix.
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. Keep fingers clear of a fan that may restart on its own when a door closes or a timer advances, and never run the cabinet with a fan shroud removed.
Models in the BCD family
Reference| Model number | Family key |
|---|---|
| BCD-213 | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-282WXP | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-283U | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-340WEVPH-62H | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-342WXP | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-413WXP | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-455WTEI(N)-A1-62H-E | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-510WTEI(N)-A1-62H-E | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-513WAX-IMP | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
| BCD-513WXP | black-decker:refrigerator:bcd |
When to call a technician
Call when the noise is steady, rises with running time and ignores everything you change — that pattern is bearing wear, and it does not improve. Call immediately if the noise arrives with a burning smell, with a cabinet that is also warming, or with a compressor that clicks in and out every few minutes; at that point the noise is the least interesting thing happening.
Other faults covered for the BCD family
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
