What you are actually seeing
- A rattle or vibration that changes when you press on the cabinet
- A whirring or chirping from inside the fresh-food compartment
- Not this fault: Noise plus a compartment that will not get cold
Ranked causes on a Contoure refrigerator
- Cabinet not level or not sitting on all four feet — Ranked here because: an RV is level only when someone levels it, and several of these appliances will not work correctly out of level
- Loose drain pan or a loose rear panel — Ranked here because: a few hundred miles of road vibration loosens connections, fasteners and plumbing joints that would never move in a house
- Compressor start relay or overload clicking — Ranked here because: the converter and the transfer switch sit between the appliance and whatever is actually powering it, and both fail in ways that look like a dead machine
- Cabinet touching a wall, cabinetry or another appliance — Ranked here because: a coach installation is tighter than any domestic one and the venting and clearance shortcuts taken during the build show up as faults later
- Condenser fan blade fouled or motor bearing worn — Ranked here because: this is a wear part with a service life rather than a component that fails at random
What to check, and in what order
- Open the fresh-food door with the cabinet running and listen for the sound to stop
- Press each of the four corners of the cabinet in turn and note any rocking or any change in the sound
- Pull the cabinet clear of the wall and cabinetry and listen again
- With the cabinet still running, rest a hand flat on the rear access panel and on the drain pan
Steps you can safely do yourself
- Pull the cabinet clear of the wall and cabinetry and listen again — Tools: none — Estimated time: a few minutes
- With the cabinet still running, rest a hand flat on the rear access panel and on the drain pan — Tools: none — Estimated time: a few minutes
- Unplug the cabinet and clear dust from the condenser coil and the condenser fan blade — Tools: vacuum with a crevice tool, coil brush — Estimated time: about twenty minutes
- Stand at the cabinet and place the sound: inside the compartment, at the back, or at the base — Tools: none — Estimated time: a couple of minutes
- Open the fresh-food door with the cabinet running and listen for the sound to stop — Tools: none — Estimated time: a minute
Safety
Safety
unplug-before-service
When to call a technician
the noise comes from the sealed system or the compressor itself, which is not an owner repair the evaporator fan is icing repeatedly, because that is a defrost fault and not a fan fault the compressor is clicking without starting, because the cabinet is losing temperature while you decide
Nearest pages
What this page does not cover
Not this fault: the family pages for the refrigeration, cooking and laundry lines Not this fault: model-specific pages once the model and serial label is read
Links: - [Common CONTOURE Refrigerator Problems](/blog/contoure-refrigerator-problems) - [Common CONTOURE Dryer Problems](/blog/contoure-dryer-problems) - [Common Contoure Microwave Problems](/blog/contoure-microwave-problems) - [CONTOURE Refrigerator: Controls, Display or Error Code](/blog/contoure-refrigerator-control-fault)
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
