The answer first
A freezer stands in a garage or a utility room where every sound carries, so noises that would be inaudible in a kitchen become complaints — and most of them are the cabinet, the floor or the clearance rather than the mechanism. On a Criterion a drain pan rattling on its mounts comes first, because a value-tier build puts the cheap wearing parts — filters, hoses, seals, screens — in the path of everything the machine does, so they are where the fault usually is. Levelling, clearance and clearing a fan path are owner work; fan motors, mounts and compressors are not.
The observables
- Clicking every few minutes with no start — A start relay failing to start the compressor; that is a fault, not a noise complaint.
- A buzz or rattle that changes when you press the cabinet — Panels or the drain pan rather than a mechanism.
- A hum that resonates through a floor or a wall — Contact between the cabinet and a rigid surface.
- NEAR MISS — Occasional cracks and pops — Plastic and metal expanding as the cabinet cycles; also normal.
Why it happens, in order
- A drain pan rattling on its mounts — Ranked first here: a value-tier build puts the cheap wearing parts — filters, hoses, seals, screens — in the path of everything the machine does, so they are where the fault usually is. The pan sits in the vibration zone above the compressor, and once it is out of position it buzzes with every compressor start.
- The cabinet touching a wall, a shelf or a stored item — Ranked second: Anything rigid in contact becomes a sounding board, and a garage is full of candidates — shelving, a bicycle, a stack of boxes.
- An unlevel cabinet on a garage or utility floor — Ranked third: Those floors are rarely flat, and a cabinet resting on three feet turns ordinary compressor vibration into a buzz that fills the room.
- A condenser fan obstructed by dust or debris — Ranked fourth, and last: The fan at the lower rear runs with the compressor and collects everything that lives on a garage floor. The drivetrain is simple, which makes it durable — it is a real cause but rarely the first one.
Check in this order, and why
- Look underneath at the back and check the pan is seated — A displaced pan is a noise source and a spill risk at the same time. Start here: on this platform it is both the most likely finding and the quickest to confirm.
- Pull the cabinet clear and run it standing free — A noise that disappears when nothing touches it was never a mechanical fault.
- Push each top corner and watch for movement — Any rock means a foot is unloaded, and that is where the noise comes from.
What to try before calling
- Unplug the cabinet and reseat the pan, clearing any debris beneath it — Expect it to hold water; have a towel ready before moving it.
Tools: torch, towelsAbout 20 min
- Give the cabinet clearance at the sides and back and move anything resting against it — This also helps the condenser, so it is worth doing even when the noise is not the main complaint.
About 20 min
- Stop here if the next move needs a meter on live terminals — That is where an owner check ends and a service call begins.
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. Refrigerant is licensed work: oil or a hiss at the compressor means stop and call, and two people move a cabinet this size.
What needs a technician
Call when the cabinet is level, standing clear, the pan is seated and the noise persists — and sooner if it is a chirp from inside a frost-free cabinet, because that usually means ice in the fan path and a defrost fault behind it. One line to keep in mind while you wait: A freezer holds food safely at 0 °F (−18 °C) or below.
Nearby pages
What this page does not cover
This page covers Criterion freezers as a class, not one family or model line. No family- or model-specific page exists beneath it yet; when one is published it will be linked here and it will outrank this page for a named model. Deliberately not here: wiring colours, resistance values, torque figures and part numbers, which differ between families.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
