What this usually is
A Walsh that has started making a noise is most often a cabinet out of level or touching something. Several of the sounds a fridge makes are simply what a fridge sounds like, and the list below separates them. The checks below need no tools beyond a torch, and the page stops at the panel.
The symptoms, and their near misses
- A hard knock or clunk that repeats every few minutes — Something starting and stopping under load.
- NEAR MISS: a loud crack once or twice a day — Plastic liners expand and contract with the defrost cycle. That is normal and needs nothing.
The ranking: most likely cause first
- A cabinet out of level or touching something — A fridge standing on three feet, or with a corner against a wall unit, turns the normal compressor hum into a buzz you can hear in the next room. Nothing is broken; the sound is simply being transmitted. Ranked first on this unit: it is the cause with no fault in it at all, which is why it is worth ruling out before spending anything, which counts for more here because this is a badge with little published service documentation, which is exactly why this list starts with what you can observe and ends with what only a meter can settle.
- The evaporator fan blade catching ice, or its bearing worn — The fan behind the freezer rear panel runs almost continuously. Next, and for a closely related reason: it runs more hours than anything else in the cabinet, and it is the only motor whose noise changes when you open a door.
- A failing compressor knocking under load — Worn internal mounts give a deep knock as the compressor starts, and a rising rumble as it runs. Bottom of the list, deliberately: it is the least likely cause and the most expensive, so every cheap cause above it is ruled out first on purpose.
What to check first, second, third
- Press down on each corner in turn and listen for the noise to change — A noise that changes when you lean on the cabinet is a mounting noise.
- Open the freezer and press the door switch in, then listen — A noise that starts and stops with the switch is on that fan, and nothing else is.
- Only after the fans, the pan and the levelling are all clean — At that point the noise is in the sealed system and it is not an owner job.
What an owner can safely check
- Check the unit is level and that no corner touches a cabinet, a wall or a pipe — Adjust the feet until it sits firm on all four.
Tools: a spirit level, a spannerAbout 20 min
- Hold the freezer door switch in and listen at the rear panel — If the noise follows the switch, you have located it without removing anything.
About 5 min
- STOP HERE if the fault is on the sealed system — Refrigerant is licensed work and the tools for it are not owner tools.
Read this before you touch it
Safety
Switch the refrigerator off at its breaker, or unplug it, before any panel or kick plate comes off. A capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and the compressor circuit is live the whole time the unit is plugged in. Leave the door switches exactly as they are: they cut the fan on purpose. Nothing on the sealed system is owner work, because refrigerant is licensed work.
The line between a fix and a service call
Call once the fans, the pan and the levelling are all ruled out and the noise is still there, because what is left is the sealed system or the start circuit. Call sooner if the compressor tries to start and gives up, if the noise comes with a warm cabinet, or if the unit trips a breaker.
Nearest pages of this class
Scope of this page, and where to go for more
This page covers the Walsh refrigerator as a class, not one family or model line. Where a family- or model-specific page exists it is linked here. Deliberately not here: fan part numbers, compressor mount specifications and any panel removal sequence, all of which differ by family and belong on the page for that family.
Links: - [Standing water in a Walsh dishwasher at the end of a cycle](/blog/walsh-dishwasher-drainage-failure) - [Water under a Walsh refrigerator, and where it comes from](/blog/walsh-refrigerator-water-leak) - [A WERCS refrigerator that buzzes, rattles or knocks](/blog/wercs-refrigerator-abnormal-noise)
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
