Why is my fridge fan making a dull noise and rattling?
A failing evaporator fan often gets stuck trying to turn on, producing a repetitive dull noise or a loud rattling sound before occasionally spinning. This intermittent operation prevents proper airflow, causing the evaporator to freeze up and resulting in inconsistent cooling.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Waiting for the fan to eventually turn on on its own
- 2Pulling the fan blade toward the end of the motor shaft by an eighth of an inch to prevent contact with the shroud
- 3Replacing the fan motor entirely
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Can hear the evaporator fan trying to turn on but just makes a dull noise 3 times then stops for a few seconds.”source ↗
“Could the evaporator fan be going out and causing the evaporator to freeze up like this?”source ↗
“Fridge fan is rattling on and off—any ideas for fix/repair (beyond replacement)? Even just a band-aid that’ll make it stop sounding like we have a Harley in the kitchen.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2How to check if a vibrating radiator is caused by a bad fan
- 3Why does the outdoor AC fan stop while the compressor keeps running?
- 4How to replace an AC condenser fan motor yourself
- 4Should I replace my HVAC system if the evaporator coil leaks?
- 3Do I actually need to clean my refrigerator coils?
- 6Why does my refrigerator ice maker keep breaking?