Diagnostic vocabulary
Describe the symptom clearly before trying to diagnose it.
Good symptom language helps separate normal behaviour from a fault and makes service conversations more useful.
Sound words
| Symptom word | What it describes | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Buzzing | Electrical or motor/solenoid sound; context matters | Brief valve/relay buzzing can be normal; loud sustained buzz with no movement/flow can suggest a stalled component or obstruction. |
| Clicking | Relay, valve, latch or thermal expansion | Occasional clicks can be normal. Repetitive start-click-stop patterns, arcing sounds or hot plugs are not. |
| Grinding | Mechanical rubbing/impeller/bearing/contact | Stop if severe, metallic or accompanied by overheating/leakage; foreign objects can also cause grinding. |
| Rattling | Loose items, cookware, panels, tubing or vibration | Check user-accessible loose items and installation/leveling first. |
| Squealing | Belt, bearing, roller, fan or motor-related friction | Persistent or worsening squeal deserves inspection, especially with heat or burning smell. |
| Knocking / banging | Load imbalance, pipe water hammer, drum contact or compressor movement | Identify whether the sound comes from plumbing, cabinet or rotating assembly. |
| Humming | Motors, transformers, valves and compressors commonly hum | A normal steady hum differs from a hum followed by repeated trips, clicks or no movement. |
| Gurgling | Refrigerant flow, drainage or condensate movement | Often normal in refrigerators/AC; in drain systems it can also reflect plumbing flow. |
| Whooshing | Airflow, defrost or valve/refrigerant movement | Often normal in fan-driven or refrigeration appliances if brief and consistent. |
Water symptoms
- Slow fill: water enters, but more slowly than expected.
- No fill: cycle starts but little/no water enters.
- Standing water: water remains after the expected drain stage.
- Intermittent leak: water appears only in a particular stage, load size or temperature.
- Overflow: water rises beyond normal operating level or escapes the intended path.
Temperature/cycling symptoms
- Short cycling: compressor/heater/motor starts and stops unusually frequently.
- Temperature drift: compartment/oven temperature gradually moves away from target.
- Long run: the appliance operates for extended periods; sometimes normal under high load/heat, sometimes a sign of airflow, seal or cooling problems.
Use sensory clues safely: Do not keep running an appliance to “collect more evidence” if there is smoke, sparking, gas smell, severe overheating, repeated breaker/RCD/GFCI trips or active flooding.