Customer told me my refrigerator repair was too loud, changed my whole approach

I had a guy call me back three times about a Whirlpool fridge I fixed in his basement last month. He kept saying the compressor was rattling but my meter showed everything in spec. Finally he just said 'can you actually listen to it' and yeah, that vibration was loose. Now I always torque the compressor mounts to 35 lb-ft instead of just snug. Any of you ever had a customer hear something your tools missed?

2 comments

2 Comments

riverknight16d ago

35 lb-ft on a compressor mount? I mean, I get it, but are you sure you didn't just get paranoid after one guy complained? Compressor mounts are designed to take a certain amount of vibration, and overtightening can actually crack the mounting plate or strip the threads on some models. I've seen plenty of fridges running fine with mounts that were just hand tight for years. Torque specs matter, but so does not going overboard. If the customer was just being picky about a noise that was already within normal range, you might be creating a bigger problem down the line. Not every loose sound needs a torque wrench.

jessefoster16d ago

@riverknight has a point though. Hand tight works fine on a lot of these mounts, and torque wrenches can crack the plastic bases if you overdo it. Seen more broken mounts from overtightening than from vibration, honestly.