Diagnostic questions and answers help diagnose heating oil burner noise, smoke, and odors. How to diagnose loss of heat, heating boiler noises, leaks, odors, or smoke.

These questions and answers can help you diagnose and fix heating oil burner noise or sound complaints.

This article series describes the cause and cure for just about any noise that you might hear at or near an oil burner, where it comes from, what it means, and what needs to be done about it.

Oil Burner Clicking Noise Diagnosis

Commmon Causes of Clicking Noises at an Oil Burner

Check out these common oil burner click noise sources:

Sketch at left provided courtesy of Carson Dunlop Associates, a Toronto home inspection, education & report writing tool company [ Carsondunlop.com ].

[Click to enlarge any image]

• Failing electrical relay switch such as at an oil delay solenoid valve
  
  See details at OIL LINE QUICK STOP VALVES
• Loose oil burner mounting or motor mount hardware
• Loose, damaged or obstructed oil burner squirrel cage fan assembly
  
  Check for a loose squirrel cage fan, for a damaged or loose connector between the fan assembly and the oil burner motor, or for a bent, broken, or dirty squrrel cage fan blade or blades.
  
  Watch out: a damaged, bent, loose, or obstructed oil burner blower motor or squirrel-cage fan assembly can result in improper oil combustion that in turn risks a loss of heat or an oil burner puffback explosion.
• Loose / failing oil burner motor bearings or squirrel cage fan assembly bearings or draft inducer blower/fan bearings
• Oil piping or heating oil contaminants, clogs or debris can cause odd noises at the oil burner itself.
  
  See details at OIL BURNER CRACKLE POP NOISES
• Thermal expansion/contraction temperature-related noises at the oil burner as the system cools down after the oil burner has stopped.
  
  Examples are at TEMPERATURE CHANGE RELATED NOISES  and include thermal changes at metal parts such as an oil fired boiler and piping or in ductwork at an oil fired furnace.
• Check nearby equipment
  
  to be sure the noise is really coming from the oil burner assembly itself and not other nearby equpment such as an electrostatic air cleaner.
• Watch out: people may use different terms to describe similar oil burner noises such as clicking, clacking, snapping, popping, clanking, etc.
  
  So be sure to see additional oil burner noise diagnostic articles at the page bottom RECOMMENDED ARTICLES list.

Note: clicking noises at other kinds of heating equipment and fuels such as gas fired furnaces or boilers may have their own different sources of clicking noises associated with those fuels, such as bad igniter on a gas furnace.

 

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Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2023-08-10 by InspectApedia Publisher (mod) - bat in the oil burner squirrel cage blower fan caused clicking noise

@Bob Davies,

My goodness: a bat in the oil burner blower squirrel cage fan assembly causing a clicking noise!

Good detective work.

Take care to

1. was up thoroughly after cleaning out the remains of the bat in the oil burner: there could be harmful pathogens on the bat and its debris

2. inspect the squirrel cage fan for damage such as bent or broken fan blades - if you find that damage you'll want to replace the squirrel cage blower fan assembly lest later the oil burner fails when the blower fan falls apart

- which in turn can cause improper oil burner operation and even risk a dangerous oil burner puffback explosion

Thank you for reporting what you found - that may help other readers who are diagnosing unusual causes of clicking noises at the oil buner: bats in the fan.

If you've got a photo of the bat and damage that would be most-helpful.

Thanks again for taking time out to follow-up with what you found.

More about keeping bats out of buildings is

at ANIMAL ENTRY POINTS in BUILDINGS

DF

On 2023-08-10 y Bob Davies - found a bat in the blower. n

@Bob Davies,

found a bat in the blower. no idea how it got there

On 2023-08-09 by Bob Davies - Oil burner noise like a playing card stuck in the spokes of a bicycle - slapping clicking noise

When i fired up my Liberty Slantline oil fired boiler LD--30-PT today it made a noise like a playing card stuck in the spokes of a bicycle. It heated the water fine and cycled correctly . Just made the noice.

On 2021-01-04 by danjoefriedman (mod) - humming noise when oil burner runs

Paul

I am only able to make a guess because I have so little information about your building and heating system, but it's certainly possible that a vibration from the oil burner is being transmitted to other building components.

I have seen this, for example, when vibrations from the oil burner are transmitted by the copper oil line to building building framing or piping which intern transmit noise to other building areas.

Often we are able to correct this problem by simply inserting a bit of insulating foam between the oil piping and the building component that it was touching. If the vibration is extreme then there's a problem with the fuel unit or oil burner and repair is needed.

See details

at OIL BURNER HUMMING NOISE

On 2021-01-04 by Paul

The oil burner runs but there is a humming noise that you can here from upstairs and not by the unit.

Reader question: Clicking & Humming Oil Burner Question: Oil burner noise: hums, clicks: Oil burner won't start - just hums and clicks

My home oil boil (Warm-Flow bluebird 50/70) i put oil in and bled the boiler it ran for 1hr and again for 1hr later last night and it seems to have started up as normal this morning for 20min on son and now it wont, it only makes a humming noise like an electric board and clicks off loudly

I hit the red rest button and same thing happens. no fan noise or low grumble as norm.

Please help im so stuck ! - Clark NI

(Apr 16, 2017) Jay said:

My oil burner is making a noise like its pumping all the time and doesn't sound like its getting away right ?

Reply: things to check

Clarke N

When an oil burner won't start in response to the reset button it needs service or repair.

From your description I can't tell if it's a fuel delivery problem or a motor problem.

If the electric motor that runs the burner is spinning and the burner makes a fairly loud noise (all parts are moving) but you're not getting ignition the system will indeed keep going off on reset and that may be a dirty nozzle, dirty electrodes, or even a clogged oil filter or out of oil completely.

If the electric motor itself is not spinning, just humming, the motor is binding or the fuel unit is binding and not letting the motor spin.

Check that there is no red reset button popped out on the motor itself - if there is one, when the motor is cool, push it back in and retry. But if that's the trouble I suspect you need a new motor.

Let us know what the service tech finds - it will aid other readers.

Jay

All during the time that the oil burner is running - that is producing flame in the boiler, furnace, or water heater, the fuel unit (oil pump) will run , being driven through a coupling that connects the pump to the electric motor on the opposite side of the oil burner. That's normal. a

If you are hearing a humming or buzzing noise all the time, including when the burner is not operating, then the system should be turned OFF and you want to call for repair.

Details about electric motor troubleshooting are

at ELECTRIC MOTOR NOISE DIAGNOSIS

Also see POPPING SNAPPING NOISE DIAGNOSIS

On 2016-02-15 by (mod) - oil burner clicking noises

I woiuld turn off the boiler and call for repair. You don't want to risk an oil spill or a puffback explosion.

On 2016-02-15 by cody

Oil fired furnace making odd clicking noises and turning on and off and back on again before completely turning off very rapidly. Strong smell of oil when this happens

...

Continue reading at OIL BURNER HUMMING NOISE or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

Recommended Articles

• CLICKING NOISE DIAGNOSIS & CURE
• ELECTRIC MOTOR NOISE DIAGNOSIS
• HEATING SYSTEM NOISE DIAGNOSIS
• OIL BURNER CLANKING NOISE
• OIL BURNER CRACKLE POP NOISES
• OIL BURNER NOISE SMOKE ODORS - home
• OIL BURNER NOISE / ODOR DIAGNOSTIC INDEX
• OIL BURNER SOOT & PUFFBACKS
• OIL BURNER WONT RUN - Diagnostic Steps - what to check in what order
• POPPING SNAPPING NOISE DIAGNOSIS
• SNAPPING NOISES
• TAPPING NOISES
• TICKING NOISE DIAGNOSIS

Suggested citation for this web page

OIL BURNER CLICKING SOUND at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

Or see this

INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to HEATING OIL, OIL BURNERS, OIL FIRED HEATERS, OIL TANKS

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Citations & References

In addition to any citations in the article above, a full list is available on request.

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