Our refrigerator (photo by Kate St. John) + a North American porcupine climbing a tree (photo by Kent McFarland, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)

12 November 2026

Two years ago this month we replaced our refrigerator. When it was brand new we were puzzled by a soft whining noise it made while cooling. Google search reassured me that “A soft whining noise from a brand-new refrigerator during its cooling cycle is usually normal. Modern units use high-efficiency components that sound noticeably different from older refrigerators.” Since it sounded like a distant porcupine we jokingly named it The Porcupette.

Over the past two years the refrigerator’s sound has diminished so it hardly ever whines anymore. This morning it refused to make the sound on command for me to record it. Alas.

Instead of the former sound of my refrigerator, let’s listen to its namesake, the sounds of North American porcupines (Erethizon dorsatum). Mostly whining, sometimes muttering, and apparently singing to himself (in the last video), our refrigerator was never as loud as these videos.

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Porcupine in Colorado sings himself a little tune.