Trane Noise

The noise coming from our Trane RTHD is in excess of 90 dbA and from both environmental and H&S angles, causing headaches.. It's approx 2 years old and has always been this loud.

The noise specs at the time were, from memory, significantly less than this otherwise it would have been raised as a concern - bog standard pads are in place below the chiller but unsure if pipework is kitted out with rubber couplings as recommended in the installation manual.

Anyone with a similar experience and if so any attenuation tips/tricks. I'm not an engineer so please go easy with the technical jargon.

hi have a tech check oil level and unit loading status
these units get very noisy when oil is low and running part load

Hi,
As Goshen Suggests Try and run each circuit at full load for at least 30 minutes. Stop the circuit and wait 10 minutes, and the check the oil level as per IOM. The noise could be caused by the unit running for periods of extended unloading in which the start/stop differentials should be checked and adjusted. Also check that the condenser coils are clean and that all the fans are operating as required. Good Luck.

Yes these trane screws are far too noisy. I have worked for too many hours in plantrooms with them running and are sure some frequencies in my hearing have been lost. They are especially noisy whilst unloading before shutdown.
Noise minimisation use 2" insulation on chiller motor and compressor, ensure adiquate insulation from ground and another noise reduction method used in manufacturing is to build something like a large coolroom around each chiller. Even with earmuffs and plugs I still get headaches after a few hours of listening to them - they are in my opinion the worst chiller for noise issues, more so on the frequency range than level.

hi tesla :
i agree about the noise but only part load, at full load they purr like a cat !
i found a direct corrilation between noise and oil level
it affects the unit especially at part load!!

Oil level and part load are indeed making them more noisy. But even cooling water temperature is a big influence on the noise level. If the cooling water temperature is high and the load is low than it will make more noise than it would at the same load with the right cooling water temperature.

Keep in mind not to make the cooling water too low since they need a certain differential across the machine in order to keep the oil flowing!