Heat Pumps and Electric Heating - Rheem heat pump trouble

We have a Rheem high efficiency heat pump. I know it's at least 5-6 years old. Only when the heat is on, the outside unit sounds like it is starting up and shuting down over and over again, although it doesn't turn completely off. The inside makes a clicking/nocking noise that cooridinates with the outside problem. We have hit the restart button and things worked fine for about 10 minutes, then we have the same problem. The fan works alone with no problem. Now, we are using emergency heat. We have to manually swith it over. Please give us a clue.

Id say call a tech to check it out. Like to see some gauges on it first.Could be low on freon.

The inside makes a clicking/nocking noise that cooridinates with the outside problem.
Can be the compressor going on and off??????

Thanks for responding so quickly. We probably will end up calling someone.

Like Ed says it may be cycling on low pressure. It also may be a problem with the defrost control which isn't really a DIY job. Unless you are well acquainted with the operation of the heat pump, you would probably be better off to have it serviced and save on next months electric bill.

Ken

Our unit did something similar last year and the service tech found that he had overcharged the unit during the Summer. Having extra freon in the system during AC time didn't seem to bother it, but it sure caused it a fit when the unit switched to heating. Also check to make sure your filter is clean and not causing an obstruction in the air flow.