WTH Is This Heater Noise 2001 TJ

[Casey.425]

I've searched around and can't seem to find anyone with this issue.

My heater works fantastic, so I've not really worried about addresing this...but after 6 months of owning the vehicle it's getting annoying.

Vehicle: 2001 TJ, Manual, 4.0 w/ 120k on the motor and chassis.

Issue: Intermittent clicking that is repetitive, completely random, but only happens with the heater- not AC. When the noise starts with the heater blowing and I switch it to "cold", it does not go away. Noise does not start in the "cold" setting.
It does not matter what selection I have it on (feet, feet and face, or defrost and feet, defrost only). All my functions work as they should, it's just annoying AF. Sounds like an actuator or gear that's just getting stuck and then self resolves...only to come back on every 5ish minutes.

Resolution: Noise goes away after 5-45 seconds. Noise goes away when I turn the fan off.

Video attached for your analysis.

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

There is so much noise in that video it's hard to tell what's going on.

What happened to the clicking when you turned the center dial from hot to warm?
Why not going all the way to cold?
Does revving the engine make it better or worse?
What happened 1 second after that when you turned it back to hot?

I think I hear clicking just before 0:30 when you turn the knob AWAY from AC which shuts the AC off but you said it doesn't happen with the AC on.