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December 9, 2007
Strange Noises Emanating from the Wall...
Hi!
I know three things: 1)Houses are supposed to settle and when they do, they make noises, 2) materials expand and contract at different rates and differences in this rate in adjacent materials might generate noises, and 3) I am hyper-vigilant about my house (verging on paranoid).
There is a loud "snap" that emanates from my kitchen wall every 7-10 minutes.
I searched through the archives and found that ElectricGreek indicated that shoddy electrical work could be the problem. I shut off the breaker to that part of the room for a day and still heard the "snap!"
Any other ideas? Should I be worried?
Comments
When we demo'd our house we did find a lot of live electrical in the wall that did not end in like a plug or anything, but was just sitting in the wall. And it was controlled with weird breakers, like the Basement breaker, even though we were on the second floor.
So if we hadn't been demo-ing the walls, we never would have known it was there (shoddy, indeed...).
Don't be paranoid: be proactive. Try turning off *all* the power for an hour and see if that stops the problem. That is not a normal sound, you should be worried.
If it's near a party wall, and if you have good relations with that neighbor, and if turning off your breakers doesn't solve it, I would go strike a friendly conversation with that neighbor. "Show" them the sound and ask them to turn off their power for a little while.
Posted by: guest at December 9, 2007 6:01 PM
Are you sure it isn't an appliance? The stove timer, the icemaker on/in the 'fridge?
Posted by: bren at December 9, 2007 8:01 PM
Be worried, be very worried. Poltergeist.
Posted by: guest at December 9, 2007 8:56 PM
Atlantic Yards
Posted by: guest at December 10, 2007 8:54 AM
It doesn't sound like electrical. Have you noticed the temperature affecting it in any way (does it only happen in the winter? when the heat is on, or while cooking)? Periodic noise sounds more like tight metal or wood expanding and contracting. I have a section of tin ceiling with heating lines running through it; it pops every few minutes as the heat cycles on and off.
Posted by: guest at December 10, 2007 12:42 PM
8:54 wins for funniest....
Posted by: guest at December 10, 2007 3:44 PM
is your heat on?
could it be your heating stacks?
Posted by: guest at December 10, 2007 4:29 PM
Thanks for your responses. I really don't think it's the electrical. I hope it's just stuff expanding and contracting - there are heating risers in the direction whebce the snap comes from.
Thanks!
Posted by: Jas at December 11, 2007 5:01 PM
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