An update on rumbling in my apartment - what is it?
May 4, 2020 6:23 PM Subscribe
A month ago, I posted about a noise problem. Here's what I know now: There is a rumbling in my apartment at odd hours, as well as a low-frequency sound that feels more like pressure than sound. The sound can be mitigated with white noise and/or earplugs; the rumbling cannot and it keeps me from getting good sleep. I've contacted everyone in my apartment building asking if they had any insights, and nobody has any idea. What _is_ this shaking/rumbling?
Here's all the evidence I have so far:
My roommate hasn't noticed it, and nobody else in the apartment building has.
It's definitely external low-frequency rumbling, because I got construction-worker quality noise protection earmuffs and I can't hear it with earplugs + earmuffs on. (Although, I can't sleep with the earmuffs because they hurt after a few minutes.)
I walked around outside the apartment building and it's audible in the back yard and the building's (tiny) atrium. I plan do more testing at different hours of the day when the rumbling is present to figure out exactly where it is.
Nobody else in the building has changed their habits substantially or acquired any new audio devices / fans / etc since quarantine started.
It started Friday, April 3 and the first bout of it lasted around 10 days. It's been back on and off since then. It started again Friday, May 1 after a week or so of silence. Both times it's started have been on a Friday night, so it might be something related to that?
It doesn't seem to have the patterns TV watching or music would have: I would expect TV to have pauses that match human vocal patterns, and I would expect music to be rhythmic and have brief pauses every 3-4 minutes when the song changes.
It doesn't seem to have the patterns construction would have: I would expect construction noises to have bursts of activity with pauses in the middle (e.g. while a worker changes position)
It doesn't seem to be bound to a time of day: I've woken up to it at 3 AM and I've felt it during the workday. So, it's most likely not something attended to by a person.
It may well be "the Hum" (as reported on Wikipedia.) In that case, the most likely explanation is an engine 1-2 miles away that happens to be resonating with some part of my apartment building. I live in a pretty urban part of Chicago, so I don't expect there to be any factory causing this, but there could be a utility building nearby that's partly responsible.
I should also note, my building also rumbles when a train passes by (we're 1 block away from elevated train tracks.) When it does, it's a more distinct rumbling, and you can hear the train pass. So my building is definitely one that could rumble with the right frequency.
What could it be? How can I find out?
Here's all the evidence I have so far:
My roommate hasn't noticed it, and nobody else in the apartment building has.
It's definitely external low-frequency rumbling, because I got construction-worker quality noise protection earmuffs and I can't hear it with earplugs + earmuffs on. (Although, I can't sleep with the earmuffs because they hurt after a few minutes.)
I walked around outside the apartment building and it's audible in the back yard and the building's (tiny) atrium. I plan do more testing at different hours of the day when the rumbling is present to figure out exactly where it is.
Nobody else in the building has changed their habits substantially or acquired any new audio devices / fans / etc since quarantine started.
It started Friday, April 3 and the first bout of it lasted around 10 days. It's been back on and off since then. It started again Friday, May 1 after a week or so of silence. Both times it's started have been on a Friday night, so it might be something related to that?
It doesn't seem to have the patterns TV watching or music would have: I would expect TV to have pauses that match human vocal patterns, and I would expect music to be rhythmic and have brief pauses every 3-4 minutes when the song changes.
It doesn't seem to have the patterns construction would have: I would expect construction noises to have bursts of activity with pauses in the middle (e.g. while a worker changes position)
It doesn't seem to be bound to a time of day: I've woken up to it at 3 AM and I've felt it during the workday. So, it's most likely not something attended to by a person.
It may well be "the Hum" (as reported on Wikipedia.) In that case, the most likely explanation is an engine 1-2 miles away that happens to be resonating with some part of my apartment building. I live in a pretty urban part of Chicago, so I don't expect there to be any factory causing this, but there could be a utility building nearby that's partly responsible.
I should also note, my building also rumbles when a train passes by (we're 1 block away from elevated train tracks.) When it does, it's a more distinct rumbling, and you can hear the train pass. So my building is definitely one that could rumble with the right frequency.
What could it be? How can I find out?
We have had issues like this in my neighborhood when there was a train that was pulled over on to a siding that was parked overnight idling (like refrigerator cars). Might be something on the El lines further away but affecting you?
posted by jessamyn at 7:01 PM on May 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by jessamyn at 7:01 PM on May 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
Can your roommate - or anyone else - hear this when it is happening? You said they haven't noticed it, but if attention is called to it can they hear it?
posted by chuntered inelegantly from a sedentary position at 7:25 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by chuntered inelegantly from a sedentary position at 7:25 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]
We have a dehumidifier in the crawl space and I can hear it in the parts of the house that are directly above it. During the winter it’s off but in the spring starts cycling on and off as the weather gets warmer and damper. Might explain why it suddenly started up in April?
posted by something something at 8:38 PM on May 4, 2020
posted by something something at 8:38 PM on May 4, 2020
Someone's diesel generator? A big ol' diesel at electrical generator speeds doesn't sound like a truck, it's more like a really low rumbling, more of a feel than a sound. Train locomotives often have big diesel generators in them too, and sometimes they hang around for a while with the engine running.
posted by ctmf at 8:54 PM on May 4, 2020
posted by ctmf at 8:54 PM on May 4, 2020
1. Is someone running a generator outside a building or construction site nearby?
2. Is anyone parking a truck nearby to sleep overnight or during the day? I used to have this in a past apartment and realized that a guy was parking at the end of my street, a block away, in a truck, and it made my whole place hum for me.
posted by limeonaire at 11:27 PM on May 4, 2020
2. Is anyone parking a truck nearby to sleep overnight or during the day? I used to have this in a past apartment and realized that a guy was parking at the end of my street, a block away, in a truck, and it made my whole place hum for me.
posted by limeonaire at 11:27 PM on May 4, 2020
Since you mentioned train tracks, it's possible they're parking a train (with engine running) near you from time to time.
posted by mmoncur at 4:54 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by mmoncur at 4:54 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
Could be some part of the HVAC equipment in your building. Ask the building maintenance people where the equipment is (if you don't know already), and go there when the noise is occurring.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:04 AM on May 5, 2020
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:04 AM on May 5, 2020
Are you near the water? I'm close to the river here and can almost feel more than hear the ships go by. It's very similar to the other diesel sounds people listed above (large truck, generator, idling diesel train).
posted by sepviva at 6:38 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by sepviva at 6:38 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
Do any of your neighbours have a washer or dryer positioned close to a wall? Not necessarily on the same floor as you.
posted by Hogshead at 6:57 AM on May 5, 2020
posted by Hogshead at 6:57 AM on May 5, 2020
Response by poster: Thank you all for the places to investigate!
Attic: There is no attic in the building.
Train: This is a possibility - I'm about 1.5 miles away from a train construction site. I may plan to walk down there next Friday to see.
Roommate: I have pointed him to spots I felt were rumbling hotspots and he hasn't noticed it there.
Dehumidifier: I've lived here over a year and a half and owuld have noticed this last year.
Diesel generator: This is a possibility. I'm not sure why it would be running overnight though?
Truck: I haven't seen any trucks but I can take a look on Friday.
Train idling on the tracks: There isn't a place near me where a train would be just parked on the tracks - it's just bare minimum two-way tracks. But it's still a possibility.
HVAC: No HVAC in my building.
Water: Not near the water.
Washer/dryer: This doesn't correspond to the times I hear and feel rumbling.
So it sounds like a generator or an idling train is the most likely situation. I think next Friday, I'll plan to walk along the train track route and see if something obviously is causing this. Thanks!
posted by LSK at 7:18 AM on May 5, 2020
Attic: There is no attic in the building.
Train: This is a possibility - I'm about 1.5 miles away from a train construction site. I may plan to walk down there next Friday to see.
Roommate: I have pointed him to spots I felt were rumbling hotspots and he hasn't noticed it there.
Dehumidifier: I've lived here over a year and a half and owuld have noticed this last year.
Diesel generator: This is a possibility. I'm not sure why it would be running overnight though?
Truck: I haven't seen any trucks but I can take a look on Friday.
Train idling on the tracks: There isn't a place near me where a train would be just parked on the tracks - it's just bare minimum two-way tracks. But it's still a possibility.
HVAC: No HVAC in my building.
Water: Not near the water.
Washer/dryer: This doesn't correspond to the times I hear and feel rumbling.
So it sounds like a generator or an idling train is the most likely situation. I think next Friday, I'll plan to walk along the train track route and see if something obviously is causing this. Thanks!
posted by LSK at 7:18 AM on May 5, 2020
I see you're in Chicago. Just a hunch, but monitor the flights in and out of O'Hare and Midway to see if you're on a flight path. You can track flight paths on any number of websites dedicated to that. See if your vibration correlates to a consistent or ad-hoc flight path, even for cargo planes. It's possible that you are detecting vibration from a specific type of plane engine, or a specific altitude, or some combination thereof, against the materials of your home.
There have been numerous examples of this and even lawsuits of residents against O'Hare on the northwest side, resulting in replacement windows and more. This might not be your experience, but you can't discount it. See if you can find a pattern.
If this isn't the case, you are likely experiencing the Hum. My guess is that you have an industrial something-or-other in proximity to your dwelling that has a generator that hits your space at just the right frequency. Previous questions imply that you live in Lakeview, and there are quite a lot of industrial sites in Lakeview that folks don't realize are there. Factories, much of the Ravenswood corridor, etc.
posted by juniperesque at 7:59 AM on May 5, 2020
There have been numerous examples of this and even lawsuits of residents against O'Hare on the northwest side, resulting in replacement windows and more. This might not be your experience, but you can't discount it. See if you can find a pattern.
If this isn't the case, you are likely experiencing the Hum. My guess is that you have an industrial something-or-other in proximity to your dwelling that has a generator that hits your space at just the right frequency. Previous questions imply that you live in Lakeview, and there are quite a lot of industrial sites in Lakeview that folks don't realize are there. Factories, much of the Ravenswood corridor, etc.
posted by juniperesque at 7:59 AM on May 5, 2020
I don’t know what your rumble is or how you can figure it out but wanted to tell you that all my life I’ve heard things other people don’t hear. For me it’s usually a faint screeching or electrical type hum but it’s a hum. It comes and goes but when it happens I ask whoever is present if they hear it and they never do. I suspect some of us are like super tasters but with sound. I hope you figure out what’s causing it and can stop it or mitigate it
posted by RichardHenryYarbo at 8:15 AM on May 5, 2020
posted by RichardHenryYarbo at 8:15 AM on May 5, 2020
If juniperesque is correct, and you are in Chicago, there is a heating system in your building. That's the H in HVAC, you know.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:14 AM on May 5, 2020
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:14 AM on May 5, 2020
I've got a form of tinnitus that is a rumble. I always thought it was external but found that if I stretched my jaw, pressed on my ear, or lowered my head I could sometimes make it momentarily stop. Worth a try but wouldn't explain feeling the floor shake.
posted by cosmac at 11:58 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by cosmac at 11:58 AM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
Since you are in Chicago and the rumbling began on April 3, and the Great Lakes shipping season opened on March 25, I'd guess you're hearing the sound of some heavy cargo being transferred, such as ore, coal, or the ingredients for concrete going down a big chute, whether from a ship or in some intermediate stage like rail.
posted by jamjam at 12:05 PM on May 5, 2020
posted by jamjam at 12:05 PM on May 5, 2020
Longshot idea. Email info [at] geosci.uchicago.edu (the earth sciences group at UChicago) and ask if there's someone you can chat with about minor local seismic rumbles. If they have a seismology station and someone dedicated to running it, they probably have a good line on sources of ground noise.
posted by seanmpuckett at 3:02 PM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by seanmpuckett at 3:02 PM on May 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
This happened to me when my upstairs neighbor got a large fan that they put on the hardwood floor. The vibrations moved through the floor and other structural elements and I could hear/feel a very low buzzing. Once we figured it out, they put the fan on some carpet and that was enough to diffuse the vibrations and I no longer noticed them.
posted by quince at 12:32 PM on May 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by quince at 12:32 PM on May 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by iamabot at 6:58 PM on May 4, 2020 [1 favorite]