Hello, I hope you folks can help me.

Recently, we have been hearing a loud, low frequency "hum" throughout our house. I have turned the main power off to determine whether it's electrical. It's not. The noise does sound like a "fog horn" going off several blasts at a time and the noise level is constant in every level/room.

I think this is a water pipe humming problem like other people have described. However, I have turned the water main off and the problem does not go away! A quick check of indoor faucets and toilets didn't really turn up the culprit.

I recently got a lawn sprinkler installed. I can't really check its pipes. Could this be the source of the problem too?

Before I call a plumber, is there anything else I should try? Attic/roof inspection? Gas line? Structure?

Any suggestion would be appreciated. This noise is very annoying.

Cheers.

Hi,
I would suggest checking in your attic as this sound could be caused by animals/birds possibly or by something in the attic vibrating against wooden beams for example a TV aerial. Also check for anything battery operated that could be causing it.

If the noise started after you had your sprinklers installed I would suggest a professional checks they are not faulty and that the pipes are not blocked.

If you still don't have a culprit look for a reputable electrician to check the wiring in the house, because although you disconnected the power supply a small amount of power could still be running. This happens when your electric company tries to ensure that if you have a power cut it doesn't short the circuits or the meter.

Good luck finding the problem.

Tracy

The problem is caused by the ballcock trying to fill while water is seeping out of the tank. The sound you hear is the washer vibrating against the seat of the ballcock. First check there linkage between the flapper and the flush lever. It should have 1/4" of play when your tank is filled. Next feel the flat side of your flapper. Does it have wavey edges? Do your hands come away black? Replace it if it does. And last check the seat itself. Any nicks or rough spots? If so click on back. There are replacement seats that glue right over the old one and are easy to replace. One of the above should take care of your howling. This happened in a new house some years ago. Only at night and in the early morning. They thought the house was haunted and were about to move out. I caught it in the powder room toilet. It would vibrate and the pipes in the wall would pick it up and carry it all over the house. Hope this helps Tom

I am having a similar experience in my home. I also tuned of all the breakers and the water, but the noise continues (every level and every room including the basement). Fog horn is a good way to describe it, but mine is a faint low level hum. It is mostly intermittent, but sometimes continues for several seconds at a time. It is difficult to hear if there are any other noises. I mostly hear it at night, but if it's quiet I can hear it 24/7. I searched for the source everywhere in my home with no luck. I have now started searching the neighborhood. I'm not sure what I'm looking for, maybe a transformer going bad or something. No one else in my home can hear the noise, and they are starting to give me funny looks. Have you had any luck finding the source of your hum? I would love to figure this one out. It's keeping me up at night.

It's me again. It seems we are not the only ones in the world with this problem. I googled "humming noise" and came across some interesting reading (that's how I came across your posting). Check out the two links below. I am trying to reach out to the individuals associated with these articles. I will let you if I come up with something.


Click on, or cut and past these links in your address bar.

Society for Scientific Exploration | Journal of Scientific Exploration | The Hum: An Anomalous Sound Heard Around the World (http://www.scientificexploration.org/jse/abstracts/v18n4a2.php)

Mystery humming sound captured - Technology - smh.com.au (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/11/17/1163266756133.html)

Taos Hum Page (http://amasci.com/hum/hum1.html)

http://amasci.com/hum/tinn2.txt

Has anyone come up with any other possible fixes for this problem? I am having the same issue. I can hear a fairly quiet sound similar to a foghorn that comes and goes, sometimes lasting up to 30-60 seconds at a time. It is especailly noticeable at night. Even though it is not very loud, I can almost feel the low level rumble of the noise. It is approximately the same volume in all rooms.

As with others on this list, no one else in my house can hear the noise, so they think I'm nuts.

Would some sort of sound meter be able to help locate the source of the sound... or even to prove that the sound exists?

Thanks

This probably isn't your answer, but I had a similar experience the other night with a whistling sound coming from my two-month old's room. Turns out my 18 month old had shut the vent in his room and it was the noise of the furnace fan blowing against the closed vent.

Its Aliens!! No seriously I don't know what its is but I hear the same noise, it's the ice maker on my refrigerator though.

Hey delevin1, no answers to give you, but here's what has happened since my last posting. The noise is still present in my home, and still no one else can here it but me. Even stranger, I have heard the noise in two other places. One in a friends home about five miles from where I live, and two in a friends home about ten miles from where I live. I believe it could be coming from navigational aids or other equipment from the nearby Air Reserve base. There are lots of large aircraft operating there. I use to live in New Smyrna Beach, Florida (about one hour north of the Kennedy Space Center in Cocoa Beach, Florida). When they would launch a Shuttle it would take several minutes for the rumble of the engines to come rolling through New Smyrna. My point being these types of low frequency intense happenings could very easily affect a large geographic area. Still the most reasonable explanation is the Taos Hum (see the links to the sites in my earlier response). This humming noise of unknown origin is said to be audible to just two to ten percent of the population. There is a lot of speculation on what might be causing this humming noise, but not a lot of interest in figuring out exactly what it is. When I first started hearing the noise I was obsessed with finding out what it was, mainly because I thought it was coming from my home. I really started to think I would have to sell the house and get the heck out, but since I have heard it in other locations I guess that won't be necessary. Bottom line, since I can only hear the noise when things are very quiet (mostly at night) I decided to go with a little white noise. I bought a heppa filter and I crank it up to drown out the noise ( since it's a steady noise it's much more tolerable). For those of you who think it's aliens, the air vent, the water pipes... thanks for the input, but we are not stupid just frustrated. For delevin1 and maybe jwalker2007, I feel your pain. We are not crazy, our hearing is simply hyper sensitive to these low level noises. I thought about trying to record the noise and amplify it for the nonbelievers, but I don't really care who believes me anymore. Like I said, buy a heppa filter and forget about it!

We have had this problem in Chicago for over three years now.
First we thought it was the frig, the turned off the power main, still hear it. Sounds like a truck idling outside, but go outside and its dead quiet. Go inside and its omnidirectional in the home.
We installed airport noise abatement windows in our bedroom. That muffled the cars and voices outside, but did nothing for this low hum.

Among the things we checked:

* Hum heard with power main 'off'
* No attic fan
* No sump pump
* Gutters are tight
* roof antenna tight
* Chimney has a cap
* Someone mentioned it might be wind over the toilet roof vents/stacks. I don't know, anybody ever hear of this?
* Hot water tank new... 3 years old, seems quiet
* Heard with heat or a/c off.
* Plumbing seems quiet.
* We have flat roof vents, but so do our neighbors, don't hear the sound
* 75% of backyard is concrete, but I thought concrete is a sound blocker, not transmitter.
* Had gas lines checked, all OK
* Had chimney cleaned, some nesting and a dead bird clay liner shifted slightly, but otherwise OK.
* We have an extension back room on our second floor. Has one gable vent, separate from attic. Also has its own independent gas heater, we never use, but has its own vent stack on roof.

We are at a loss. Bothers me more than my wife. NOt loud, but low, fan and ear plugs do not mask it. ANY remedies you can offer? Solve this and I'll fly you in and treat you to any meal in any restaurant in Chicago you want. Really. Please help, Dave

Anybody??

I think this might help all of you I am into digital video recording and have searched out odd noises many times with my directional microphone. Check the spy or tech stores for directional listening device. I found the source of the noise in a three story building the noise was in the attic and we had started hearing it from the lowest level of the house.
I would suggest using this method at night when there are not so much noise in general.

Hope this helps

See Wikipedia The Hum aka Taos Hum (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taos_Hum)

Yeah, I've read up on both Taos hum and Kokomo. At least Kokomo had a real cause, and the hum was eliminated. Unfortunately, that doesn't help...

While working in homes on repair jobs I've heard very low pitched humming noises coming from dryer exhaust vents, usually from the type with the single flap. This is when the dryer is NOT running. It would be easy to see if that is the problem by sticking an old rag or newspapers under the louver hood to keep the flap from moving. Be sure not to forget to remove the rag before using the dryer!

Ralph,
Was this type of low hum localized or could one hear it throughout the home? Thank you.

Dave, you can hear it in other parts of the house, depending where the dryer is located.
It all depends how large your house is, you're not living in the Playboy Mansion, are you?
I certainly hope I win that Steak dinner and you don't even have to fly me to Chicago, I just a quick 40 minutes away! :eek:

I too am experiencing a humming sound. It's like a transformer sound. Not real loud, but real annoying, especially at night. My son has also heard it, so I don't have a hearing problem.:) It's constant and loudest in the back of the house, primarily my bedroom. I had the power company out and they disconnected all power to the house and pump house at the transformer. It even shut down my neighbor's electricity. Guess that made them wonder. Still the sound was present. I have taken batteries out of everything with one. I can't sleep. It's making me crazy. My next step it to call my plumber and have him check everything that carries water. It's not a buzzing like bees or hornets or wasps. If anyone solves this, please let me know. Desperate:( , in the country, in Southern Oregon.

Hello, I hope you folks can help me.

Recently, we have been hearing a loud, low frequency "hum" throughout our house. I have turned the main power off to determine whether it's electrical. It's not. The noise does sound like a "fog horn" going off several blasts at a time and the noise level is constant in every level/room.

I think this is a water pipe humming problem like other people have described. However, I have turned the water main off and the problem does not go away! A quick check of indoor faucets and toilets didn't really turn up the culprit.

I recently got a lawn sprinkler installed. I can't really check its pipes. Could this be the source of the problem too?

Before I call a plumber, is there anything else I should try? Attic/roof inspection? Gas line? Structure?

Any suggestion would be appreciated. This noise is very annoying.

Cheers.
I am interest to hear if you got any answers. I too hear since 2006 a hum noise and I went to a german side www. Igzab.de also in english that my gve you a clou how difficult it is to find the hum noise. My problem is sleeping. What country do you live in.
The noise appears in nz germany switzerland usa etc
I would like to hear from you I just don't know how it would work

Hello. Well, the humming noise in my house is still there after a year. As I said before, we had the power cut by the power company. Still humming. Shut down the water pump at the pump house. Still humming. :confused: It was suggested that someone nearby was running a dialysis machine. Not. My closest neighbor is at least a quarter mile away. The hum is not outside, only heard inside, and mostly at night or early in the morning when there are no other distracting noises. As someone else has said, ear plugs do not help. I have decided I will have to live with this and have been offered no other suggestions
Sue... Southern Oregon

Give speedball1 and award!!

We had the humming noise and searched all over the house. We thought it was probably electrical. We then read this message thread, read the answer from speedball1 and checked. It was the toilet.

This saved us a tremendous hassle and cost.

THANK YOU SPEEDBALL1!!

Speedball1,

Does the humming that you described coming from a toilet only occur when the
Main water line to the house is on? I hear the humming even when I turn the
Water off.

I had the power company shut down the power. I shut off the water at the pump house. Still humming. Has been for a year now. Not a toilet or fridge or any appliance. Even removed batteries from anything that used them. Still humming. Cannot be heard outside, only inside. :confused:

I had / have a similar experience in my home when I first moved in... a rumbling, sometimes humming noise that sounded like a train a distance away. It turned out to be my turbine roof vents, totally wind operated. Just thought I would pass that along... house noises can come from anywhere!

For the past month, been hearing humming noise in the evening, also though it was a vehicle with its engine running but was wrong, ask neighbors and whenever people were in my house - nobody hears it but me, its not electrical, plumbing or rodents in the attic. Very faith humming noise. Sometimes think its someone playing music and I hear the bass, wrong again. Tried to ignore it, but cant. Check out this URL below, maybe my problem as well as yours?

Mystery humming sound captured - Technology - theage.com.au (http://www.theage.com.au/news/technology/mystery-humming-sound-captured/2006/11/17/1163266756133.html)





QUOTE=diamdave]We have had this problem in Chicago for over three years now.
First we thought it was the frig, the turned off the power main, still hear it. Sounds like a truck idling outside, but go outside and its dead quiet. Go inside and its omnidirectional in the home.
We installed airport noise abatement windows in our bedroom. That muffled the cars and voices outside, but did nothing for this low hum.

Among the things we checked:

* Hum heard with power main 'off'
* No attic fan
* No sump pump
* Gutters are tight
* roof antenna tight
* Chimney has a cap
* Someone mentioned it might be wind over the toilet roof vents/stacks. I don't know, anybody ever hear of this?
* Hot water tank new... 3 years old, seems quiet
* Heard with heat or a/c off.
* Plumbing seems quiet.
* We have flat roof vents, but so do our neighbors, don't hear the sound
* 75% of backyard is concrete, but I thought concrete is a sound blocker, not transmitter.
* Had gas lines checked, all OK
* Had chimney cleaned, some nesting and a dead bird clay liner shifted slightly, but otherwise OK.
* We have an extension back room on our second floor. Has one gable vent, separate from attic. Also has its own independent gas heater, we never use, but has its own vent stack on roof.

We are at a loss. Bothers me more than my wife. NOt loud, but low, fan and ear plugs do not mask it. ANY remedies you can offer? Solve this and I'll fly you in and treat you to any meal in any restaurant in Chicago you want. Really. Please help, Dave[/QUOTE]

You said "nobody hears it but me"... ever hear of tinnitis? I used to go to a lot of rock concerts... the humming was always there... it goes away in 10- 15 years.

Thank you for your response, thought at first it may have been tinnitus but its not, very low grade vibration humming only hear at home, its not constant, fades and returns - only in the evening, after reading other blogs it maybe transformer or pool pump. However, when I go outside it disappears.

Hello, I hope you folks can help me.

Recently, we have been hearing a loud, low frequency "hum" throughout our house. I have turned the main power off to determine whether it's electrical. It's not. The noise does sound like a "fog horn" going off several blasts at a time and the noise level is constant in every level/room.

I think this is a water pipe humming problem like other people have described. However, I have turned the water main off and the problem does not go away! A quick check of indoor faucets and toilets didn't really turn up the culprit.

I recently got a lawn sprinkler installed. I can't really check its pipes. Could this be the source of the problem too?

Before I call a plumber, is there anything else I should try? Attic/roof inspection? Gas line? Structure?

Any suggestion would be appreciated. This noise is very annoying.

Cheers.
I have the same problem. It's a humming noise that started a couple of months ago and is only heard at night. It doesn't bother my wife but its very annoying to me. I turn the power off and check out side and the humming noise is only inside. Very confusing.. have you found anything on your end?

slkot,
Suggest that you purchase a engine stethoscope from automotive parts store and use it to check plumbing. Sound can be transmitted through the pipes even thought the water is turned off. You can do the same thing with a short piece of hose or even a short piece of pipe. Place one end of the hose to the water pipe coming into the house and the other to your ear. You could use this method to check various places or items in you house to isolate the source.

Hey, I suggest you check if your windows are open while this happens because it could be anyone outside walking by, driving by,etc!

Hello, I hope you folks can help me.

Recently, we have been hearing a loud, low frequency "hum" throughout our house. I have turned the main power off to determine whether it's electrical. It's not. The noise does sound like a "fog horn" going off several blasts at a time and the noise level is constant in every level/room.

I think this is a water pipe humming problem like other people have described. However, I have turned the water main off and the problem does not go away! A quick check of indoor faucets and toilets didn't really turn up the culprit.

I recently got a lawn sprinkler installed. I can't really check its pipes. Could this be the source of the problem too?

Before I call a plumber, is there anything else I should try? Attic/roof inspection? Gas line? Structure?

Any suggestion would be appreciated. This noise is very annoying.

Cheers.
Hearing humming noise based on my search is from either the sounds of planet moving caused by electromagnetic forces. Some people can hear it, and they are called "HEARER". Several years ago Japanese scientist look for the noise source, and could not find the source except the above COSMOS noise.
I hope this help.

I haven't read all of the posts so I don't know if this is relevant to you (maybe you tried this already). We had a low frequency vibration in the house for the past month (that only I could hear) and finally today, I think we've tracked it down. Our water softener has a bypass mode so we turned it to that mode so that water would no longer be diverted through the softener. Suddenly, no more noise. We took it off bypass and soon, I heard the noise again. We'll probably have to replace the softener and hope we don't have the same problem with the new one. Good luck.

I too have had the humming noise and recently vibrations. A variety of contractors have checked the entire house out and did eliminate some noise, but the humming continues. What I believe the humming and vibration noise is coming from is seismic/earthquake activity. I live in an area where earthquake activity is not common so I never considered it, but recently I found out that there was a 3.9 earthquake 2 hours east in the last 6 months, and the USGS installed a broadband earthquake monitor an hour west of our house (in an area which has never had an earthquake). I have been monitoring the humming noise with the earthquake monitor which is on the internet (see link below) - the monitor is real-time, and the noise level corresponds with the earthquake activity.

Seismic Network Operations (http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/monitoring/operations/network.php?network=ANSS)

The "Heliplot" tab shows the seismic info.

Here is another link for Texas seismic info: TexSeis Home (http://www.ig.utexas.edu/texseis/)

(click on the "Recent Helicorder Displays" to show real-time earthquake readings)

I'm having the same problem my husband has a reward in place to anyone who can solve this mystery noise.We moved in May of this year to a 21 year old home did all the renovations had all sorts of trades in here. And every body is at a loss! Here's the best part this rumbling noise that last approximatley 10 to 20 seconds is non exsisting on the weekends.Stop at 5:00p.m Fri. and starts up Mon. 8:00 a.m.
Anyone please help!

I had a third pest control person out, and this one said that it could be mud dauber(s) in the wall because they flap their little wings and can cause a lot of noise. He said the humming definitely was not bees or wasps. We are going to plug the weep holes with copper wool so that they cannot come & go, & plug other cracks, etc. Apparently the mud daubers are hard to see in action because they come & go every 1/2 hour.

Any chance you could call the previous owners and see if they had this issue? Maybe they can offer some help in finding out what the problem noise is. And as far as insects, I don't think they take weekends off. Do you hae any timers which control pumps or attic fans? Any trains near you that could run on different schedules on the weekend? Just grasping at straws here, but if you have a timetable it's likely a timed event, either mechanical or human affected.

Has anyone installed Ridge Vents on their roof? They are causing the humming. I have just discovered that when using ridge vents for attic ventilation you must close off the gable vents, turbines, & louvers. More importantly, you have to allow sufficient soffit airway passage in order for the ridge vents to work properly. Along with the constant humming and wind variance, I believe my ridge vents are creating a negative pressure and are bringing in the traffic noise during rush hour and at night when trucks travel the freeway. Here are a couple links with info:

On The House with the Carey Bros. & Rebecca Cole. : Attic Ventilation -> Weekly Project (http://www.onthehouse.com/wp/20030929)

Air Vent: Troubleshooting Tips (http://www.airvent.com/homeowner/resources/troubleshooting.shtml)

Unfortunately, the roofing contractor who replaced the roof does not know how ridge vents work and how they interact with soffits. I am calling another company to fix the mess. Wish there was a ridge vent class action -- or there should be.

Do you have a programmable thermostat, alarm system, water heater timer, any kind of timing device that might be set one way during the week and another during the weekend. You say the rumbling last 10-20 seconds, how long between rumblings.

Hi,

I just read your letters regarding the humming problem you have or have had in your homes. I noticed that the letters were posted back in 2007. I was just wondering if you have had any luck locating the source of this humming noise.

Unfortunately for the past month I too have been experiencing the very same type of noise in my home. Like you no one else in the house can hear it. I too am at my wits end. I cannot get any sleep. It is the most annoying, exasperating noise I have been experienced. It is a low frequency, vibrating, mechanical, fog-like, intermittent noise. I can also hear it everywhere in the house. I too am considering selling my house and moving on. I just cannot tolerate the constant, irritating noise any longer. Again, ear plugs make it worse.

I like you have tried everything possible. Stopped whirly birds, called PUC to check water lines and turn off electricity, called the gas company to turn off gas. I just had a college professor come over with a special monitor for low frequency sounds and it definitely shows a huge difference from regular noise to low frequency noise, but cannot identify exactly where the source is coming from as it is everywhere in the house.

My family is going insane because I am driving them crazy. It is very upsetting that no one else can hear it when it is like having my head inside of an engine.

I know that there has to be a logical explanation, but I don’t know what else can be done at this point.

I would appreciate any suggestions you may have. As I stated above, I have already done everything suggested in the replies you previously received.

Thanks again.

Stumped in Canada

Hi Again,

I think we may have solved our mysterious humming noise and I hope this may help you. I was away for the weekend and when I returned home on Sunday night, the noise was gone. It is something totally interesting.

Do any of you by any chance have climbing vines on your homes? While I was away, my husband cut 300 to 400 feet of climbing vines from the side of our home. The vines had intertwined into the eaves troughing. The vines of course came from the ground to the roof. It seems that the vines were creating some sort of contact electrode. We all know that there is always vibration in the ground and by the vines touching the ground were picking up some sort of vibration and carrying it to the eaves troughing and causing the humming sound against the aluminum and then throughout the whole house. I don't know if this will be of help, but I do hope so. As stated in my last letter I know how annoying and frustrating this noise is especially because no one else in the house can hear it. I was at my wits end and ready to put the For Sale Sign up. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Hopefully no longer stumped in Canada

yvonnemarie

Hi,

I just read your letters regarding the humming problem you have or have had in your homes. I noticed that the letters were posted back in 2007. I was just wondering if you have had any luck locating the source of this humming noise.

Unfortunately for the past month I too have been experiencing the very same type of noise in my home. Like you no one else in the house can hear it. I too am at my wits end. I cannot get any sleep. It is the most annoying, exasperating noise I have been experienced. It is a low frequency, vibrating, mechanical, fog-like, intermittent noise. I can also hear it everywhere in the house. I too am considering selling my house and moving on. I just cannot tolerate the constant, irritating noise any longer. Again, ear plugs make it worse.

I like you have tried everything possible. Stopped whirly birds, called PUC to check water lines and turn off electricity, called the gas company to turn off gas. I just had a college professor come over with a special monitor for low frequency sounds and it definitely shows a huge difference from regular noise to low frequency noise, but cannot identify exactly where the source is coming from as it is everywhere in the house.

My family is going insane because I am driving them crazy. It is very upsetting that no one else can hear it when it is like having my head inside of an engine.

I know that there has to be a logical explanation, but I don’t know what else can be done at this point.

I would appreciate any suggestions you may have. As I stated above, I have already done everything suggested in the replies you previously received.

Thanks again.

Stumped in Canada

yvonnemarie

Hi Again,

I think we may have solved our mysterious humming noise and I hope this may help you. I was away for the weekend and when I returned home on Sunday night, the noise was gone. It is something totally interesting.

Do any of you by any chance have climbing vines on your homes? While I was away, my husband cut 300 to 400 feet of climbing vines from the side of our home. The vines had intertwined into the eaves troughing. The vines of course came from the ground to the roof. It seems that the vines were creating some sort of contact electrode. We all know that there is always vibration in the ground and by the vines touching the ground were picking up some sort of vibration and carrying it to the eaves troughing and causing the humming sound against the aluminum and then throughout the whole house. I don't know if this will be of help, but I do hope so. As stated in my last letter I know how annoying and frustrating this noise is especially because no one else in the house can hear it. I was at my wits end and ready to put the For Sale Sign up. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Hopefully no longer stumped in Canada


Nov 19, 2008 06:07 PM

Hi,
This is my first post .
I also hear the humming noise inside my house here in the UK . The noise has nearly always been present for many years and we have just assumed it was the ball valves in the water tanks in the loft. Just recently we have had a new condensing gas boiler fitted together with a new hot water cylinder . This required entry into the loft by the installer . We noticed after the boiler was working that the humming noise is now louder and of course is present 24/7 , although it always seems worse at night when it is quiet. All of the ball valves have been replaced and I have attempted to 'listen' to all possible noise entry points using a tube made of plastic, with no success. Our house has concrete piles with steel RSJ's on each corner of the house , could this be an issue ? We do have a ridge tile that was used for a previous gas boiler flue. I now use it as the air vent for our bathroom, fed by an extractor fan . I have not yet eliminated this as a source of humming noise though. Not an answer, but more of a sharing of problems.

Do you think you might suffer from tinnitis? Have you seen an ent doctor? Sometimes things we hear are caused by the inner ear. Do you work in a noisy environment that may have caused inner ear damage? I suffer from tinnitis myself and have this constant noise that sounds like high frequency sound waves. I have learned to live with it.

do you think you might suffer from tinnitis? have you seen an ent doctor? sometimes things we hear are caused by the inner ear. do you work in a noisy enviroment that may have caused inner ear damage? i suffer from tinnitis myself andd have this constant noise that sounds like high frequency sound waves. i have learned to live with it.

margar ,
Thank you for your comments. To my knowledge I do not have tinnitus , but have not seen a ENT specialist. I have never worked in a noisey environment . I only hear the modulated low frequency (estimated <100Hz) noise inside my house and not outside . I do not however hear the noise inside my garage which is detached from the house. My wife also hears the humming noise which has always occurred in the whole 25 years we have been in our house. It just now seems to be worse .

Some years ago though we did hear our neighbours Washer Dryer inside our house even though she lives in a detached house from us. I have not yet eliminated her household.

How do you determine if you have tinnitus ? Can you determine if you hear noises if you wear a pair of headphones to drown out external noises ? I presume if you hear a loud noise (broadband or narrowband ) that one may have tinnitus ?

I can put in a set of ear plugs and still hear the high pitched noise. So I know it is inner ear. What you are describing doesn't sound like inner ear problems if you and your wife both hear it. I have always mowed the yard without protective head gear, not thinking much about it. I am puzzled about your home. Perhaps, it is in your plumbing or in your furnace/ac. Are either one of these running all the time? Wonder if turning off switches in your breaker box would narrow the problem down any? Don't things like this just drive you nuts? Good luck

I have just found this reference document which gives a good overview on the issue of Pulsating low frequecy noise:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/noise/research/lowfrequency/pdf/lowfreqnoise.pdf

Thanks for the great article. It most certainly gave me much more insight to this issue. I am still experiencing this dilemma after 8 months and am no closer to an answer. I am trying to post letters in my local newspapers to find out if there is anyone else in my city that is experiencing this problem. I am most certain that the irritating noise is not coming from my own home as I have heard it in many other homes as well.

I may have one explanation but most people I talk to say that it is impossible.

Last fall our local college installed a wind mill. Our city has installed many wind mills in the past, but they are many miles away. This particular wind mill is basically in the center of the city. With past research I know that bats have been seriously affected by the wind mill structures. Bats do have some sort of sonic ability and are running into these wind mills and dying. The vibrating, engine like noise would be a description of how the wind mills sound. As I stated I am most certainly not an expert in this area, but so far this is the only explanation I have been able to investigate. I am hoping that other people will come forward as an investigation will be much easier with more support.

Thanks again and please let me know if anyone else may have wind mills in their area.

yvonnemarie

Yvonne, you may be on to something. There is a device called a "mole chaser" which is similar to a windmill... it sends low frequency vibrations through the ground... hmm... what do you think? Is a windmill just a huge version of this... maybe a "people chaser"?

Hi Again,

This article recently appeared on CTV News in Canada regarding health issues that people are dealing with that live close to windmills. As stated in my past letters, I have been experiencing this vibrational noise for the past 9 months and in the last 2 months I have actually been investigating windmills. Now I actually have some valid information to go on. I am attaching a copy of the article for your interest.

Yvonnemarie


Reports of wind farm health problems growing
Updated Wed. Apr. 22 2009 9:57 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

More people are coming forward saying they're experiencing sleep problems, headaches, and heart palpitations caused by living near windmills.

Ontario physician Dr. Robert McMurtry told a news conference in Toronto Wednesday that while wind energy may offer a cleaner, more efficient way to generate electricity, those who live near the giant turbines are suffering through serious health problems.

McMurtry, a retired orthopedic surgeon who used to be an assistant deputy minister of the Population and Public Health Branch of Health Canada, decided to look into the health effects of windmills with the help of Carmen Krogh, a retired Alberta pharmacist.

Krogh and a group of volunteers distributed questionnaires in areas near wind farms, asking residents to describe whether they have experienced any effects from the turbines.

Of 76 people who responded to their informal survey, 53 reported at least one health complaint. They complained of:

Headaches
Heart palpitations
Hearing problems
Stress, anxiety and depression
He reports that one resident had to be admitted to hospital with an acute hypertensive episode. Another experienced atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm).

"There is no question that they are genuinely suffering, and more people are at risk if the rules are not changes substantially," McMurtry told the committee.

Krogh's survey revealed that most of those who complained of health problems lived within a kilometre of a wind farm, while those further away were less likely to experience health problems.

The turbines don't appear to affect everyone equally and it is not clear what causes the health problems in some people. Some suspect that the constant, low frequency noise and vibration from the rotating blades may be what cause the problems.

But research into the problem is lacking. That's why McMurtry is calling on governments to conduct a lot more studies into the turbines' effects on the health of nearby residents.

"There is no epidemiological study that has been conducted that establishes either the safety or harmfulness of industrial wind turbines. In short, there is an absence of evidence," McMurtry told an Ontario government committee Wednesday.

The committee is debating The Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009, a bill that would enact standards for renewable energy projects, such as standardized setback requirements for wind farms.

McMurtry told the committee that until there are rigorous epidemiological studies of the health effects of wind turbines, Ontario should not go ahead with any further construction of wind turbines.

Wind power advocates contend that studies have been conducted in North America and other parts of the world and they show that residents who live near wind farms have few complaints about them.

Sean Whittaker, vice president of the Canadian Wind Energy Association, said these studies "have really come to the same conclusion and that is there is no evidence that wind turbines have an impact on human health."

Whittaker told CTV News that research he has reviewed shows that the percentage of people who approve of wind power increases the closer you get to a wind farm.

Barbara Ashbee is not one of those people.

Ashbee lives in the shadow of 11 of the 45 giant wind turbines at the Melanchthon wind farm near Shelburne, Ont. about 100 kilometres northwest of Toronto. At first, she liked the idea of living near a green-energy facility.

"I thought it was a great idea for the environment," she told CTV News.

But the day the turbines started running, she and her husband, Denis Lormand, stopped sleeping.

"They are so loud we didn't get any sleep. You can hear them in the bedroom. There is also a hum and vibration that permeates the house," she says

All that deprivation started to lead to cognitive abilities, she contends.

"My memory now is horrible," she says. "It's terrible to go night after night without sleep. We go to bed 7 p.m. because we don't know what the night will bring."

Her husband also suffers from tinnitus, which causes a constant whining sound in his ears.

With more construction at the Melanchthon wind power centre expected to bring the number of turbines at the facility to 133, the couple says they would love to sell their house but can't.

"Between the noise and the vibration, we couldn't put a For Sale sign here. There's no way," says Ashbee.

Ashbee says she has no problem with the concept of wind farms, but she says they simply shouldn't be built near residences.

"I thought they were wonderful, but they're not. There are big problems and they have to get sorted out," she says.

With a report by CTV medical specialist Avis Favaro and producer Elizabeth St. Philip

Hello, I hope you folks can help me.

Recently, we have been hearing a loud, low frequency "hum" throughout our house. I have turned the main power off to determine whether it's electrical. It's not. The noise does sound like a "fog horn" going off several blasts at a time and the noise level is constant in every level/room.

I think this is a water pipe humming problem like other people have described. However, I have turned the water main off and the problem does not go away! A quick check of indoor faucets and toilets didn't really turn up the culprit.

I recently got a lawn sprinkler installed. I can't really check its pipes. Could this be the source of the problem too?

Before I call a plumber, is there anything else I should try? Attic/roof inspection? Gas line? Structure?

Any suggestion would be appreciated. This noise is very annoying

Cheers. I have this same problem. Help

Sueblancka
You turned off the water main. Where did you do that, where it enters the house, or in the street? Is there a place where the noise is louder? Can you here it from outside? Is there vibration with the noise? It's corny, but try putting a glass to your ear and put it against the wall.

I don't know if this helps, but today I have for the first time heard this mysterious noise. My wife can't hear, nor can my son, but my daughter can hear it. It is a constant low frequency humming noise occasionally interrupted for a second or two.

The only thing that has happened recently is that Verizon just laid fiber optic cable behind my house. Have any of you noticed that the sounds started when Verizon or a cable company laid cable in the neighborhood? I'm wondering whether this is causing it, or the company laying the cable hit my sprinkler system or some other cable in the ground around my house.

We have not found the source, however, have found a solution.

Long story short, we found a crack between the flashing of our chimney and the roof, as well as a tiny gap under the bottom part of a roof vent. After closing the gaps, the hum became bearable and allows for sleep and rest!!

Our best tip came from an EPA agent who suggested to tighten the bolts of our metal garage door. Indeed, the noise reduced dramatically.

It appears the larger the room the louder the hum can get.

We downloaded a frequency tester and identified 'our' hum to be at 90 hz.

Further resources from my research:

Airport design and operation - Google Buchsuche (http://books.google.com/books?id=XSifJIXvemEC&pg=PA386&lpg=PA386&dq=90+hz+airport&source=bl&ots=1TMMsffYei&sig=3nMWOnxLsX0ipA0IAElZ_jLj6FY&hl=de&ei=c74QStufGozEMd-cyaYG&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1)

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)-Topic Overview (http://www.webmd.com/brain/tc/benign-paroxysmal-positional-vertigo-bppv-topic-overview)

Neurophone.com- The GPF-1011DSP (http://www.neurophone.com/home.htm)


Still looking for tools to pick-up frequencies... any ideas? The sound meter from radio shack can't pick it up.

U could try putting a recorder somewhere in your house and c what you get on the tape,or you could take pics of the parts of the house it's the loudest in

Well at least I know I'm not crazy! It pays to ask. I've been hearing this for the past couple of years and it drives me nuts!! I too tried investigating the source to no avail. It is sometimes intermitent and primarily at night, but it's the middle of the day and it's doing it right now :( We're in SoCal. My Mom lives 50 miles from me in San Diego and we hear it there too. Are they tapping our brain waves now or just trying to re-program us! Our newborn grabs her ears at night, had to take her in to make sure she didn't have an ear infection, I think she hears it and it drives her nuts too :) Thanks 300 for the links... will investigate.

Have constant humming noise in my home. Everything possible in the home has been checked out. Source seems to be from outside the house. I became aware of the noise about a year ago. Thermo heating was being installed at that time in a seniors complex. The complex is about a block away... facing the side of the home that the noise is the loudest. Could this be the source? If so can anything be done to correct the problem?

I to am having a vibrational hum everywhere in my home, including the basement. It really just started on the sound volume that it is now 3 days ago, but I've noticed it off and on since we built the house three years ago. I just thought is was part of the air system noise mixed with the ambient background of the city I live in. It was never that loud or consistent and I don't recall hearing it in the winter.

It always seemed more prevalent in the summer in our front bedroom and used to be primarily at night and very low in the background. That changed 3 days ago when I started hearing it all the time and all over the house. Three weeks before, I replaced the cheap, noisy and inefficiant furnace and A/C. The house that had always had background noise from our old system became very quiet, but I didn't notice the hum until after two weeks had passed.

Although I don't hear it outside I wonder if it could be coming from the background noise of the small city I live. We have vinyl siding and basic insulation, nothing fancy. I can't hear it in the walls, but was wondering if the siding and basic insulation could be allowing the frame to attinuate with the noise of the city, causing it to vibrate?

My wife hears it too, but it doesn't seem to bother her as much. Would love to get any input or suggestions.

Have been hearing a noise at night in my bedroom that wakes me up sounds like a helicopter or drilling hurts my ears goes off and on think could be sprinkler system or roof top turbines maintenance man and condo president deny either probably because they don't want to spend money on a professional, I'm desperate for a good nites sleep please help

Hi Dave,

I am having the same problem in my home - a low level humming/vibration that continues even when the power and water are turned off. We have had the hydro company out twice and they have checked lines, connections, meters and the transformer pole outside our house. Our transformer is quite loud compared to others in the neighbourhood and our electrician says that it is probably electrical harmonics and transient sounds traveling from the transformer down the pole, into the ground and into our house. I even felt vibrations through the ground when we tried to sleep in a tent in our backyard. Very few people have noticed the humming/vibration as regularly as I have as it is probably out of their range of perception/hearing. I am going on less than four hours of sleep a night and am becoming desperate to find a solution. Did you end up finding out what was causing the hum/vibration? Any information or advice would be appreciated.

Thanks - Selena

Is anybody listening or reading my earlier post? The problem is caused by the ballcock trying to fill while water is seeping out of the tank. The sound you hear is the washer vibrating against the seat of the ballcock. First check there linkage between the flapper and the flush lever. It should have 1/4" of play when your tank is filled. Next feel the flat side of your flapper. Does it have wavey edges? Do your hands come away black? Replace it if it does. And last check the seat itself. Any nicks or rough spots? If so click on back. There are replacement seats that glue right over the old one and are easy to replace. One of the above should take care of your howling. This happened in a new house some years ago. Only at night and in the early morning. They thought the house was haunted and were about to move out. I caught it in the powder room toilet. It would vibrate and the pipes in the wall would pick it up and carry it all over the house. Hope this helps Tom

Me to help

I have this low level hum problem too and wonder if anyone ever identified the source. I even had the electric company come out and shut off transformers. Sound was still there and continuous. We live in the country where it is otherwise quiet.
The noise drives me nuts, but my wife and most other people barely notice it. Navigational aids for planes causing vibration through the foundation and wood structure sounds plausible as there is a small airfield about 10 mi away as the crow flies?

I have this low level hum problem too and wonder if anyone ever identified the source. I even had the electric company come out and shut off transformers. Sound was still there and continuous. We live in the country where it is otherwise quiet.
The noise drives me nuts, but my wife and most other people barely notice it. Navigational aids for planes causing vibration through the foundation and wood structure sounds plausible as there is a small airfield about 10 mi away as the crow flies?

Your not crazy. I recorded the sound I guess Im the only guy so far that owns a recording studio with gear capable of recording the sound that can hear the sound we are all referring to.

So I guess that makes me the key link.

Here is the sound. This was a real quickie job and I can get a better recording, but for now this will have to do.


YouTube - The Hum (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALQtYWQcy3Q)

I have heard the low frequency noise, about 52Hz, for some 10 years. About 6 months ago, this was joined by a new noise somewhere around middle C (256Hz). This is now the dominant noise, and can be heard day and night indoors when quiet. I have suffered from genuine tinnitus for many years, not severe enough to need treatment, but I do know what it's like. These noises described appear to come from outside the head, not inside like tinnitus. They also very occasionally stop for some time and then return. They also seem to be affected by weather conditions. The noises are not local, I have heard them on holiday in France, various parts of Germany and in Spain, in large cities and small villages. You have to be in an enclosed space, room etc. to hear them.

I really have no idea of the cause, but there are rumours of secret communications systems, possibly for submarines.

I live in North-West England, sbout 20 miles south of Manchester.

In some of the responses there seems to be a common thread about airport / military bases / navigation systems.
I live in Virginia Beach near Oceana Navy Jet base. I hear the same low level hum.

We had an electronic problem with our oven (kept getting error messages on the control panel) and the service man put an electromagnetic ring around the wires. He said it was a common problem in homes near the Jet Base because of the electro megnetic impulses the Navy sends out to jam communication interference.
I lived in a different location of the same city, farther away from the Base and never heard the noise before.
We recently had a major storm and the power went out all ove the area for 45 minutes. I stood in 6 different rooms and could hear it loud and clear but my wife couldn't.
The Navy of course has their own power backup system and they were operating as usual.
If that's not the cause then it must be that the house and I have the same harmonics as the earth.
I wonder if we plotted the locations of each response if we'd come up a pattern similar to the electomagnetic field of the earth?

Update. Since my lat post I did some research on low frequency noise relating to airports.
The following link helps with some explanations http://web.mit.edu/aeroastro/partner/projects/project1-qanda.html

MIT shows that the "hum" is more noticeable at night about 10 PM which has been my experience

Does this relate to anyone else?

Our problem started 6 weeks after moving into house-first heard as a low idling diesel. Eventually worsened to point the concrete slab actually vibrates when the "cycles" increase. This is a 24/7 noise but "idles" at times, then gets rock and rolling, usually in the later nighttime hours when plant is producting water for storage or demand, but can be bad anytime. We think we've traced it to the water treatment plant about 1/2 to one mile from us. Problem is no other neighbors seem aware of the problem so we think the placement of our home is resonating to the plant acoustics. We've had people in house who also cannot hear it so we believe it to be a subsonic frequency not audible to all. Husband has spoken with various authorities who won't do anything unless other complaints come in, and they won't own up to the noise emissions, so we are in the position of not getting any help. From investigating we know it is the pumps, lime hoppers, and other plant equipment causing the noise and vibrations. Hiring a noise engineer is too costly. Anyone have any other suggestions. Do not have proper equipment to record but the noise inside the house is unbearable but outside is heard as a high pitched whine, low frequency. It penetrates earplugs, headsets, and even a Bose noise cancelling headset was so good. It has got me taking prescription anxiety meds and my husband's bad health is worsening. We've had plumbers verify there is no problems related to the water system. We are ready to move!

Dave, where are you in Chicago? I am in Lake Bluff and recently (I'm thinking about three months ago) I started hearing this pervasive hum that is equally audible in every room of the house. It is a somewhat wavering tone, and sometimes lasts as long as 12 hours. I am the only one who hears it, and I only hear it in one ear. It definitely is there - I have gone to other quiet places (like outside in my car) where I don't hear it, and when I come back in I hear it again. I suspect the Great Lakes Navy base may have a power plant and what I am hearing is sound transmitted through the ground or through the underground river that runs under my neighborhood. There are also some train tracks, and I know sometimes these big freight engines sit and run for hours at a time. One of these days I am going to walk the tracks and see what I see. Or maybe it's just the sound of the underground river when it reaches certain levels. I have begun tracking the sound in an excel and comparing it to rain fall. Hole... anyway, I thought maybe we had a geographical link. Let me know.

This might help someone who is experiencing a low humming noise in their house that never seems to go away. Today after months of try to find out where in the house the noise was coming from, I had an idea to check the electronic pest control devices that you plug into the wall. These seem to have some kind of ultrasonic sound waves that travel through the walls. After Georgia Power came out to the house and disconnected the power to the house from the pole, and it there was still humming, I was sure this noise would make me nuts. Seems like only I could hear it. After the service man left, that's when I knew I would have to think of something! I happened to just think that I tried everything else (replaced the prv valve, had gas line checked, had the power company out), when I knew for a fact that I heard the noise and it was in every room of the house. I walked from room to room and then saw these electronic/ultrasonic pest devices in every room. I do know that these devices emit sound that travels through the walls to keep bugs, roaches, etc. away. The good news is... once I removed all of them from the walls, the noise stopped!! Please, I have seen a lot of answers to the humming noise in houses, but I have NEVER seen on about these electronic pest control devices. My advice is this... check to see if you have any electronic pest control devices in your houses. If so, remove them, my noise stopped and I hope your's does too!

Hearing it here too in Gilbert, Az. Since 11/2009 (started just prior to Thanksgiving). 24/7, every room, have killed main breaker, water main (on house), battery back-up on alarm system, etc. etc. etc. And no; it's not a toilet or washing machine. Just wrote to my electric company asking them if they would be willing to kill the mains to my home. No gas here, no sump pump, no heavy industry. It would be redundant to reiterate all that has been said here; it's just more of the same. Girlfriend can't hear it, driving me nuts and losing sleep, and perhaps some of my sanity...

Hearing it here too in Gilbert, Az. since 11/2009 (started just prior to Thanksgiving). 24/7, every room, have killed main breaker, water main (on house), battery back-up on alarm system, etc., etc., etc. And no; it's not a toilet or washing machine. Just wrote to my electric company asking them if they would be willing to kill the mains to my home. No gas here, no sump pump, no heavy industry. It would be redundant to reiterate all that has been said here; it's just more of the same. Girlfriend can't hear it, driving me nuts and losing sleep, and perhaps some of my sanity...

Hello, looks like jfaScoots sums it up pretty much for the whole string of similarities, comments and suggestions this far. I have one suggestion and that is like jfascoots, why don't everyone state their general location where their noise is? I am also experiencing a mystery noise in Southern Oregon, Josephine County on the South side of Grants Pass City. I have been aware of it for about a year. Just about all the discriptions of the sound have described mine exactly with the same one thing in common: Don't know what is creating it or where its coming from! Ahhh

Here is a link from Calgary Canada that even has a Blog about their noise!
Unidentified Noise in Calgary (http://unidentifiednoiseincalgary.blogspot.com/)

Good luck. Be checking back! Thanks, Mystery Buzz.;)

I have also tried everything from turning off the water to turning off the electricity. Nothing works. However, we did discover that we have a slow water leak someplace but it is so small that plumbers tell me they cannot locate it. Don't know what I'm going to do! I live in Florida, Brevard County.

My husband and I are experiencing the same humming noise that everybody describes. Impossible to rest or sleep at night even with earplugs. For the ones who think that we are crazy, we are not. Our problem is that we are renting and, of course, the owner does not hear it. It does not want to let us go until we pay it the rest of the yearly rent... $16,000.
As we cannot find where this noise is coming from, did somebody resolve the problem by buying a white noise machine and custom made in-ear plugs sold on line. Thank you for your help.

Possibly a mild variation of Meniere's disease?

May even be related to blood sugar level.

Some medications will cause perception of sounds and higher blood sugar levels or chocolate may cause such perceptions.

After a friend eats too much chocolate, he has audible effects.
If he vigorously exercises, or goes to a dry sauna and sweats out, it diminishes or disappears.

If you turn off water, open a line to relieve residual perssure.
Vibration from water or gas lines coming into the house?
Neighbor's machinery?
Usually soil will absorb and attenuate noise, but a pipe can transmit sound well.

What is the pitch?
Use a piano or keyboard to match the pitch and publish it here.

60 cycle AC is closest to B-natural.
Could a radio frequency emissions cause vibration between metal parts somewhere?
Have you disconnected your telephone line at the SNI? (Standard Network Interface)
Also disconnect cable.
All worth a try.

Sorry, but if I was the only one who is hearing the noise, I would have already have my ears checked. My husband hears it as well. And when we are outside or in another house, we do not hear the humming noise. People affected with tinnitus hear this noise constantly.
We have checked everything with no result.
We have disconnected the telephone from the box located outside the house. Is it what you call the SNI?

...We have disconnected the telephone from the box located outside the house. Is it what you call the SNI?Yes. The plastic case contains the SNI.

Wish I were there to track the mystery down for you.
Can you discern what pitch?
If B-natural or harmonic thereof, it is likely related to thelectrical power.

I have a stethoscope. I would place the diaphragm against the incoming water pipe and natural gas pipe.

Turn off the main breaker and listen to the electrical panel in case hum is following the loop from the utility pole (if you have one) into the house.
Perhaps hum from the transformer could be conducted through the wires.

Maybe the multiple ballasts of the lights in the neighbor's clandestine basement marijuana growing operation.

We live in Naples, Florida. Does somebody in this area experience the same humming noise?
We checked the toilet flappers as suggested. They are OK. We will try to disconnect the alarm transformers in the garage again. We will keep you posted.

For the people who do not know what the noise sounds like, it is like a diesel engine running out of your window. It can be heard in each room and is constant.

Please, do not make fun of us. It is real and we are not insane...

Hearing it here too in Gilbert, Az. since 11/2009 (started just prior to Thanksgiving). 24/7, every room, have killed main breaker, water main (on house), battery back-up on alarm system, etc., etc., etc. And no; it's not a toilet or washing machine. Just wrote to my electric company asking them if they would be willing to kill the mains to my home. No gas here, no sump pump, no heavy industry. It would be redundant to reiterate all that has been said here; it's just more of the same. Girlfriend can't hear it, driving me nuts and losing sleep, and perhaps some of my sanity...

Where in Gilbert are you at ? I am in South Gilbert and hear it too, usually at night. At first I thought someone was watching TV in their house and I was hearing the lower noises. When I walk outside I can't hear it.
Honeywell has a test facility not too far from here, I wonder if it has something to do with it ?

I think I have located where it is coming from... it is the traffic (in our case). Though, we are located about one mile from the main road but in Naples, Florida, they have cut so many trees to build communities that nothing protects against the traffic noise. As we want to move, we have visited other houses and of course we always check if we can hear the same humming noise. In most of the houses, we do. Please, try this: Park your car outside the house, windows close. And listen... If your hear the humming noise, you will know that it is not a problem with the house.
My last comment: we bought a white noise machine and it helps sleep. When it is too loud, I still need my earplugs.

If it would happen to you, you would not make fun of us.


Possibly a mild variation of Meniere's disease?

May even be related to blood sugar level.

Some medications will cause perception of sounds and higher blood sugar levels or chocolate may cause such perceptions.

After a friend eats too much chocolate, he has audible effects.
If he vigorously exercises, or goes to a dry sauna and sweats out, it diminishes or disappears.

If you turn off water, open a line to relieve residual perssure.
Vibration from water or gas lines coming into the house?
Neighbor's machinery?
Usually soil will absorb and attenuate noise, but a pipe can transmit sound well.

Sorry, incorrect web address in previous answer. Please go to http://homepages.tesco.net/~JohnDawes2/

Ack! I am having this same problem and it is driving me C-R-A-Z-Y! I feel comforted knowing that other people hear it too. I live very rurally (Monroe, WA) and I noticed it about 3 months ago. I shut off everything electrical in the house... still hear it. Just tried turning off the water supply to the toilets... still hear it. Go outside of our house on the deck... still hear it. We have little to NO traffic noise, so it is not that. The noise is not constant... there will be long humming periods that last 1+ minutes, then pulses. I have a fan blowing on me at night which must be white "enough" noise to help me sleep. What's interesting is I have also been hearing it at work, intermittent bursts, but ALL day long. I can almost feel the vibration, a low hum. I really want it to stop :(... not sure what to do...

Thank you dgbowers10 for recommending this website. I knew that only 5 % of the people hear it and of course, the ones who do not hear it think that we are crazy. My husband and I thought that it was the traffic (even if we are 1.5 miles from a main road) as we hear the humming noise more on Friday nights when people go out or for instance during a long weekend like this one (Memorial Day). We also hear it less when it is raining.
As I already said in a previous message, the noise machine helps me sleep most of the nights. Though, when the humming noise is very loud, nothing can help.

If you're being bothered by low frequency noises that nobody else can hear find someone who wears a digital hearing aid that they can adjust to detect low frequencies. It is said that the human hearing range is from 20hz to 20,000 khz - but only a minority of people can hear 50hz unless its really loud - so they don't hear the transformer hum of electrical equipment. My hearing threshold is way below 20hz. My auditory world is very different from most other people's. I also hear very high frequency noises as well... I'm autistic.

Thank you for your response. You are right. Fortunately, we will move out of this home soon! The landlord asked us to pay a lot of fees and complains about anything to give us a hard time.
That's life!
We will do what you suggest if we have to go to court and prove that the humming noise really exists.

I started hearing the "hum" in 2007 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Initially, it occurred as two longs, a short, and a long: hmmm, hmmm, hm, hmmm with the emphasis on the last "syllable". Like virtually everyone else who is assaulted by the noise, I considered various alternatives: ear trouble, mental health, a water pump, furnace, truck engine, generator, trains, US Navy ELF experiment at the University of Calgary, cellphone tower emissions, aurora borealis research, long range ELF from Alaska, even Russian ELF or alien intervention. I tried to identify others who had heard the noise: my family members did from time-to-time, a neighbour a half-kilometre away did. My horses appeared to notice it. Like others, I got up in the night, driving around at 5 a.m. to try to find the source. I heard it ten k. from my home one night. During the daytime, I heard it by a deserted lake in a forest near Banff and another time way out on the bald Prairies. The sound extended from a couple of hours during the night to nearly 24/7 towards the end of my stay in Calgary. Once when it was particularly bad, I vomited. My blood pressure became very high and stayed up over time. I reported the sound to the Federal Government. I loved Calgary, but had to leave it for the sake of my health. I incurred huge expense to move my belongings and creatures. I now live peacefully in an area where cellphones have difficulty working and I never hear any humming. As a loyal Canadian citizen, I am truly saddened that the situation has been allowed to continue so long.

Thank you so much I thought I was going crazy to me it sounds like a giant bee hive around my house or a trian on idle mode. I don't know but it drives me crazy!

Wow, I am amazed at the activity this issue generates. I made my first post in February of 2007 and my last in March of 2007. I have a touch of OCD (self diagnosed) and I searched for an answer for a solid month before I gave it up.

I'm sorry to say that I never did find an answer. The noise still exists and I am still the only one in my home that can hear it. I firmly believe that it is not in my head, not the plumbing, electric, wind or anything else that can be identified and resolved. I believe, like most of you, that the noise is environmental. It resonates throughout my entire house, out into the neighborhood, and based on all the posts, around the world. As I stated in my March 2007 response, I did purchase HEPA (high efficiency particulate arrestor) air filters for my home. I run one in my bedroom on medium high, and the noise of the fan does a nice job of masking the humming noise. Without it I would have little chance of getting ANY sleep. Unless you are one of the lucky few that actually has some type of mechanicle issue in the home that can be identified and corrected, I believe some form of white noise is the best solution. For me the HEPA filter did the trick. Hope this helps.

I DID finally find an answer... Since no one else could hear it, my wife kept telling me it was all in my head. I couldn't believe it, but it turned out, in a way, she was right. In my case it was a type of Tinnitus ("ringing in the ear"). The very low pitched, "foghorn" type sound I was hearing really was being created by a problem in my ear, so it's no wonder no one else could hear it. Google "Tinnitus" and you will a great deal written about it. Thankfully, mine eventually subsided, although I'm not sure which of the many solutions I attempted actually solved the problem (or if it was just the passage of time).

Good luck to everyone.

In my case it was a type of Tinnitus ("ringing in the ear").
And yet another plumbing mystery solved! Thanks for the update, Tom

We moved from house where noise/vibration was actually traced to a water treatment plant, and possibly the underground water pipes throughout the town from the drainfields to the plant.
Lucky us, we then moved to a house that is directly ajacent to a huge church "compound" and they have so many air conditioners on so many large facilities, it is creating industrial size noise and vibration. They ignored the letter I sent asking if they could alleviate the issues, but nothing to date. I do hear low frequency noise and pick up vibration through my feet, which does not help the problem. I've found through research that the UK actually is studying and trying to do something about this issue that affects people healthwise the same way high frequency noise does. Most authorities do not deal with anything under 40-45 decibels, and LFN falls way down in the megahertz levels. It also has to be measured using the A weighting and not the C, as that does not capture it. The LFN is acoustic and travels a long distance from the source, as well as up close, as we are experiencing. We hope to move soon to a home we listened in for a while to determine if it is quiet and well away from anything industrial, including schools, shopping malls, etc. anywhere that operates high level a/c's, pumps, etc.

Have u condisered the ringer's syndrome in your case maybe, if you siad that , the sound doesn't go away with earplugs?

It may be Tinnitus or a form of maybe.

DARKSEID

It may possilbly be a alternate form of Tinnitus that might be causing u discomfort with the low humming noise.

Since you did say you tried earplugs and it still could be heard, maybe that could be the culprit.

Have you ever been exposed to loud or constant loud noises for along period?

I too use the HEPA filter to sleep at night and it really helps. And I don't think the problem is with my ears. We were on vacation and away from the house for one month, and upon return I didn't hear the noise until we were back for three days - then it started again. And I never heard the noise when we were away. We had a second vacation, this time away for two weeks and the same thing happened - on the third day back I started to hear the noise. Then, last weekend the noise stopped for two days but started again. Sometimes loud, sometimes soft, but there. It is driving me crazy - I must figure out what is causing it. Based on the fact that it starts up again after we return home, I think maybe it has something to do with the flow of water through the pipes. CAn anyone think of anything else??

I have found something puzzling. I have heard the noise for about 10 months. However, when we came home after a months vacation (I did not hear the noise in any of places we went on vacation), I did not hear the noise until we were home for several days. Same thing happened when we went away for two weeks - did not hear it in any other location. Did not hear the noise when we returned home - until the third day back! I can't explain it except that during our absence, we didn't use electricity or water. Does this make any sense??

I had an obnoxious humming noise in our home. It was caused by the flapper in one of the toilets.

I found it by:
1) Lifting off the top the toilet.
2) Sticking my hand down into the water.
3) Gently pushing on the flapper.
4) I found a flapper that was allowing a small amount of water to leak under the flapper. This apparently caused the vibration. The vibration was enough to cause the pipes in the wall to also vibrate. That initially made it very difficult to locate the cause.

The solution was to buy a new flapper for about $1.75 at a hardware store to replace the one that was leeking causing the vibration. When I did this the humming stopped.

What is the pitch of your roof?

I'm not sure of the pitch of the roof. It's not flat. Why?

I have a similar problem in Canada. I noticed it about 8 months ago and I can't zero it down to any appliance. I hear it all times of the day. It's more common in the basement. I have a walkout basement. I can also hear it in my garage which is concrete and set into the hill, it is detached and 25 ft from the house. I'm a realtor and I was in a house 2 miles from my property and heard the hum in a vacant house. It's a low level hum, almost like a vibration. I think it's generated from the city somewhere and the vibration is picked up in the foundation. I think that the only thing that you could probably do is have some kind of cancellation vibration or something.

Hello
I've read through all 11 pages on this subject. Unfortunately, I do not know when the last comment was posted, or if this discussion is continuing. Today is October 8, 2010. I've been plagued by this same annoying hum for several months now myself. I live in southern California. Have tried almost all the same things others have tried, including having the electrical meter literally pulled off my house! The hum is still there.

Has anyone considered the idea that this has just become more prevalent since more and more cell phone towers have been installed? Although some "experts" tell me I could not possibly hear anything eminating from them, I am inclined to believe I can. I know one that is pointed in our direction. Don't know exactly when it went up, but I intend to find out. Could something like that, pointed in our direction, somehow create a hum from the waves bouncing off the house? There is no way to pinpoint this hum inside the house. One person did say he/she moved to an area where cell phone reception couldn't be had, and now has peace and quiet.


I hope this discussion is continuing. The more ideas we get, the more likely we are to pinpoint the culprit. Besides, my husband also is tired of hearing about it from me, and it helps me to know there are others out there who can empathize.

In my case I think that it's a low level frequency in the ground, because I can hear it in my garage (and the house) which is 3 walls of concrete in the hill with only the door and the roof that's wood. I also heard this in a house miles away.

Well I had another thought also. I remember that one time I saw a... I guess alarmbox with a flashing red light on it about half way up a light pole, that seems to making a low hum if you are close enough to it. Maybe check the area you live in and see if one of these big metal boxes is on a lightpole near your home. Should have a blinking light on the side of the box and the metal vbox is like 3 feet by 2 feet high and 1-2 feet wide from front to back of box.

DARKSEID

The problem is caused by the ballcock trying to fill while water is seeping out of the tank. The sound you hear is the washer vibrating against the seat of the ballcock. First check there linkage between the flapper and the flush lever. It should have 1/4" of play when your tank is filled. Next feel the flat side of your flapper. Does it have wavey edges? Do your hands come away black? Replace it if it does. And last check the seat itself. Any nicks or rough spots? If so click on back. There are replacement seats that glue right over the old one and are easy to replace. One of the above should take care of your howling. This happened in a new house some years ago. Only at night and in the early morning. They thought the house was haunted and were about to move out. I caught it in the powder room toilet. It would vibrate and the pipes in the wall would pick it up and carry it all over the house. Hope this helps

Thanks Dark. I am going to have a look around even though the sound is not heard outside.

"Has anyone considered the idea that this has just become more prevalent since more and more cell phone towers have been installed?" This is what I believe it to be. But proving it & doing something about it would be next to impossible...

Cindi0398 10/24/10. l'm in the SE.of US and hear it too in house.Outside is harder to detect. Low freq.Sounds like a factory/generator.Not everyone can hear it. I've been searching internet for months.Keep posting!

Wish it were, but not in my case.

Most noises can be traced back to the plumbing but If you hear it outside the house in the ground perhaps the electrical page can help solve this. Good luck, Tom

Thanks Tom. I hear a mixture of motors while outside so it is hard to determine where this one is coming from. Some Will it rule out plumbing if I shut off the main water valve coming into the house and still hear the noise?

Will it rule out plumbing if I shut off the main water valve coming into the house and still hear the noise? As much as I want to help If you've shut the waster off and opened up a valve to bleed off the pressure and still hear the sound then I'm at a loss. Any high tension lines near bye? Cheers, Tom

High tension lines? Also, a nieghbor and I share a concrete driveway. I wonder if noise from his home can vibrate through the driveway/ground to mine. He said he doesn't have a motor running but I'm beginning to wonder. But what would run all day and night? And only occasionally have I heard it just stop... but then start up again. It truly sounds like a motor because the sound will wane and wax occasionally.

I will Google Tinnitus but in the meantime please share if you were diagnosed with this condition and what were the treatments you tried. Although I don't think this is the cause for me since I mainly hear it in my own house.

Sydelin,
I have Tinnitus, You don't! If you did you would hear it 24/7 everyplace you go and not just at home. You live near high tension lines? I know they can produce a humming sound in dry weather and a crackling sound in wet weather. And your thoughts? Tom

I have this problem and only I can hear it; you're not crazy. It started last summer. I've read this thread from end to end and ruled out the obvious. Allowing for the usual: refrigerator motors, furnace, water heater noises etc; I found this noise in my neighbor's house as well, and in my friends' houses that live within a few miles of mine. In the houses, it doesn't come from anywhere, it comes from everywhere; louder in some areas of the house than others. I have tried using my automotive stethoscope on my pipes, and on the ground with no luck at all. Anytime outside, even in the quiet of early morning, it is undetectable. In my car, it's not there either, nor in my Mom's house in Northern Washington: not tinnitus. This is December, 2010 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

I had no idea that it was so widespread. Some of the posts on here involve different solutions, but I have no doubt that some of you are hearing what I'm hearing; your descriptions are dead on. This sounds like a generator or diesel engine running down the street, continuous with an occasional tone change. When you go outside: nothing, nothing anywhere that I could find in the immediate neighborhood. At first, I theorized it could be a natural gas generator that was bootlegged off one of the new "plastic" gas lines, running below grade and venting the exhaust into the sewer, or maybe running on vegetable oil? Something that would be free to the user as this runs 24/7. But, the fact that it's so widespread might indicate a problem or an equipment trend in the utility industry which is something we all subscribe to.

It started after some new homes were built down the street, but could've also coincided with work at the local hospital which is about 1/2 mile away. Both occurred over the summer. I Will continue to investigate -what choice do we have?

We all need a dedicated website for this so we can begin to track the problems regionally, narrow it down and eradicate the causes.

Hi finding out,

We all need a dedicated website for this so we can begin to track the problems regionally, narrow it down and eradicate the causes. I'd go along with that.
Has any one recorded these sounds so they can be analyzed?
I think that might be a start. If you can "follow" this noise back to a common source then your mystery will be solved. What do you think?
Please keep me in the loop if you come up with aqnything
I have 24/7 ringing in my right ear but that's from a broken eardrum. Although our noise are caused by different sources I share the same problem as you, have since 1979. I feel your pain and share your concerns,
Let me know if any new developments should come up! Good luck, Tom