Browse Forums Building Standards; Getting It Right! 1 Oct 19, 2022 10:22 pm Hi all. First, apologies if this is the wrong section - my reason for posting in Building Standards is I'm trying to establish whether these sound like symptoms of an improper build or not. My house is a double storey, 2 bedroom townhouse, built approx 6 years ago in Melbourne. It's timber framed with select steel members. Downstairs is brick veneer, upstairs is combination panel and cladding. Throughout the day (less often at night) I'll hear ticking, popping and cracking noises in the walls, ceiling and aluminium windows - predominantly occurring upstairs. It happens sporadically, but it's unusual (particularly in the last 2-3 weeks) for 15 minutes to go by without me hearing something. Sometimes there's a ticking that occurs directly above me and I believe that's the colorbond roof flexing under the sun - but other times, and particularly in the case of the pops and cracks, it seems like it's coming from the structural members inside the walls and ceiling. Sometimes it will occur when I enter a room, like it's the structural members responding to my weight. These noises aren't very loud - not nearly loud enough to wake me up in my sleep, but they happen with enough regularity that they're hard to ignore. There are no signs of structural damage. I have lived in this house for 2 years and no new cracks have developed in the walls or ceiling. There are 2-3 minor cracks downstairs (in the kitchen area) but they're minor and haven't got any worse since the day I moved in. I suppose my question is: Does anyone else experience this? Is it considered 'normal'? Is it usually a symptom of improper build? Or are these kind of sounds common, and should I just learn to ignore them? Re: Ticking, popping, cracking noises in 6 year old townhous 2Oct 20, 2022 8:29 am sounds like materials expanding and contracting. probably nothing to worry about Houses make noises. If you got a mix of steel into your build, its likely to happen more often. Out of curiosity, do you get fixated on other things normally too? If so, you may be oversensitive to what could just be normal for everyone else. My mother in law is super sensitive to noise and she always complaining but whenever we visit it is so serene there, and you can still see her cringing and stuff that no one else can hear. Dark matter scientist, can breathe underwater, mind reader and can freeze matter just by willing it. Trust me, its in my sig. Re: Ticking, popping, cracking noises in 6 year old townhous 3Oct 20, 2022 9:44 am Noname sounds like materials expanding and contracting. probably nothing to worry about Houses make noises. If you got a mix of steel into your build, its likely to happen more often. Out of curiosity, do you get fixated on other things normally too? If so, you may be oversensitive to what could just be normal for everyone else. My mother in law is super sensitive to noise and she always complaining but whenever we visit it is so serene there, and you can still see her cringing and stuff that no one else can hear. Thanks for the reply. No, the noises my house makes are clearly audible to anyone else that's here, so I don't think I have an oversensitivity to sound. But I am an over-thinker, so that might explain it too. Re: Ticking, popping, cracking noises in 6 year old townhous 4Oct 20, 2022 9:52 am yesplease Noname sounds like materials expanding and contracting. probably nothing to worry about Houses make noises. If you got a mix of steel into your build, its likely to happen more often. Out of curiosity, do you get fixated on other things normally too? If so, you may be oversensitive to what could just be normal for everyone else. My mother in law is super sensitive to noise and she always complaining but whenever we visit it is so serene there, and you can still see her cringing and stuff that no one else can hear. Thanks for the reply. No, the noises my house makes are clearly audible to anyone else that's here, so I don't think I have an oversensitivity to sound. But I am an over-thinker, so that might explain it too. My 8 year old house with no steel occasionally makes strange noises too. It's been doing it since day one. Sometimes I notice it othertimes I don't. House is in good order though. Dark matter scientist, can breathe underwater, mind reader and can freeze matter just by willing it. Trust me, its in my sig. Re: Ticking, popping, cracking noises in 6 year old townhous 5Oct 20, 2022 10:23 am If you are not sure have the house inspected by an expert. The popping could be a sign of cracking , usually the glue beneath the the plasterboard, Resulting from expansion, movement, shear, defections etc it is not just restricted to steel frames. OT, Pity you didn't take photos during the build, ie framework followed by gyprock stages At a later stage some people will try to convince you it's all in your head, lol, That's until the ceiling looks like it's ready to fall on your head. (humour) Spontaneous ceiling collapse Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Re: Ticking, popping, cracking noises in 6 year old townhous 6Oct 20, 2022 7:27 pm The kind of noise you report is the kind you will get if you have poorly laid polycarbonate roof, without foam tape on rafters and failing to use roofing screws that drill larger hole. Polycarbonate expands a lot. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Ain't that the truth! We used to have a tile roof and had it replaced with colorbond and suddenly everything throughout the entire house sounds louder! 4 7852 0 2233 Your house roof does not show rusting other than some surface rust on the flashings. In my opinion you dont need to replace or paint the roof other than treat surface rust… 1 10714 |