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Things that go "tick" in the night

I live in the CO Rockies at 8K ft, a rather rural snowbird park, in a modular/park model home, essentially a perm mobile home, if you will. I have alum flashing around the underside.

At night I wake to hear this tick,tick,tick. A sound like someone randomly tapping on a hard table top with the end of a pen/pencil. Other times, it's louder, a clicking sound like a kid moving domininos around the table and clacking them one against another, again a random pattern. I only hear this at night, and only occassionally, but more and more, lately. It's not in the house, though it sounds like it is. That's why I think it's under the house. When I get up and make some noise, the sound stops. I'm sure it's some sorta nocturnal animal taking up residence under the house, but what? Any ideas? I've only seen bunny rabbits and chipmonks around the house during the day. Any ideas how to determine what it is and be rid of it? Traps, etc? I got no night cameras.

We once had an infestation of field mice, but they made no noise, being quiet as a ...well.... mouse! ;)

nb

Reply to
notbob
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The dwelling is expanding in daytime heat and contracting at night when it gets cool. Completely normal to hear ticking like that.

Reply to
Dan Espen

Boogie Man?

Reply to
harry

OP said the noise stops when he rustles around, so I think his assumption that it's a critter is probably correct.

Reply to
Smitty Two

My refrigerator ice maker sounds just like that. You don't hear it during the day due to other noises blocking it out. The ticking is as it is applying pressure to dislodge the ice cubes - dominoes sound is when the cubes fall into the bin.

Also can be clocks ticking.

Or a woodstove, oven, or furnace warming up.

Reply to
Bill

You just described poorly installed wallboard heating! As it cools down, tick, tick, tick. Irritating beyond belief.

Here in AZ, a single tick indicates a scorpion somewhere around. At least so far, hear the tick, later find the scorpion.

Reply to
Robert Macy

...

And it knows to quit doing that when you get up as well???

:)

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Reply to
dpb

Could be, or could be that walking around flexes the floors enough to move everything into place for the current temperature.

Reply to
Dan Espen

Not necessarily. I've been in a few of these trailer homes and they're typi= cally not all that well constructed. There's some give to the floor as you = walk around, so it is entirely plausible that when he gets up and walks aro= und, the flexing of the floor relieves the tension in whatever's contractin= g. It pops back in place in one fell swoop rather than a little at a time.

Normally if it's critters, they will scurry away making some noise in the p= rocess.

However, just to be on the safe side inspect the house and look for places = they could get in. Maybe some baited traps for mice and/or larger critters.

Reply to
dennisgauge

If your cabin is heated with hot water heating, a ticking noise at regular intervals will often be due to the heating pipes expanding and rubbing against the wall studs, floor joists or floor as they heat up and get longer or cool down and get shorter.

When water pipes are rubbing against something, they expand and contract, with "earthquake-type" movement, where the stress builds up until the pipe moves, and you hear a "tick", and the pipe goes silent as the stress builds up again and you hear another "tick" as the pipe moves and rubs against what ever it's rubbing on.

However, that kinda ticking wouldn't stop if you were to yell out or make a loud noise.

I would get some old clothes on and get under your house with a flashlight to see if you can find anything under there. If not, beg borrow or steal an electric heater and turn off the heating system in your house for one night and see if the noise stops.

Reply to
nestork

Moving around MAY be shifting things a bit so the contraction tension is relieved, quieting things down, at least for a while.

Reply to
clare

One answer, is to put a radio under your skirting. Tune it to raucous and offensive rap music. Animals often have more brains than humans, will find a different place to live. However, you might have some low IQ humans move in, instead.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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At night I wake to hear this tick,tick,tick. A sound like someone randomly tapping on a hard table top with the end of a pen/pencil. Other times, it's louder, a clicking sound like a kid moving domininos around the table and clacking them one against another, again a random pattern. I only hear this at night, and only occassionally, but more and more, lately. It's not in the house, though it sounds like it is. That's why I think it's under the house. When I get up and make some noise, the sound stops. I'm sure it's some sorta nocturnal animal taking up residence under the house, but what? Any ideas? I've only seen bunny rabbits and chipmonks around the house during the day. Any ideas how to determine what it is and be rid of it? Traps, etc? I got no night cameras.

We once had an infestation of field mice, but they made no noise, being quiet as a ...well.... mouse! ;)

nb

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I used to work in a building and would get there early......

the building actually had a bunch of different noises as it warmed up in the morning....

the noises were always there but during the day normal sounds would mask them out.

to the OP put a radio set on hard rock as loud as it will go..... on a extension cord

have a switch near your bed when you hear the noise turn on the radio, then off while you remain in bed.......

if the noise quits its some sort of critters

if the noise continues its the home generating it somehow

Reply to
bob haller

I been listening to this abode contract and expand fer 5 years. It's definitely not vegetable or mineral.

nb

Reply to
notbob

Brilliant! I'd not have thought of the cord and remote turn on.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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to the OP put a radio set on hard rock as loud as it will go..... on a extension cord

have a switch near your bed when you hear the noise turn on the radio, then off while you remain in bed.......

if the noise quits its some sort of critters

if the noise continues its the home generating it somehow

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

On 10/8/2012 5:22 AM, notbob wrote: ...

Any signs of owls (great horned or barn)? The barn owls in particular make a click that sounds for all the world mechanical, not like a critter at all (and is very difficult to home in on as to direction from whence is coming). Horned owls are different-sounding but still do make clicking noise in nesting. They'll build/nest on ground in a protected area (raised a clutch of three in the bottom of silo here a few years ago w/ absolutely no cover behind which to hide; only the back wall and being inside the silo I guess they figured was restricted-enough flying to prevent an air raid). Since that time they've not done it again but preferred a tree crotch or under the cedars that grow clear to the ground.

Just a thought...

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Reply to
dpb

Similar to that...

My daughters are both away at college. When one or the other is home and using their bedroom, you can walk around in the room, even if no one has been in there for hours, and not hear a sound. However, after a day or two of the room being empty, it makes these tiny little not- even-creaking, more like Rice Krispie noises as you walk across the room. The first time I heard it, it was kind of creepy.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

Nary a one. 8|

nb

Reply to
notbob

You've never heard (of) a house breathing?

Reply to
krw

Snow ticks crawling around!

Reply to
Davej

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