Low-frequency Hum in my house.

[Lambda]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hum
Please upload a recording at best a view minutes of the sound.

 

[lizhuoyin]

That was my thought too but unplugged it and the noise was still there. Likewise furnace, stereo, ceiling fans. I'm going to flip the breaker shortly.

Wasp nest inside wall?

 

[CBM]

You are likely one of the people (3%) (like myself) who hear a constant low level hum. Depending on where you are or live, it can be much louder. It has nothing to do with anything in your house, I assure you. You can shut the power off completely at the power board and it is still there.

I've had it at most places I live, but the quieter the location, the more easily you can hear it, mostly at night, mostly.

https://www.livescience.com/38427-the-hum-mystery-taos-hum.html

My last house, it was very obvious at only two places in the house, this house, it's at the end where the home attaches (via steel poles- it's a timber pole hole) straight into bedrock. If I walk under the house to that part, it's even louder. I had house where it was loud enough I went to water processing plats on a nearby hill to ask them about pumps etc- it wasn't that. I even shut off the power and went outside, it was still there. Walked around the neighbourhood and could hear it at various places.

I've read about the HUM over the years. I once had a house with a gas compressor about 1 mile away. It drove me crazy. But is that case it was louder outside than in the house. We hear nothing outside.

 

[lizhuoyin]

You are likely one of the people (3%) (like myself) who hear a constant low level hum. Depending on where you are or live, it can be much louder. It has nothing to do with anything in your house, I assure you. You can shut the power off completely at the power board and it is still there.

I've had it at most places I live, but the quieter the location, the more easily you can hear it, mostly at night, mostly.

https://www.livescience.com/38427-the-hum-mystery-taos-hum.html

My last house, it was very obvious at only two places in the house, this house, it's at the end where the home attaches (via steel poles- it's a timber pole hole) straight into bedrock. If I walk under the house to that part, it's even louder. I had house where it was loud enough I went to water processing plats on a nearby hill to ask them about pumps etc- it wasn't that. I even shut off the power and went outside, it was still there. Walked around the neighbourhood and could hear it at various places.

Vibrations caused by nearby traffic?

 

[Lambda]

But is that case it was louder outside than in the house. We hear nothing outside.

maybe resonance inside? check if your room/structure is resonating at the problematic frequency.

You can do a view REW low frequency sweeps an look if the peaks line up.

Or create the problematic frequency's and check if something is resonating

 

[CBM]

Vibrations caused by nearby traffic?

There are vibrations from cars but they vary over time. This hum is consistent.

 

[minimalist]

We had a similar phenomenon (audible low frequency hum in some locations in the house).
Root cause was the aged electromechanical electricity meter in the basement.

 

[CBM]

maybe resonance inside? check if your room/structure is resonating at the problematic frequency.

You can do a view REW low frequency sweeps an look if the peaks line up.

Or create the problematic frequency's and check if something is resonating

I do believe the house is vibrating at it's natural frequency in response to something. There are peaks at 45 & 80 Hz. Are you talking about a feature in REW?

 

[CBM]

We had a similar phenomenon (low frequency hum).
Root cause was the aged electromechanical electricity meter in the basement.

If it's something like that it should go away when I open the breaker.

 

[lizhuoyin]

There are vibrations from cars but they vary over time. This hum is consistent.

I had similar experiences. I remember it started occurring last late fall season. Getting worse over the winter since it's quieter at night. This season I just do not notice it anymore. Maybe I don't have any quiet time. Maybe I picked up audio hobby again. Who knows.

 

[CBM]

I had similar experiences. I remember it started occurring last late fall season. Getting worse over the winter since it's quieter at night. This season I just do not notice it anymore. Maybe I don't have any quiet time. Maybe I picked up audio hobby again. Who knows.

You are correct. Once you hear it, you focus on it.

 

[restorer-john]

Vibrations caused by nearby traffic?

Nope. The hum sound is the same whether living in a busy city in an apartment or out in the countryside in a completely different part of the country. I heard it in the UK and also in the US. The best description is a far distant diesel generator attached to bedrock. My partner doesn't hear it and neither do my boys. It's so obvious to me I questioned my own ears/sanity.

It cannot be explained (I tried everything for 30 years) and once you've heard it, you can always hear it. Sometimes it bothers me, but the days of it driving me mad are long gone.

If it's something like that it should go away when I open the breaker.

I had the actual drop to the house disconnected and the hum was still there.

 

[CBM]

Nope. The hum sound is the same whether living in a busy city in an apartment or out in the countryside in a completely different part of the country. I heard it in the UK and also in the US. The best description is a far distant diesel generator attached to bedrock. My partner doesn't hear it and neither do my boys. It's so obvious to me I questioned my own ears/sanity.

It cannot be explained (I tried everything for 30 years) and once you've heard it, you can always hear it. Sometimes it bothers me, but the days of it driving me mad are long gone.



I had the actual drop to the house disconnected and the hum was still there.

That's exactly the sound. Are we crazy or what?

 

[AnalogSteph]

Nope. The hum sound is the same whether living in a busy city in an apartment or out in the countryside in a completely different part of the country. I heard it in the UK and also in the US. The best description is a far distant diesel generator attached to bedrock. My partner doesn't hear it and neither do my boys. It's so obvious to me I questioned my own ears/sanity.

Your ears do seem the most likely culprit from what you describe, presumably something related to blood circulation. Ears make all kinds of funny noises (that our brain tries very hard to ignore), it's why I tend not to listen to that much music in summertime when blood pressure is up.

The OP's problem appears to be quite measurable and thus outside his head, so I'll go with a distant pump or similar. The culprit could be hundreds of meters away. It's all happened before.

 

[Tircuit]

My home has this and it’s from a rooftop exhaust fan on a restaurant a block away. Drives me nuts.

 

[restorer-john]

That's exactly the sound. Are we crazy or what?

Apparently not.

Figured it must have been a physical issue so I asked every medical professional I knew, had ear tests etc. Thought it might be blood pressure related or blood flow in the ears- nope.

There are theories, but we now know there are huge numbers of people who hear it, all over the world.

 

[restorer-john]

it's why I tend not to listen to that much music in summertime when blood pressure is up.

Summer is not a good time for music listening here either, it's just too hot and uncomfortable. The A/C can cool the house, but that spoils the quiet bits.

 

[RayDunzl]

My guesses for low-frequency ambient rumbles here:

Truck traffic on Interstate Highway, 3 miles away
Whatever in shopping district 2 miles away
Heat Pump compressors around the neighborhood
Helicopter rotors usually far away
Microphone self-noise

None of it is usually audible over my in-house noise, but shows up in measures.

There seems to be a higher level of noise below 100 Hz on REW.

That's normal, for whatever reasons.

 

[CBM]

My guesses for low-frequency ambient rumbles here:

Truck traffic on Interstate Highway, 3 miles away
Whatever in shopping district 2 miles away
Heat Pump compressors around the neighborhood
Helicopter rotors usually far away
Microphone self-noise

None of it is usually audible over my in-house noise, but shows up in measures.





That's normal, for whatever reasons.


View attachment 117312

That's what I wanted to know. Thank you.

 

[CBM]

My guesses for low-frequency ambient rumbles here:

Truck traffic on Interstate Highway, 3 miles away
Whatever in shopping district 2 miles away
Heat Pump compressors around the neighborhood
Helicopter rotors usually far away
Microphone self-noise

None of it is usually audible over my in-house noise, but shows up in measures.





That's normal, for whatever reasons.


View attachment 117312

That's what I wanted to know. Thank you.