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I am having an incredibly annoying vibration/hum through my wall/ floor. It is Reverberating at about 36Hz. I am an audio engineer so I have the equipment to analyze it. It happens randomly throughout the day but mostly in the evening / night while I'm sleeping. It happens for exactly 30 minutes to the second. Sometimes it doesn't start again for many hours sometimes it will start again after a 10 minuet break but still always 30 minutes. I am in the 3rd floor of an apartment building. I have run around feeling pipes while it is happening to see what this could be. It's not the air conditioners. Sometimes it goes of 7 times a day. Sometimes it goes off 3 but always during the night. It sounds like a motor or compressor I can't sleep. I can't tell anyone when it's going to happen to call anyone to come out. I am going crazy. Please help!

SDsolar
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Ali McGuire
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  • Does the vibration/hum correlate with the operation of some other spinny thingamajig? (36Hz works out to 2160RPM shaft speed, btw, if that helps you narrow it down) – ThreePhaseEel Apr 09 '17 at 22:04
  • I've been trying to find anything that may be happening when it's happening. It is possible it is coming from my neighbors apartment which could be why I am not finding anything else. What does shaft speed mean. What kind of thing is that relevant to? Thanks for your response! – Ali McGuire Apr 09 '17 at 22:23
  • Shaft speed is simply how fast a spinning thing is spinning – ThreePhaseEel Apr 09 '17 at 22:24
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    My guess is that it's a vibrating chair. – Edwin Apr 09 '17 at 22:37
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    You say exactly 30 minutes at various times...My guess is solar heat transfer to storage unit. Any solar units on roof? – Lee Sam Apr 10 '17 at 06:19
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    That vibration could come from anywhere in the building, transmitted thru the solid frame (joists, beams, etc),so next to impossible to trace. What's in the basement? Laundry machines, for example? (or the always-popular "space aliens" ) – Carl Witthoft Apr 10 '17 at 18:02
  • Lee Sam yes there are solar units on the roof – Ali McGuire Apr 12 '17 at 02:02
  • Lee Sam could you elaborate on that? – Ali McGuire Apr 12 '17 at 02:08
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    If the washing machine is turned on in my house, the same phenomenon occurs. The washing machine is located on the second floor, and it provides a constant hum when turned on, and the entire upper floor of the house vibrates/shakes. Seems very similar to the situation you are describing. – Hammergold Apr 15 '17 at 12:47
  • How about using multiple microphones (or moving just one periodically) so you can get the direction it is coming from? That's tough with 36 Hz, I know, but if you have good enough gear then maybe you can spot a difference in one direction to give you a clue. – SDsolar May 07 '17 at 22:05
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    @AliMcGuire I think you are dealing with a pump motor of some sort - always 30 minutes says it is not really random or any person , but rather a controlled device. You did not say how many times during the night it cycles but you have timed it. It could be a compressor motor - oddly running 30 minutes filling a tank. Ask the apartment maintenance staff if they have any such pumps or compressors in the building. Boiler in the building circulating motor?? – Ken May 09 '17 at 03:24

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Could it be a sump pump in your building and the discharge pipe is touching framing.

rlc707
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