# Baffled by Mysterious Snapping



## applebear (Mar 23, 2015)

Hopefully most are familiar with my house drama, as I am going to skip through to the point. Right about the same time the contractor and furnace guy did work on my house, a loud random snapping started. 

I assumed it was something the contractor did as he messed with a wire over on the one wall of the house. But the people helping me, have looked at it and corrected any issues and found no real serious ones with the wiring work. So we have ruled that out, and the snapping continues.

The furnace guy had to drill down between the walls to get a wire through to the thermostat and I thought, maybe that was the culprit. I talked to an electrician and he said it was doubtful, as if it was a arch issue, it would have blown fuses and burnt out by now. 

I am concerned what is causing this snapping sound, as it is very random and sudden. I will just be sitting here and SNAP. It always sounds like it's coming from the direction of that wall...however ONCE it sounded like it was coming from my computer and I later found a cracked charger I had hooked up to it that I had to toss. It was all most like too much power was delivered to it?

It *could* be it's not even a electrical issue, but no one is sure how to determine it without hearing it and it doesn't happen enough to be caught by anyone else. 

Does anyone have any ideas of what it could be or suggestions? I am wondering when the fusebox is updated, if that would help any...but it's just so frustrating not being sure what is even causing it or even if it's electrical for sure.


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## nealtw (Mar 23, 2015)

Is there a hot water pipe anywhere near it?


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## applebear (Mar 23, 2015)

I don't think so, most of the piping is near the back end of the house...though the kitchen is right off this room, so could be possible there's a pipe near that I'm not remembering.


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## nealtw (Mar 23, 2015)

Run the hot water for a while until the pipes get warm and then listen for popping while it cools down.  Is there any heat ducts in the area.


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## applebear (Mar 23, 2015)

I will do that, and let you know if it happens around then. I can say most the time it's happened has been during real cold spells [but not always]. There is a heat duct by that wall.


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## applebear (Mar 24, 2015)

No snapping when letting hot water run and pipes cool down.


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## nealtw (Mar 24, 2015)

Pay attention to it when the furnace runs a while after it shuts down.


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## applebear (Mar 24, 2015)

No snapping then either. It's extremely rare and random, making it hard to pin point what exactly is causing it. They thought maybe it was something from the side being exposed causing it, but have heard it since then. They suggested mousetraps [as I was getting some in after the side was exposed]...all clear.

This is closest I could find to it...is higher pitched though, all most like it has a chirp to it. [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3JiE7i1768[/ame]


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## nealtw (Mar 24, 2015)

Yup, that looks and sounds like a problem. What is that unit hooked to, and what is running?


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## applebear (Mar 24, 2015)

Runs everything except the dryer, water heater and furnace. Only things I can think of that are running at the time of the snap is the fridge and light/computer in main room.


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## nealtw (Mar 24, 2015)

Re-post that video in appliences with the make and model of the fridge, Jeff will have a better idea for what to look for.


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## nealtw (Mar 24, 2015)

What ever it is, it is causing a spike in the power, see if you can get you computor plugged into a different line.


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## applebear (Mar 25, 2015)

Do you think when replacing the fusebox, that could correct the problem? I've had electrical issues over the years, some times they just resolve themselves and others a bit more worrisome. 

Unfortunately there really isn't anywhere to move my computer at this time, nor do I think it would matter in spot or another. I could look into a surge protector? Think I remember brother saying it's good to have them on computer, but I've never really looked into them.

Thank you Neal...


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## nealtw (Mar 25, 2015)

I have posted another question, keep an eye on the answers there.
http://www.houserepairtalk.com/showthread.php?p=125434#post125434


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## slownsteady (Mar 26, 2015)

Is that video yours? What did you hook the meter to?


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## slownsteady (Mar 26, 2015)

I have heard a snapping sound come from my speakers at random times; could it be something like that? Also some plug-in timers make a loud click when they cycle.


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## applebear (Mar 26, 2015)

No video is not mine, is closest I could find to the sound...as mine seems higher pitched, like it has a chirp to it.

The snapping is not next to me [except once, when it sounded like it came from computer area], and is usually off to the other side of the room...I just can't pin point 'where.' Only thing over there are outlets and the thermostat.


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## slownsteady (Mar 26, 2015)

I read somewhere that it could be a bad thermostat. In that thread, someone suggested that you could take the cover off the t-stat and look for burn marks (dark spots on the metal parts) where the spark may contact. Seems to be a simple inspection and then we can rule that out or replace it. On a completely different thought, could it be a smoke alarm giving you a low battery alert? The "chirp" makes me wonder. I'll just keep throwing out things that we can check - totally hit or miss, but maybe we'll get lucky.


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## nealtw (Mar 26, 2015)

I think it like the snap you can get on speakers when a capacitor helps start a motor, like fridge or furnace and when a moter slows down sometimes they kick in to keep the speed up. They can give you a spike in voltage. If it is a spike, where is the leak, anywhere, insulation is weak or in a box???
I did post a question in appliances


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## applebear (Mar 26, 2015)

The thermostat is new, but checked anyway just in case I maybe got a defected one and the snapping did start around the same time...don't see anything though. No smoke alarm. 

Other than that, fridge is getting on older side [approx 13 years]...I can't think of anything otherwise, that is running on a regular basis and at the time of the snap.


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## nealtw (Mar 26, 2015)

I guess all you can do is try to keep track of what just started or stopped when it happens or what is running while it is happening.


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## slownsteady (Mar 26, 2015)

Are we sure it's electrical? Do the lights flicker? Are there any other noises just before or after the snap?


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## applebear (Mar 27, 2015)

No not positive it's electrical at all, no light flickers and noises [that I'm aware of...I don't have tv, so it's pretty quiet]. It's very out of the blue, usually scares crap out of me and dogs. I just can't think of what else it would be. The only thing I can think of, is it did seem to happen more when it was really cold out...when we were getting below 0 or real low temps, it seemed to happen a little more. Not drastic, but enough to take notice it was more than just a one time occurrence.


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