OT - Banging & cracking noises from roof in cold

Dave: Same thing here. My flat roof pops in very low temps. Is your wife also a hypochondriac?... like mine ? To her, every creak in the house means its falling down. Every body pain causes her to call the kids and say goodbye. My opinion that it is expansion and contraction has very little impact on her. I'd also like to find an internet site that would explain this. I mean the roof. The wife I've got figured out.

-Mike

You're one up on me, VBG.

The banging and cracking is a common thing meaning its too damned cold to go outside. I think part of it is the wood being totally dessicated by the extreme low dew point and also being brittle. Try splitting wood at this temp - it pops like a piece of glass.

Karl

Santa's just late. You were probably bad!

Mine does also. In Albuquerque. I just wish we haden't bought a flat roof house. :-( Not too worried about the creeking though. ...lew...

She'd believe a website but doesn't believe you whom she presumably knows? Gosh, if your credibility is that low already .... tell her it's rabid bats shooting each other while fighting over the few remaining warm places up there.

It has nothing to do with cold or dry, at least in my house. Even in summer, about 6 AM, when the first rays of the sun hit the roof, it starts to creak. It does this all the time, sometimes VERY loudly, when a door is opened suddenly, or a strong gust of wind hits the house. In summer, the creaking stops about 11 PM to midnight, when everything has finally settled to the same temperature. It can be amazingly loud, making you think burglars are pulling nails out with crowbars or something.

We live in a "panelized construction" house, with pre-fabbed panels that were tilted up into place, often with all the interior trim, windows, paint, etc. applied at the factory. The roof is apparently made of 8 x 16' panels tilted up onto tops of the walls and central box-beam. All these panels are

Jon

You're not so far off the mark! A very common thing to find in old houses is nails "pulled" by the movement of the lumber over many decades. Many of those pops and bangs you hear probably ARE nails moving a fraction of a millimeter. Like earthquakes, the tension builds, then is released suddenly by the nail "popping" to a more relaxed position.

(So as not to cause worry, some of the noise is lumber against lumber, doing the same thing. I don't think I've heard of a house actually disassembling itself by this means)

LLoyd

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" wrote: (clip) A very common thing to find in old houses is nails "pulled" by the movement of the lumber over many decades. (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Confirming this, I have had to re-drive the nails in a deck. Many of them were sticking up 1/4" or so.

Yup, I had a cedar picnic table that was left out over winter and come spring I would have to drive all the nail heads back below the surface. The constant freeze/thaw process pushes the nails out over time.

Could also be caused by moisture content of wood declining. I know the pressure treated lumber I made my deck out was wet as heck. It really shrunk after a few days in the sun.

Wes

The flat roof on my building (built in 1909) Had so many coats of roofing on it, that the asphalt was as much as 4 inches thick in places.

It expanded and contracted with so much force, that it was impossible to keep it sealed to the brick parapets.

I don't remember if it was noisy. Frankly, the busses and trucks driving by all the time drown out all the little noises.

Paul K. Dickman

Nope, no problems there.

Hell with the roof, explain my wife to me.

It's not about credibility, it's about it being blisteringly farking obvious to me, and not so much to her. This is why the 8 year old helps her with computer stuff, as well ;)

Ah. I like how you think.

The tar in the shingles gets cold and brittle. Then under load, it snaps.

I think if the rafters were snapping you would really hear it and feel it.

You might want to venture into the attic and see what you can see. Might be best to off load some weight if you can.

Maybe a leaf blower would help - Just be careful.

Martin

Martin H. Eastburn @ home at Lions' Lair with our computer lionslair at consolidated dot net TSRA, Life; NRA LOH & Endowment Member, Golden Eagle, Patriot"s Medal. NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder IHMSA and NRA Metallic Silhouette maker & member.

Dave H> Can anyone post a plain-English explaination of why my roof makes

I respectfully suggest small-team training for you and your lifemate if she be so. I have no idea where you'd find it, and you each and both may find the experience unpleasant -- so I merely suggest that life can be very good for partners who are lovers, skilled as members of a small team, and committed to their small team.

I am no proponent of psychobabblebullshit but I do know a bit about small teams and I purely enjoy the hell out of my membership in the small team Mary and I have built over the years and a few rockpiles.

A teammate would know that was a joke -- and she'd play a better joke on you. Good friendly jokes are routine in good small teams. If life isn't fun it isn't worth bothering with.

Inspected up in the attic last night more out of curiousity than concern. Nothing visible; bit of frost buildup in one spot on the underside of the roof boards.

Due to the location & direction of the winds & alignment of the house, the roof is kept pretty clean by wind. As is the driveway. _almost_ like that was intentional ;)

Sure is loud some nights though...for about an hour.

She's good at a lot of things, technical things are not among them. I was hoping for a plain English explaination of the situation, because "thermal expansion and temperature differentials" are so far outside what she needs to know and has background to understand.

I think you're reading questions into mine which aren't being asked.

You only have to start worrying when the doors start sticking. The next step is to either take the snow off the roof or get out of the house since the roof is coming in shortly.

John

Good point. We don't have any drywall cracks or doors binding, so...