Oh my goodness, what IS this noise?

Thank you all for your suggestions, and some amusing stories.

I have been a modern day Marple, rushing around the house every time I hear the noise, and trying the suggestions made, and I have reached the conclusion that . . . . . .









I still have no idea what it is

I think it will remain a mystery ever more.

I had a mouse caught in a trap in the ceiling void, it used to bang and drag round until its demise. I tried to catch it but failed miserably.

ate

Why did auto-correct change eat to rely?
And I didn't put that apostrophe in Romans

Aren't they edible?

Not that I would rely one but the Roman's are them, didn't they?

Glis glis, not Babadook.
I took a glimpse then shut down the page quickly

My daughter found a baby glis glis on her kitchen floor. It had come through a small gap where a ceiling beam met the plaster. She hand reared it and, when adult, managed to find it a home with another one as they like to live in groups.

Going back to the post, they can certainly make a noise like the poster describes, but I think they are only found in certain areas of Hertfordshire.

Not so cute Sue when they chew through your electrics and set the house on fire . Not that it's happened to me but I've heard tell of such things..... Scarier than any old babadook nonsense

Don't look up Babadook just before bedtime, like I did, Callistemon!

Glis glis, tho. Cute!

The glis glis, specky

I don't know what a babadook is, must look it up!

Kircubbin's sea captain reminded me of the Banks' neighbour in Mary Poppins!
I hope you solve the mystery soon, amt.

Callistemon.. I hope you refer to the glis glis because if you think the babadook is sweet I will seriously worry about you

Really hope this is not the case for you but in our previous house we had rats in the cavity walls and the loft space. They could be quite noisy. I was a nervous wreck - I have a real phobia of all rodents. Maybe worth considering. Good luck with it ?

Mice gnawing on skirting boards or other wood can sound like very loud grating.

I can't think of anything but...

I would start by listing the proximity and exact time of day you are hearing these noises. Any sort of pattern could provide a clue as to the source. Also keep your cellphone handy and try to record it.

Oh they look so sweet!!

Camelotclub...eek!.. Only the one i hope

It's the......Babadook!

Not sure where you live so this is probably a long shot and other explanations much more likely.. But could it be a Glis Glis infestation? They hibernate I believe so if it all goes quiet it might still be the little critters?

Kircubbin and others. I too hear an engine like sound at night when my house is quiet. I thought it was my fridge freezer at first, then it dawned on me that I could hear it when I wasn't in the house. My doctor has now referred me to the hospital with suspected tinnitus.

Wasps can be surprisingly noisy too when they’re building their nests and scraping the wood from the rafters. They don’t do any harm though and add to the insulation so we let them be.

I don’t really care what’s making the noises provided it doesn’t harm the house or cause a leak. Live and let live (or die if its a ghostie)

We had this dragging noise in our previous house. It seemed to be coming from one of the bedrooms and it scared me to death. It was only me who heard it, not my husband or teenage children at the time and so, although I knew I was not imagining it, I tried to ignore it as whatever it was couldn’t possibly harm us.
A couple of years afterwards we decided to have an extension to the house and sought the advice of a builder who needed to check the loft. He came out of there really fast saying “did you know you have bats?!”
That explained everything and as they are protected, we let them be.

I live in an upstairs flat and I sometimes hear exactly the noise you are describing (albeit below me rather than above) when my lovely downstairs neighbour turns her water on/off, and also when I'm running my own washing machine, so I'm agreeing with all those who think it's something to do with the plumbing.
However, if it is a creature in the space between the ceiling and upper floor I wish you good luck with the eviction!

We once slept in a room under roosting bats in the roof. It was summer, so they had young, and it sounded as if they were bringing them lumps of coal to eat and then the babies were complaining about it with very audible squeaks and dropping the coal out of their cots. There was a constant racket of bumps, thumps and squeaks all night. So much for bats being impossible to hear...

This does not help with your problem, HurdyGurdy, but your noise did remind me of the bats. I hope you find out what it is soon.

My daughter's house also makes sound like a chair dragging across floor. Mostly hear it when it's windy. Think it is the aerial on the side of the house worked loose.

Our toilet sometimes makes the most appalling, screeching, grinding, churning noises when we flush but after a short pause when we've left the room. It does it every time we flush for weeks and then stops for weeks and then suddenly begins again. It's weird.