A little ghost-proofing will fix your haunted house

Maintenance can get rid of creaks — just don’t let creepy-crawlies move in

We’ve all heard bumps in the night — squeaky floors, loud bangs, crawling in the walls, or what sounds like someone walking around in the attic. If you have a wild imagination, you might think it’s a ghost. And it may very well be that you have unwanted guests, but not the kind you’re thinking.

If you’re hearing crawling in your walls, it could be mice. They love insulation and they can also get into ductwork and the attic. As it gets colder, mice and other critters will be looking for warm places to nest. Don’t let it be your home.

Noises in the attic could also mean raccoons or squirrels. They’ve been known to pull up weatherproofing, chew through roof vents and squeeze in through small gaps where the soffit meets the roof, working their way into the attic space.

A professional pest control service will check around the exterior of your home for any cracks, gaps or small openings that critters can get through, and then seal them properly after removing the animals. This can include covering holes with wire mesh or chicken wire, installing a chimney cap, replacing siding and installing vent guards.

Putting in weatherstripping around your doors can also help keep mice and other rodents out. The bonus is it can also help increase your home’s energy efficiency by reducing drafts.

What about squeaky floors and footsteps at night? It could just be your house contracting.

Most homes are made with materials that expand and contract depending on the temperature — they expand during the day when it’s warmer and sunny, then at night they contract as the house the cools. So hearing creaks and footsteps at night could just be your house cooling.

If squeaky floors are a constant issue, you might need to hire a contractor to reinforce the subfloor. According to minimum code, subfloors should be built using two-by-eights, 16 inches on centre (12 for tiled areas) with a minimum of five-eights of an inch of oriented strand board sheathing on top. Plywood is better.

If the builder used a nail gun to attach the subfloor sheathing, they could have missed some of the floor joists below. Also, over time the subfloor can actually lift and pull away from the floor joist due to the natural expansion of materials. Either way, the subfloor would need to be properly glued and screwed to the floor joists underneath.

When you turn on the heat for the first time this season, you could hear some loud bangs. That’s usually just the ductwork expanding. Sometimes you’ll even hear moans and groans, which could be the ductwork rubbing up against the framing.

If you hear loud bangs or hammering in your walls, it could also be air pressure in your pipes, especially if you’re hearing it when someone turns on a faucet — it’s sometimes called water hammer or plumber’s knock. Draining your pipes can help. Just shut off your water at the main and then open your taps and flush your toilets. Once all the lines have been drained, slowly switch the water back on.

Sometimes the pipes themselves aren’t properly secured or clamped behind the wall, so every time water runs through them they start moving and banging. Tearing up your walls might seem extreme to properly fasten them, but not fixing the problem could lead to other more serious issues over time, like a leak.

Finally, there are also doors that open and close on their own. It could be just be air movement or a change in pressure — a window or door is opened, creating negative pressure, causing another door to slam shut. Other times, it might be that the door or framing isn’t perfectly vertical, so the weight of the door itself will cause it to swing.

Pay attention to the sounds in your home, as well as their sources. Some noises are normal but others are warning signs and require immediate attention. If you’re not sure, who are you going to call? A pro.

Watch Mike Holmes in his series, Holmes Makes It Right, on HGTV. For more information, visit makeitright.ca.