Expert: Bruce E. Johnson - 1/7/2009

Question
I live in a two story 1988 brick house plus a walk out basement.  The house seems solid and is real brick.  On the tallest wall of the house, near the top floor bedroom/attic line, we hear very loud noises in the wall when the wind blows.  It almost sounds like brick/mortar cracking.  When I checked the wall from the attic, I couldn't see anything.  Plus, the house would have fallen down by now with all the "cracking" I've heard.  Do you have any thoughts about what is causing this?

Answer
Hi Kevin,
the cracking sound you hear is probably related to the wood part of the structure.  Either the roof system or any internal framing may be the culprit.  Materials expand and contract differently.  Wood will expand/contract more quickly than brick so when temperatures change the elements will move at different rates. This will result in popping noises and sounds.

Another consideration is that you have a damper or a flap in your aircondition ductwork or in your exhaust fan system that it "pinging" when the wind blows.  I'm not saying this is the problem but it can give you an idea of how sounds can be produced by a structure.

Wind against a roof system can cause the roof framing to shift and cause creaking noises.

My point is that you need to isolate the sound before you can fix the problem.  If you can fix the problem.  Most houses make noises for various reasons.  Over time we get used to them and they don't bother us any more or we find out what causes them and do something about it.

If the masonry doesn't show any signs of cracking then it is doubtful that the masonry is making this noise.  In order for masonry to move it needs to crack.  

I hope this information is helpful feel free to write again regarding this or other matters, sincerely bruce e johnson..bejohnsonconsulting.com