Hello everyone,
For the past few days, we have noticed (especially at night, as it is particularly quiet here) that a loud noise occurs in our bedroom (upper floor) for about 5 minutes. We still don’t know exactly what causes it, but we suspect it might be related to the heating system.
It sounds like a kind of humming (quite loud, so you can definitely hear it), which then disappears after a few minutes.
Here are some details about our house that might help with the analysis:
- Solid brick construction
- Two-story city villa with a basement
- 2x concrete ceilings
- Air-to-water heat pump fully installed inside the basement
- Central ventilation system in the basement
There are 4 ventilation ducts running under our bed in the bedroom—just to mention this, because at first we thought the noise had to come from the mechanical ventilation system. However, since the noise disappears, I’m now quite sure it is not caused by the ventilation system.
What else we have observed:
According to SolarEdge (photovoltaic system app), the noise occurs shortly after the heating peaks of the heat pump. So, I almost suspect that the noise happens when the underfloor heating heats up significantly.
On the upper floor (in the two children’s rooms and the bathroom), this noise is not heard at all—only in our bedroom.
Maybe someone has an idea what it could be? Unfortunately, my heating technician is currently on vacation, and I would like to gather opinions or ideas about the possible cause before talking to him.
I appreciate any tips!
For the past few days, we have noticed (especially at night, as it is particularly quiet here) that a loud noise occurs in our bedroom (upper floor) for about 5 minutes. We still don’t know exactly what causes it, but we suspect it might be related to the heating system.
It sounds like a kind of humming (quite loud, so you can definitely hear it), which then disappears after a few minutes.
Here are some details about our house that might help with the analysis:
- Solid brick construction
- Two-story city villa with a basement
- 2x concrete ceilings
- Air-to-water heat pump fully installed inside the basement
- Central ventilation system in the basement
There are 4 ventilation ducts running under our bed in the bedroom—just to mention this, because at first we thought the noise had to come from the mechanical ventilation system. However, since the noise disappears, I’m now quite sure it is not caused by the ventilation system.
What else we have observed:
According to SolarEdge (photovoltaic system app), the noise occurs shortly after the heating peaks of the heat pump. So, I almost suspect that the noise happens when the underfloor heating heats up significantly.
On the upper floor (in the two children’s rooms and the bathroom), this noise is not heard at all—only in our bedroom.
Maybe someone has an idea what it could be? Unfortunately, my heating technician is currently on vacation, and I would like to gather opinions or ideas about the possible cause before talking to him.
I appreciate any tips!
A
Alessandro14 Nov 2022 13:51To me, this sounds like defrost cycles of the heat pump. The pump ramps up significantly for a few minutes...
Alessandro schrieb:
Sounds to me like defrost cycles of the heat pump. The pump speeds up significantly for a few minutes...Really strange... this morning we heard it very loudly in another room. The noise went away after about 5 minutes (you could clearly hear it slowly getting quieter until it was gone)...
I just don’t understand how you can hear it in one room but not in another?
A
Alessandro22 Nov 2022 08:41I don’t think the issue is with the underfloor heating itself, but rather with the indoor unit. Is it properly decoupled from the wall?
Alessandro schrieb:
I don’t think the problem is with the underfloor heating itself, but with the internal unit.
Is it properly decoupled from the wall? The unit is mounted on a concrete base in the basement and decoupled with edge insulation strips. I also installed the tiles correctly and paid close attention to decoupling, especially around the tiled skirting boards.
If it weren’t properly decoupled, wouldn’t it make noise all the time in the same room or even continuously?
We also have an air-to-water heat pump installed indoors, mounted on a concrete base with decoupling, etc. I can’t say for sure if everything was done 100% correctly.
In our case, when the heat pump is running at full capacity – which was mostly at the beginning when heating water and during defrost cycles – we heard a humming noise. The same happened in the period before last winter when the temperature dropped to -20°C (−4°F). I can’t prove it, but I’m fairly certain it’s structure-borne noise being transmitted, since it was only audible in two rooms. What I did was check the hoses/pipes connected to it. One was actually touching the wall. I also limited the maximum capacity for the hot water heating (and scheduled it during the day), and I think I did the same for the defrost cycles, but honestly, I don’t remember exactly.
After that, it definitely improved.
Our heat pump is an IDM ILM 2-7.
In our case, when the heat pump is running at full capacity – which was mostly at the beginning when heating water and during defrost cycles – we heard a humming noise. The same happened in the period before last winter when the temperature dropped to -20°C (−4°F). I can’t prove it, but I’m fairly certain it’s structure-borne noise being transmitted, since it was only audible in two rooms. What I did was check the hoses/pipes connected to it. One was actually touching the wall. I also limited the maximum capacity for the hot water heating (and scheduled it during the day), and I think I did the same for the defrost cycles, but honestly, I don’t remember exactly.
After that, it definitely improved.
Our heat pump is an IDM ILM 2-7.
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