Hi swannie,
Thanks very much for your swift reply, I do feel rather silly about all of this. Im not normally a jumpy person. I have tried to be logical about the noises I hear and thought about the heating. Thing is, I have electric heating(economy 7) so there are no pipes etc under the floor.
I sleep with a light on now anyway as Im not comfortable being on my own of a night. The neighbour I spoke of is the son of my Landlord, He's a bit wierd to tell the truth and not really the sort of person I'd want to invite in for a cuppa. He's ok to talk to generally but strikes me as a little odd!
I have spent the odd night at a friends house when everything starts to get me down, I dont want to impose too much though.
Thanks so much for your advice, it really helps having someone to talk to about this.
Hello Gemma,
You are most welcome to contact me at any time. I am happy that your friend thought I may be able to help you. There is no need to be embarrassed or worried about contacting me.
Can I ask how many flats there are in your building? How many Stories are there?
The noises many be coming from your neighbours.
Also the noises you may be hearing is the building structure settling, as the wood, plaster and other structures that make up the new block of flats shrink. There is always lots of noises made by a settling building. Many years ago houses were left empty for months if not a year or so to allow for settling before the tenants or owners moved in. These days we move straight into a building before the paint is even dry LOL.
You may find that after a year or so, the builders will send someone round to inspect all the flats to repair, fill and paint over any remedial work, i.e. shrinkage cracks, walls leaving gaps by window frames and skirting boards.
It can take 5 years or more for a new building to settle, and even after this amount of time you may be aware of odd noises in the middle of the night, as your senses tend to be more honed in the dark.
Floorboards are well known for creaking as the wood expands and contracts when the flat is heated, and then cools when the heating is off.
If you have a central heating system or storage heaters, the housing of the heating system can make weird noises as they heat up and expand and cool down and contract
Did you observe your doors moving during the day? or only at night?
This could be due to an open window creating a draft with perhaps a little back suction which can make a door which is ajar, seem to open and close.
I know the door to my living room often does this when we have our heating on if it is not firmly shut. It may also be caused by drafts which are getting through any shrinkage cracks of which you may not be aware of yet.
Also if the door frame is wooden, the expansion and contraction of the wood can move the doors slightly as new interior door are quite lightweight.
At night time when it is a lot quieter and in darkness your senses maybe more heightened. We all wake up suddenly sometimes, and things just don’t feel right.
Perhaps you are having dreams which you don’t remember on waking, or you are still not used to waking in your flat yet.
I would suggest a bedside table with a lamp which you can immediately turn to quell your fears. Perhaps you could have a radio or TV in your bedroom so that you can switch them on quietly to have the sound of voices to comfort you. This should ease the feeling of someone being there.
I think a lot of us have a little phobia about waking up alone suddenly and not being sure of our bearings, this in itself can create a feeling of something being in the room with us.
The light that your friend may have seen in your corridor may have been the reflection of LED lights on a shiny surface, i.e. painted door or mirror, that may be attached to electrical and/or heating appliances you have, which sometimes switch on or off depending on the time and the appliance.
I understand your concern out the flats being built over an old hospital. I would suggest that you do a little bit of researching into the area where you are now living.
As far as I am aware the only old hospital was at East Gate not East Road, and that was demolished 1650 / 1660 during the Civil War.
I will do some more research on your behalf, but I suggest that you do some too.
Chester is a beautiful city with a very long history, and you may be amazed at what you find out.
The majority of the city has been built within the last 200 years.
I hope this has helped to settle you a little, but please don’t hesitate to contact me should you feel the need to do so.
Thanks for getting in touch with me. Sorry that you are having a few problems settling in to your new home but that is quite a normal thing to happen and sometimes we can get a little disorientated after moving.
Do you mind if I ask you a few questions to help me get a fuller picture of your situation?
Did you live in a flat or a house before you moved
Do you like to keep the windows open especially at night
Did you discuss your new flat and the little problem with the friend who stayed with you before she had her experiences in your new home
I hope you don't mind me asking you this but I do have to look at the obvious before taking a closer look at what may or may not be going on.
Excellent stuff people.
Thank you to those taking part.
As I said there are no right or wrong answers in this.
I think though rather than Gemma repling individually she will reply to the whole. Just to make it easier.
I thought there were some excellent replies.
The thing to remember is to build up a relationship with the person.
Don't hit them with loads of questions to start with.
Even if you are eager to find out something.
In this situation it doesn't matter as you know Gemma will reply.
In the real world you have to tread very carefully.
Too strong and there won't reply. Too weak and they might think you don't take them seriously.
Gemma will reply again.
Think about your assumptions and think about how to glean more information. She will open up if you direct the correct questions.
Don't just go on the information that you have so far.
Hello, My name is Gemma Horwell,
A friend of mine has given me your details. I hope you dont mind me contacting you but I was told you may be able to help me?
I feel a little embarrassed talking about this but think I will go out of my mind if I dont ask for some sort or assistance or clarity.
I moved in to my nice new flat about a month ago. Its brand new and everything is lovely but strange things have started happening in the last couple of weeks.
I hear odd noises during the night that I cant explain, rattling and scraping noises. I have seen doors open and close on their own accord.
On a few occasions during the night I have woken abbruptly, it feels like there is somebody in the room with me. Its really quite scary!!
Last week a friend stayed over,she said she saw a strange light in the hallway.
Then yesterday I was speaking to my new neighbour who said the flats are built on the site of an old hospital. It was derelict for years and was meant to be haunted!
Sorry If I sound like I am being daft, but I'm rather unnerved and just dont know what to do. Can you help?
Regards Gemma
Flat 19
Suffolk House
East Street
Chester
Hi Gemma,
Firstly, please don't worry, you are not daft.
There could be many explanations for this, and not necessarily paranormal. You are just getting accustomed to a new place, with its own individual noises, which are more noticeable at night.
I hope you don't mind me asking, but when you first looked around the flat, did it feel lovely and welcoming? The sort of place where you would love to live?
What you have experienced coudl have a "normal" explanation, and these are often the best place to start.
Did you ever experience waking up in the night before you moved there?
Have you checked to make sure that the doors are not moved by draughts?
Try not to let the history of the site bother you. In the UK, many places have had several lives before becoming the site of our homes, and very few turn out to have "paranormal" activity.
I am glad you felt you could contact me, and will be happy to dicuss this furtehr with you on the phone. Unfortunatley, I do not knwo anyone close to where you live who could visit you in person, but I will gladly make some enquiries on your behalf, with you permission.
Hi Gemma, sometimes wooden furniture contracts when the temperature at night goes down,and of course all sounds are magnified at night.
If the flat is brand new,then the building is probably still 'settling' . Have you tried turning on a light when you hear these noises? and checking if they stop.
There isn't a building anywhere that hasn't been built on the site of another building at some time in history.
there's no need to be embarrassed about this ,you're not the first to have these happenings. If these noises worry you you could contact the local spiritualist church to see if there is any paranormal activity.
I could put you in touch with your nearest one,and they could help you understand what is going on.
please keep us posted ,and don't be shy about asking for help. Most of our members experience this sort of thing quite often.
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