Help! Taps turning on at 3am!

[Newbabynewhouse]

We moved into a new house 2 weeks ago and last night I woke up to hear running water.. I knew it was the bath and thought it was my partner bathing before work (he usually showers at 5am) I realised it was still dark so thought it can't be him as it's too early.. i checked time and it was 3.05am... i went in to find the hot tap on (fully, not dripping or dribbling) and the bath was almost full as I'd left the plug in from bathing baby at 7pm...

I remembered this morning that last week friends came round and I went to the loo to notice the hot tap was on in bathroom SINK but thought nothing of it as just thought they hadn't turned it off...

I contacted previous owner, they said nothing like that happened to them...

Can there be a logical explanation rather than paranormal???

Polegeist are attached to people - But we have never experienced anything weird before until we moved In here two weeks ago

What type of taps are they - They are just turn ones don't know how to explain... just two separate hot and cold ones, but they don't have the 4 notches on they are the slightly more modern ones that are just round like a cylinder shape all round.. I suppose they are quite old though maybe from early 2000's

We need @PigletJohn, any ideas if you're around?

Haha. Ours do this sometimes, normally if the boiler kicks in or the washer starts and the tap hadn't been fully turned off.

I expect it's the tap washer thing again....

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property/a4299417-Loud-squeaky-tap-help?msgid=109174449#109174449

post a pic of the tap if you like.

@YesIReallyDoLikeRootBeer

I saw this on an episode of Ghost Hunters. It was definitely just the tap and water pressure. As for the former owner, she's probably lying because she didnt let you know about the issue before you bought the house.

Was Ghost Hunters the one with 2 plumbers who became ghost hunters? I think they said that the majority of bangs and mysteries in a house were down to plumbing problems, and I think they even fixed some dodgy plumbing in the first series? I’m sure they became more normal paranormal investigators later on, but I remember the early stuff as being a bit ghost-myth-busting-plumbers.

Tl:dr - op it’s definitely the ghost of the budgie, who has grown muscular arms in the afterlife and is messing with your taps.

@Newbabynewhouse The hot water tap in the kitchen. I can't remember if any of the other ones did it!

It started the day that I watched a documentary about a creepy massacre in Germany where a guy had essentially lived in the attic without the family knowing, came down when they were out/asleep for food, and then killed them all. I know logically that wasn't happening but it creeped me out!

It was just water pressure, the fixtures were cheap and about eight years old. We had the washers and cartridges replaced and the boiler serviced, and one of those things fixed it, thankfully.

Jeez. Just pack up and leave op, it's the only way now 👀

and the relevance of 3am is that water pressure rises during the night. All day long, people are running taps, and pumps are refilling water towers and reservoirs, about as fast as it is being used. When you all go to bed and stop running baths, the pipes are not being used, so nothing to drop the pressure, and the pumps are able to fill them to the top ready for another day's usage in the morning.

If I was you I would put a sticker or something on the part of the tap that's facing sink (if that makes sense) and if it happens during the night I would double check if the sticker part has moved (or sharpie - something not easily removed like permanent marker)

Then you know if the tap has been twisted/turned or if there may be a fault within the tap?

Does your hot water come on during the night or anything? Or do you have the washing machine on?

Maybe water is too powerful for the tap if any water within the house/pipes is on during the night?

I would be setting up a camera though 🤣 I'm too curious but also a wimp

Hi OP,
The plumbing explanations have convinced me. When we had a leak fixed recently the plumber said to monitor as water pressure rises at night. Get a few taps replaced and you will be sorted.

All I wanted to add is that when the explanation of sleepwalking is considered for the 3am tap the 5pm tap is not really relevant. You were satisfied it might have been left running and there is no reason that two taps running on two separate occasions need the same explanation. Whether there is a plumbing fix, a sleepwalking problem or a ghost - it might have been just left running. My money’s on worn out taps being switched on by water pressure though. It would be spooky if you filmed it and saw the tap handle turn though even if it is water pressure doing it.

@PigletJohn

and the relevance of 3am is that water pressure rises during the night. All day long, people are running taps, and pumps are refilling water towers and reservoirs, about as fast as it is being used. When you all go to bed and stop running baths, the pipes are not being used, so nothing to drop the pressure, and the pumps are able to fill them to the top ready for another day's usage in the morning.

See I knew you would know

@Notapheasantplucker

Fuck. That. I think I'd have shat myself. Change the taps asap, if it happens again, burn the whole house down and relocate to Australia.

That stuff happens here too!

I sleepwalked as a kid. Once turned on bath put the plug in and everything. Luckily my mum was still awake and turned the tap off and emptied the bath.

I reckon there's a sleepwalker in the house especially if you've recently moved in. Although doesn't explain the 5pm incident

My kids tell me that 3am is the creepy time at night and no one should be awake then. I mean, if YouTube’s told them that it must be true.

New washers needed. In our house its someone not turning them off properly and pressure is building up and every now and then it runs out.

Update...just been to the bathroom to go to the loo and the loo was full of loo roll!! I asked my partner and he said he flushes it last time he went ... I flushes it and the toilet bowl filled up and blocked.. it did eventually suck down though... hmmm..

OMG OP! That last update has given me the chills! 😱

Burn some sage apparently it clears old energy, never tried it myself though 🤔

Do you know what... I'm very sceptical but now I'm starting to think I should do something like that...

The original owner probably wouldn’t own up to there being an issue with the taps before she sold it to you , I know I wouldn’t!

The first time I bet was accidental and left on by friends.
Are you sure someone in the house isn't sleep walking and doing things in their sleep

@Newbabynewhouse

Update...just been to the bathroom to go to the loo and the loo was full of loo roll!! I asked my partner and he said he flushes it last time he went ... I flushes it and the toilet bowl filled up and blocked.. it did eventually suck down though... hmmm..

Was the toilet paper wet or dry? If wet, our toilet does that sometimes if people put too much toilet paper in. It flushes, but the wet toilet paper lingers in the bowl. Could be that your dh flushed but didn’t look after, so hadn’t noticed that the wet paper hadn’t flushed away.

If it was full of dry toilet paper, I’m sticking with my angry muscular budgie theory.

I was going to add that our office taps went through a phase of doing this. Unfortunately to the point that all the sinks then backfilled, overflowed and the water cascaded down the stairs like a 1960s office water feature. We called it the phantom tap turner! We checked CCTV and every time it happened it was after different people had been in there, so came to the conclusion it was the taps just not being done up tight enough and a bit of random pressure or air in the pipes undoing them, then once they started going the floodgates (pun intended) opened. The taps were very old too, so probably the thread was pretty worn.

However, that does not account for a toilet bowl full of paper!

Please change the locks, just in case! Then change the taps or the washers as per a PP. I have no other sensible suggestions for the paper other than rationing it before people use the loo!

Our basin taps do this...

I think there’s something up with the plumbing. Is the toilet blocked somewhere.