Buzzing, droning sound late at night in N. County? (San Diego: houses, buy)

[NorthCountySDGal]

Hmmm, . . . and the plot thickens. . . loving your very colorful description .

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by MisterCali

So the droning sound was back tonight. Decided to walk outside and investigate. I walked in what I thought was the general direction of the sound and that took me directly to the lake (Lake San Marcos). I'm not sure if the sound is coming from something directly on/in the lake or from a home that sits along the lake's edge. Whatever it is, it got quite loud as I got closer to the lake. No way it's some single home's pool pump. So, that's out. Getting closer to the source tonight, I would liken the sound to that of a large and deep symphony orchestra string section - sort of like the Jaws "duhhhn-nuhhhh-duhhhh-nuhhhh" theme, but deeper and slower. Like just the cellos and bass. Weird as hell. Wonder what on earth it is.

It sounds a bit like the first 4 secs of the Jaws theme as heard here. But, that sound mixed with, say, the sound of a creaking wooden boat dock. But it seems too loud and resonant and to cause too strong a vibration to literally be just a creaking wooden boat dock.

EDITED TO ADD:
For additional context, from inside my house it sounds like when you pull up to someone in traffic who's listening to music really loudly with the bass turned up, but has their windows up all the way so you mostly hear/feel the vibration of the bass. There is some weird **** going on here.

Lake San Marcos is a man made lake. I know that over the years there has been a lot of discussion about the lake's pollution levels.

So, do they use some sort of filtration/aeration system to keep the water cleaner? Do they have pumps that release water over the dam at certain times?

Since you're hearing the noise get louder by the lake, my hunch is that one or both may be your answer.

[Encinitan]

Based on your additional info, it's gotta be a water pump of some sort. I know it's driving you nuts, but it sounds like you might be able to pinpoint it with a little more investigation.
Is it at least in key? Maybe you could play along. haha

[RosieSD]

I found this notice on the Valletis Water District website -- I've put the relevant sections in bold:

Sewer spill information
Post Date:04/27/2016 10:22 AM

Vallecitos recently experienced an overflow of approximately 40,000 to 60,000 gallons of wastewater that spilled out of a pressurized sewer pipe (force main) located in front of Vallecitos’ sewer lift station in Lake San Marcos. The cause of the spill was due to the failure of the bonnet, or top of a 12 inch valve that was on the discharge side of the pumps out in the street.

Cleanup and recovery is currently in progress with six pumping trucks on-site to remove as much of the wastewater as possible. The valve is in the process of being repaired.

Vallecitos Water District : Current and Archived News

So, the Lake does have a sewer pumping station, and due to the spill, they have also been supplementing that pumping station with additional pumping machinery.

The sewer pumping station is most likely the noise you hear late at night; the sounds probably have been more noticeable recently due to the extra pumping trucks dealing with the spill.

Mystery solved.

[psychmd]

Also, aliens.

[NorthCountySDGal]

Oh wow. . . that's a bummer. . . but at least mystery solved. . .

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by NorthCountySDGal

Oh wow. . . that's a bummer. . . but at least mystery solved. . .

Yes, a bummer. But the water quality in Lake San Marcos has been an issue for many years. Nice to look at the water, but I wouldn't swim in it.

[bdambrose]

Oh my goodness. Finally someone else hears that noise as well? I hear it too! I live by Lake San Marcos and off and on all day I hear it. It's worse at night due to it being more quiet.

It sounds like a freight train in the distance. Low, humming droning. Variable in length. Frequency doesn't change just duration. Pinpointing the location is difficult.

I ask my friends and family and no one else hears it. I think it is more of a vibration than a sound. So maybe only some people can hear it. I have some hearing disability from the Navy and am more sensitive to low frequency hums and vibrations. It's January 2017 at 1:32pm and I can hear it.

Any updates on what it might be?

Thanks
Brian

[59483Nancyt]

Originally Posted by MisterCali

So the droning sound was back tonight. Decided to walk outside and investigate. I walked in what I thought was the general direction of the sound and that took me directly to the lake (Lake San Marcos). I'm not sure if the sound is coming from something directly on/in the lake or from a home that sits along the lake's edge. Whatever it is, it got quite loud as I got closer to the lake. No way it's some single home's pool pump. So, that's out. Getting closer to the source tonight, I would liken the sound to that of a large and deep symphony orchestra string section - sort of like the Jaws "duhhhn-nuhhhh-duhhhh-nuhhhh" theme, but deeper and slower. Like just the cellos and bass. Weird as hell. Wonder what on earth it is.

It sounds a bit like the first 4 secs of the Jaws theme as heard here. But, that sound mixed with, say, the sound of a creaking wooden boat dock. But it seems too loud and resonant and to cause too strong a vibration to literally be just a creaking wooden boat dock.

EDITED TO ADD:
For additional context, from inside my house it sounds like when you pull up to someone in traffic who's listening to music really loudly with the bass turned up, but has their windows up all the way so you mostly hear/feel the vibration of the bass. There is some weird **** going on here.

I just came across this thread. Have you been able to figure out the source of the hum? Was it Vallecitos? I lived in Coronado CA for a year and a half until Dec 2016. I lived in an apartment complex, and complained of just such a low frequency hum which became one of the reasons I left there. No one was sympathetic to my concern, and I was paying much too much money to be living with such a distracting and bothersome noise which sometimes even made me feel ill. I was almost constantly aware of it.
I was just watching a BBC Earth Lab program which was quite validating. People around the world hear this hum without definitive explanation. Here's the link: https://youtu.be/QpeKot2X_O8
Please let me know if you found the source.

[59483Nancyt]

And then, there's this article. I was scrolling through the google search, and it looked interesting: "The source of the mysterious 'ocean buzzing' may have finally been discovered." https://aol.it/2P3fwNO