Wood cracking sound from pipe expansion

[capo]

Hi,

I live in a recently purchased condo on the second floor of a 3 floor building, the condo is 4 years old, I have a persistent noise behind my kitchen counters that I can only describe as a wood/pipe cracking sound, it's intermittent and sometimes the delay between each noise is very short.

There's an opening underneath the counter, I was able to stick my arm in and film the source of the noise, it seems to come from a pipe, I can reproduce the noise by pushing and pulling on the pipe, the pipe also feels warm when the noise occurs and I can feel water streaming through it from the people living upstairs.

I managed to film the pipe and the noise it makes when I push and pull on it,
you can view the video here: http://youtu.be/feLqYxyco6I

maybe someone can provide me some insight on how to reduce this noise I would greatly appreciate it;

Thank you,

Fred

 

[Caduceus]

Doing repairs in a condo could be a bit tricky especially since your neighbor's plumbing use is affecting your piece of mind. I would start by consulting the condo association because yours may not be the only unit with this problem.
Drainage piping as well as hot water supply pipes expand and the properly sized holes need to be drilled to accommodate this expansion during the initial installation. The pipe also had to be installed straight through without stress and supported well. When foam insulation is used, care must be taken so as not to put additional pressure on pipes as it expands and dries.
All of these or any combination could be causing your problem and who know if anybody else might be feeling the same way in your building.
Chiseling around the wood and removing the contact between the wood and pipe could help, but f you damage the pipe you could have a mess on your hands. If the pipe was installed crooked then the solution may become more invasive.
This appears to be the installers mistake or another trade that manipulated the pipe for their end of the work. It's becoming more common of a problem in new construction buildings.