We moved in to a 10 yr old ranch and now that we are there notice a crackling noise occasionally that the walls make. We have steel siding and a wood basement. What makes these walls all of a sudden make a crackling noise? There doesn't appear to be any corolation in the temperature outside or the velocity of the blowing wind. It's embarrasing to have people sitting in the living room and ask, what's that noise? And it doesn't happen all the time, either.