For almost a whole month I have been mystified by an electronic beep. At first I thought it might be the chirp from one of my two smoke alarms, so I changed those batteries. (Well, to be honest, I had to get help with that from the building’s maintenance man, Harley, because I couldn’t reach the alarms from my two-step stool.)

After we changed those batteries, I thought the problem was solved, but I was wrong. This beep continued to alert me about once every four hours for weeks.

It wasn’t the chirp you hear from smoke alarms. It was more of a  bi-bi-beep, so I tried my best to eliminate all possibilities. If it wasn’t a smoke alarm, I thought it might be telecommunications-related. Consequently, I phoned the company and talked to two different agents who both assured me that none of their equipment had batteries that beeped.

At this point I contacted my tech-savvy youngest child and asked them for advice. I even made a video of the entryway to my apartment and the storage room which is approximately where I thought the sound was coming from. They gave it some thought and affirmed that the sound must be emanating from something with a battery so I should look around for any and all battery-powered gadgetry.

My next thought was that perhaps it was coming from a long-defunct security system. Its presence had been irritating me for a while, so this seemed like a good time to get it removed. I had an electrician come and take out all of their equipment; the key pad, the box of wires, the telephone to nowhere, the bullhorn, and the lights that show when the perimeter has been trespassed. None of that included batteries that might beep, but it felt a whole lot better to have gotten rid of it.

The electrician mused on the possible source of the mystery beep and agreed that it must be a gadget of some sort. Then he heard a Brewer’s Blackbird on my patio and thought that perhaps I was losing my marbles. The Brewer’s Blackbird makes a bi-bi-beep call that is a lot like the electronic beep I have been hearing, but it is not the same. And I am not losing my mind. Yet.

The only remaining equipment that might be causing the beep in my entryway then was the fire alarm that is tied into the building’s fire safety system. The electrician advised me not to touch it but to contact the property management company, so that is what I did. I sent them an email listing all my attempts to solve the dilemma.

That night, when I was awake at about 2:15 AM, it dawned on me that I had installed a doorbell outside my unit’s front door that was linked to a plug-in chime. So, in the morning (I mean regular morning, not insomnia morning) I changed the battery on the push-button unit. Then I emailed the property management people to tell them about my revelation and that I thought I had solved the problem. They emailed to thank me.

Then, later that day, I heard the bi-bi-beep again. Gah! I emailed the company again to tell them I hadn’t solved it and I would just have to live with it.

A few hours later I heard a knock at my door and it was Harley. He had been contacted by the property management company and he asked if he could come in to hang out for a while to wait for the beep.  He assured me that the building’s fire alarm would not beep, and while we waited to hear the beep again, he had me bring out everything I owned that included a battery. I was amazed at how many things I found!

Lined up on my kitchen counter were two remotes for the air conditioners, a mini audio speaker, three remotes for window blinds, an alarm for scaring away bears while I’m walking in the forests, and the remote for the robot vacuum.

Just when I thought we had identified all possible batteries, he saw my indoor-outdoor temperature-and-humidity gizmo that was plugged in nearby. He removed all the batteries and I found new ones to replace them. I didn’t even know the thing had batteries! I thought it was powered through the main electrical power system. So, we thought we had fixed it. That must have been it. I thanked Harley, and he left.

Then, an hour later, I heard the beep again but now it was louder! Really. A lot louder. I guessed that it was louder because now it had new batteries, so it was probably the thermometer gizmo. I went outside and changed the battery in the outdoor component, then I also changed the batteries in both the AC unit remotes just because I could.

Now I wait. I am waiting for this beep while simultaneously awaiting the Canadian election results and I am not sure which is more stressful.

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Edit to add:

It is 8:30 pm and whatever it is just bi-bi-beeped again. And it is still loud. The Liberals now appeared to have a limited majority. So, not a clear win on either the home or the national fronts.

Edit to add:

8:30 am. Mystery solved! It was the personal safety alarm. It got louder after I had taken it out of the bin of miscellany buried in the hallway closet. It is now recharged and the beep is gone.