🎃The My AZ Pro Monthly · October 2026Something Strange Is Happening at Your House (It's Probably Just Fall)

Lead story

Bumps in the Night: A Field Guide to Your House's Spooky Sounds

As desert nights cool off, houses start talking. Before you call in a paranormal investigator, know that most fall noises have very earthly explanations. Materials expand in the afternoon warmth and contract at night, which can make roofs, attic framing and metal ductwork tick, pop or creak. It sounds like footsteps in the attic. It is almost always the house getting comfortable.

Some sounds deserve a closer look, though. A bang in the walls when a faucet shuts off is often water hammer, and a plumber can tell you whether your pipes need support or an arrestor. A rumble or crackle from the water heater can point to sediment, which is worth mentioning to a plumber. And if your heating system squeals, grinds, booms when it lights or clanks, that is not a ghost, that is a service call. Turn the system off and get it checked rather than letting it scare you all season.

Snowbirds, welcome home! If the house sat closed up all summer, run each faucet and flush each toilet for a minute, peek under sinks for drips, and listen for anything that is running when it shouldn't be. A silent house is a happy house.

• Ticks and pops as temperatures change: usually normal expansion and contraction
• Banging pipes when water shuts off: ask a plumber about water hammer
• Grinding, squealing or booming from the heater: turn it off and call a pro

Yard & landscape

Night of the Living Lawn: Rescuing Your Zombie Grass

Is your Bermuda grass turning a pale, shuffling, undead shade of tan? Don't panic. Bermuda naturally slows down and goes dormant as the weather cools. You have two perfectly respectable options.

Option one: let it rest in peace. Dormant Bermuda needs far less water and comes back on its own when warm weather returns. You save effort and water, and the lawn gets a well-earned nap.

Option two: overseed with winter ryegrass. University of Arizona Cooperative Extension guidance points to October as the ideal overseeding window in the low desert, when days are in the low to mid 80s and nights are around the mid 50s. If you go this route, mow the Bermuda short before seeding, spread the seed evenly, and keep the seedbed from drying out with several short waterings a day for the first week or so until the seedlings come up. Then gradually stretch the time between waterings. If late October has crept up on you, aim to get seed down soon, since a frost can damage young seedlings.

• Dormant Bermuda is not dead, just sleeping
• Overseeding: short, frequent waterings until the seedlings emerge, then taper off
• A long screwdriver that slides easily into damp soil tells you the root zone is watered

Yard & landscape

Planting Season Rises From the Grave

Here is a desert secret that sounds like a trick but is a treat: fall is one of the best times to plant in the low desert. The soil is still warm enough for roots to grow, the air is cool enough that new plants are not stressed, and they get months to settle in before next summer's heat. Native and desert-adapted trees, shrubs and groundcovers are great candidates, and fall is also a good time to scatter wildflower seed for a spring show.

While you are out there, give your irrigation timer a fright of its own. Plants need noticeably less water as temperatures drop, so shorten or space out run times now rather than watering on a summer schedule. Your local water provider and the Water - Use It Wisely program publish seasonal guides if you want specifics for your plants.

One more seasonal haunting: frost. Cold snaps can arrive later in the fall and winter, so locate your frost cloth now and know which plants are tender. Hold off on heavy pruning of frost-sensitive plants until the cold season passes, since the outer growth helps protect the plant.

• Plant desert-adapted trees and shrubs this fall
• Cut back irrigation run times as it cools
• Find the frost cloth before you need it

Around the house

Pumpkins, Porch Lights and Other Halloween Hauntings

Arizona pumpkins have a short, dramatic life. A carved jack-o'-lantern sitting in afternoon sun can go from scary to soggy fast. For a longer-lasting display, carve close to Halloween, keep pumpkins in the shade, or decorate them with paint and markers instead of a knife.

Make your home welcoming for little ghosts and goblins, too. Swap real candles for battery-powered LED lights inside pumpkins and luminarias, especially near costumes, dry leaves and doormats. Clear walkways of hoses, extension cords and decorations that could trip a visitor, and make sure porch and path lights are working. If you hand out treats from a chair by the door, set it where you can greet trick-or-treaters without turning your back on the steps.

For decorations that plug in, use outdoor-rated cords and lights, keep connections off wet ground, and don't overload a single outlet. If a breaker trips, you can reset it once; if it keeps tripping, unplug things and call an electrician instead of playing tug-of-war with the panel.

Pest patrol

Scorpions: The Uninvited Trick-or-Treaters

Arizona bark scorpions are excellent climbers and can squeeze through remarkably small gaps, which makes them the original party crashers. Their activity tapers as nights get cooler, but fall is a smart time to tighten up the house before they look for shelter.

Start with the easy fixes: door sweeps and weatherstripping on exterior doors, caulk around gaps where pipes and wires enter the walls, and screens in good repair. Outdoors, move woodpiles, stacked pots, rocks and clutter away from the foundation, and keep shrubs trimmed back from walls. Fewer insects around the house also means less for scorpions to eat, so consider switching porch bulbs to yellow "bug" lights.

Want a genuinely spooky Halloween activity? Scorpions glow under ultraviolet light. A slow evening walk around the perimeter with a UV flashlight shows you where they hang out. Wear closed-toe shoes, don't shine the UV light toward anyone's eyes, and leave removal to a licensed pest professional if you find a crowd.

• Install door sweeps and refresh weatherstripping
• Clear clutter and debris away from the foundation
• Shake out shoes, gloves and costumes stored in the garage

Comfort corner

Is Your Thermostat Possessed? Blame Daylight Saving Time

On November 1, 2026, most of the country "falls back" one hour. Arizona, sensibly, stays right where it is, because most of the state does not observe Daylight Saving Time. (We like to think our clocks are simply too relaxed to bother.)

Here is the spooky part: some smart thermostats, sprinkler controllers and other gadgets set to a generic Mountain Time zone may jump an hour on their own, and suddenly your heat or irrigation runs at the "wrong" time. Take two minutes to confirm each device's time zone is set to Arizona (sometimes listed as Phoenix) and the clock is correct. Exorcism complete.

While you are at the thermostat, swap the air filter, since summer dust can choke airflow just as you switch to heat. The first time the heat runs for the season, a brief dusty smell is common as dust burns off. A smell that lingers, a burning-plastic odor or a system that won't start is your cue to shut it off and call. Our fall tune-up checks that your heat is ready and safe before the first truly cold night, and you can read more about thermostats and indoor air or our recent post on stuffy, uneven fall homes.

Quick checklist

The Not-So-Scary October To-Do List

Pick a cool morning, grab a cup of coffee, and knock these out. None of them require a ladder, a roof or a single incantation.

• Test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms with the test button, and replace batteries as needed
• Clean the dryer lint screen after every load and make sure the outdoor vent flap opens freely
• Replace the HVAC air filter
• Confirm smart devices are set to the Arizona time zone
• Shorten irrigation run times for cooler weather
• Locate frost cloth and note which plants are frost-tender
• Check porch and walkway lights before Halloween night
• Install or replace door sweeps to keep out scorpions and drafts

Before you go

A Treat From Us to You

Thank you for reading, and happy Halloween from our family to yours. Whatever goes bump in your night, we hope it is only the house settling. If it turns out to be your heater, give us a call at 833-692-9776 (833-MyAZPro). Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm, with after-hours and same-day service available.

Looking for more seasonal tips between issues? Visit the My AZ Pro blog, where new posts go up every Monday and Saturday, or browse our FAQ. The next issue of The My AZ Pro Monthly arrives November 1. Until then, stay comfortable, stay safe, and save us a fun-size candy bar.