Flat dwellers: how much neighbour noise do you suffer from?

tomstickland

I live in a late 80s block of flats. Three flats on three floors. I'm ground floor.

The block is typical of the time in terms of the brickwork and slightly flimsy nature. I can hear the top floor doors being closed when I'm lying in bed. It's quite a muted noise, but the whole structure obviously transmits the noise. I don't find it bothers me though.

When I'm in my kitchen then I can hear the kitcher cupboard doors from the next door flat, the one above and the one above my neighbour. Once again, it's not actually annoying.

The flat above was recently sold. The seller had been very quiet and away a lot of the time. I returned home one Friday evening to see a young boy looking out of the window at me. "oh no, the new neighbour is going to live there with her son" . The next morning I was sat at my computer and was subjected to near endless booms as they walked across the floor, punctuated by occasional large bangs. After a while I was getting really annoyed about this so I went to have a look. I opened my front door and saw the seller and two lads carrying a TV down the stairs. It turned out that my new neighbour was a woman who was going to live on her own. Relief.

I met my new neighbour a few days later and one of the first things she said was "I like it here because it's so quiet". Result. However, she had plans to redecorate the flat. The level of noise through my floor when this was going on was verging on the maddening. When someone walks across the floor it sounds like they're stomping and at a certain point my ceiling booms. There's recently been a lot more noise, and to my relief it seems that they're doing more work on the flat. If this level of noise occured normally I think I'd go mad.

Having said all of this, I was sat in the kitchen round at my parents house the other day. My sister was walking around upstairs and I'd say that level of noise would be totally unacceptable in a flat.

So my feelings are that my current flat is pretty good for noise levels providing I continue to have reasonable neighbours. Oddly enough, I find the muted sounds of people walking around and closing doors quite reassuring. If it was the booming of music or continuous stomping then not so good.

lynzpower

I live in a flat completed in 04.

I have absolutely zero neighbour noise in terms of them walking about, moving about etc, and I know directly above me, the couple have 2 toddlers, defaintely botyh under 4. I only know this as I delivered a parcel - never really heard a peep out of them. Next door have kids as well ( think they are foster carers) and youd never know they were there.

However, within my flat itself the sound is hideous. We have laminate flooring, so if we drop our keys sounds like someone burgling the place. stud walls dont help - although I can say bless you to OH regardless of which room hes in when he sneezes, which is cute Telly has to go on full blast when Im using my hand blender though :rolleyes:

Not great, looking forward to moving, if and when it happens!

dmg24

My apartment was only completed this year, but is amazingly quiet, I don't even know when the neighbours are home.

I moved here from a converted block of flats, where the noise was so bad it made me ill. As well as the noise from the other residents, the landlord let the shop below to a music store, where people tested out drum kits all day. Nightmare x

jm28cardiff

I live in a 60's concrete block of flats, and do get music (and even loud tv) from the flat next door. The people above and below are ok though.

I did contact the environmental health dept about it in the summer, as the music was getting on my nerves. However, it has proved difficult to get them to witness it. If I sell the flat though, your meant to disclose things like that, so I have shot myself in the foot a bit. Having said that, I am not planning to move for a while, so I have to try and sort it for my own peace of mind first and cross the selling bridge when I come to it.

Ebany

We get very little neighbour noise, though we do hear anything going on in the communal hallway clearly (the front door is evidently the weak point). I can hear a slight noise if the neighbours have their washing machine on, but guessing their kitchen it the opposite of ours (as would make sense in this block) it is right up against the wall separating us, and quite possibly shares plumbing not too far down the line.

We are on the top two floors of the block though, so we wouldn't expect things like thumping footsteps. We have had the people downstairs ask up to turn our music down a couple of times (hubby does tend to have it rather loud) and I have always encouraged them to just let us know if we are being annoying as we don't know how well they can hear us. Our block was built mid-eighties according to the head lease, which suprised me, as they look a lot newer.

tomstickland

Regarding zero noise from above, some flats use concrete sections which I imagine are much better at sound proofing than wooden floors.

lynzpower

Absolutely tom.

I reckon those of us in purpose built are quite a bit better off than those in conversions.

Ive got a mate who is living in a conversion and her downstairs neighbour unfortunately has agrophobia, and is very distressed by any noise. She complains about hearing my mates partner coughing.

Suffice to say they are moving out.

hazeyj

tomstickland wrote:

I live in a late 80s block of flats. Three flats on three floors. I'm ground floor.

The block is typical of the time in terms of the brickwork and slightly flimsy nature. I can hear the top floor doors being closed when I'm lying in bed. It's quite a muted noise, but the whole structure obviously transmits the noise. I don't find it bothers me though.

When I'm in my kitchen then I can hear the kitcher cupboard doors from the next door flat, the one above and the one above my neighbour. Once again, it's not actually annoying.

The flat above was recently sold. The seller had been very quiet and away a lot of the time. I returned home one Friday evening to see a young boy looking out of the window at me. "oh no, the new neighbour is going to live there with her son" . The next morning I was sat at my computer and was subjected to near endless booms as they walked across the floor, punctuated by occasional large bangs. After a while I was getting really annoyed about this so I went to have a look. I opened my front door and saw the seller and two lads carrying a TV down the stairs. It turned out that my new neighbour was a woman who was going to live on her own. Relief.

I met my new neighbour a few days later and one of the first things she said was "I like it here because it's so quiet". Result. However, she had plans to redecorate the flat. The level of noise through my floor when this was going on was verging on the maddening. When someone walks across the floor it sounds like they're stomping and at a certain point my ceiling booms. There's recently been a lot more noise, and to my relief it seems that they're doing more work on the flat. If this level of noise occured normally I think I'd go mad.

Having said all of this, I was sat in the kitchen round at my parents house the other day. My sister was walking around upstairs and I'd say that level of noise would be totally unacceptable in a flat.

So my feelings are that my current flat is pretty good for noise levels providing I continue to have reasonable neighbours. Oddly enough, I find the muted sounds of people walking around and closing doors quite reassuring. If it was the booming of music or continuous stomping then not so good.

Do you know, I quite agree with you. Its comforting. I actually like the sound of cars on the motorway when I stay at my mums...it sends me off to sleep!.:rotfl:

meanmachine_2

Very modern flats tend to have concrete floorings, so you shouldn't have problems above and below. It's those either side that tend to be an issue.

Ground floor flats in p/b blocks tend to be plagued by communal areas - banging of the front door etc

I'd never live anywhere but top floor of a conversion. It must be a nightmare.

I believe the age of the block has a major impact on noise. Anything in the 80s to early 90s is likely to give you problems - but that's a major generalisation.

Funnily enough, former council blocks older than the 70s tend to have best noise insulation - built to last and all that.

niceguyed

I live in a new flat (circa 2005). People were allowed laminate which does create additonal noise from above. Can hear them when they are walking around on occasions and at certain times it sounds like the couple above are having a wrestling match - or maybe doing something else:D
This can be irritating at times but on banging on the ceiling it sounds pretty hollow but this is probably commensurate with new builds these days being quite flimsy.
On the whole I expected some noise being in a block and after living in the city most my life I find complete silence rather unnerving.

clutton_2

recent sound-proofing building regulation changes mean that newly converted flats (in older properties) will have fantastic noise insulation properties - its also Very expensive to install.