What level of noise shall I put up with from neighbours?

mrxry

Neighbours have lived here 2 months, the first 3 weeks I had on and off sounds like banging and crashing from furniture building, drilling somethings (could be furniture) but very random so I may get 30 minutes noise, nothing for a hour or two, 5 minutes, then nothing for anouter 30 minutes then 15 minutes.

Then no noise for a few days to get similar random noise patterns, then no noise for 2 or 3 weeks then the same pattern of mixed noise over a few days period.

It makes me a little angry as they are in flat right above me, woke me 6am the day of moving in then 3am when they arrived back drunk after house warming night out and got wrong door so tried keys and ringing buzzer.

But its now and again so won't be considered nuisance noise just bad manners to not tell me when they decide to hammer and drill.

I do get some annoying noise from their toddler playing or crying but its at random again but the most awkward part is as I never know when to expect it I can't relax in bedroom or living room.

So maybe a little rant but more of what would people on here put up with, I may speak to the person but I hate confrontation.

marksoton

mrxry wrote: »

I do get some annoying noise from their toddler playing or crying but its at random again but the most awkward part is as I never know when to expect it I can't relax in bedroom or living room.

I wasn't aware toddlers only played or cried to a schedule......

If you know how that's achieved i reckon you'll make a good few million and be able to purchase a detached property...

pinkteapot

The drunken night out is annoying but sounds like a one-off. It's the sort of thing that will inevitably happen from time to time in flats.

It sounds like most of the noise is DIY noise? There's only so much they can do to a new flat so I'd expect it to calm down in time. I didn't tell the neighbours when I was doing DIY when I had a flat, though I didn't do it during antisocial hours. Your local council will have guidelines for when DIY noise is OK - usually something like 9-5 Monday to Saturday and 10-4 on Sundays (google your local council to find it). If the noise is during that time there isn't really much you can do, especially if it's occasional. If it's late in the evening you could say "I go to bed at Xpm because of work, would you mind doing the noisy jobs earlier than that please?"

They won't be able to tell you when their toddler is going to cry.

To be honest, what you're describing just sounds normal for living in a flat, so it may be that a flat isn't for you. If the neighbours were shouting and arguing at all times, playing music etc., or drilling/hammering all day every day then that's different.

fed_up_and_stressed

mrxry wrote: »

Neighbours have lived here 2 months, the first 3 weeks I had on and off sounds like banging and crashing from furniture building, drilling somethings (could be furniture) but very random so I may get 30 minutes noise, nothing for a hour or two, 5 minutes, then nothing for anouter 30 minutes then 15 minutes.

Then no noise for a few days to get similar random noise patterns, then no noise for 2 or 3 weeks then the same pattern of mixed noise over a few days period.

It makes me a little angry as they are in flat right above me, woke me 6am the day of moving in then 3am when they arrived back drunk after house warming night out and got wrong door so tried keys and ringing buzzer.

But its now and again so won't be considered nuisance noise just bad manners to not tell me when they decide to hammer and drill.

I do get some annoying noise from their toddler playing or crying but its at random again but the most awkward part is as I never know when to expect it I can't relax in bedroom or living room.

So maybe a little rant but more of what would people on here put up with, I may speak to the person but I hate confrontation.

Sounds like normal household noise to me in a flat considering they have just moved in - ie building flatpack furniture (ok maybe not appropriate to drill at 6am though) maybe concentrate your efforts on soundproofing your accomodation as it sounds as though you are quite a noise sensitive person (as i am too).

mrxry

marksoton wrote: »

I wasn't aware toddlers only played or cried to a schedule......

If you know how that's achieved i reckon you'll make a good few million....

Did I say they did? No but because you don't know what to expect its impossible to plan to spend a few hours in my bedroom relaxing because I can't tell if the parents have the child in the living room or bedroom so will get exposed to noise either way.

And then I have to put up with what sounds like the child dropping stuff and running/stomping about which can wake me during the night, not that great if I have done a night shift at work.

The walls are quite thick here so I have no idea why I hear so much, I never heard the ex tenants nor my downstairs neighbour, I can't even hear if I have tv on in living room and I am in hallway or when neighbours are using hoovers.

fed_up_and_stressed wrote: »

Sounds like normal household noise to me in a flat considering they have just moved in - ie building flatpack furniture (ok maybe not appropriate to drill at 6am though) maybe concentrate your efforts on soundproofing your accomodation as it sounds as though you are quite a noise sensitive person (as i am too).

See above its well enough insulated that I can't hear anyone else, I can barely hear cars passing by if I am in bed and can't tell when neighbours are leaving their flats, the ex tenants had dogs and I never heard them apart from the few times they were left alone all day in emergencies and they barked even then it was barely audible unless you were in room below them.

fairy_lights

If you've never mentioned that you can hear their DIY noise then they might think it doesn't bother you and they don't need to tell you in advance. They might not have any idea you can hear them at all!

mrxry

So I went up there as its a gap in the noise, knocked on the door loudly a few times, heard shuffling about but no one has answered door (and their tv is on very low)

Bit annoyed they aren't even answering door, I can understand they don't answer unless they are expecting someone or something but then how can I speak to them to talk!

Meant to have guests round tonight whom I haven't seen since Christmas dont want hours of either drilling or crying child.

marksoton

mrxry wrote: »

Did I say they did? No but because you don't know what to expect its impossible to plan to spend a few hours in my bedroom relaxing because I can't tell if the parents have the child in the living room or bedroom so will get exposed to noise either way.

And then I have to put up with what sounds like the child dropping stuff and running/stomping about which can wake me during the night, not that great if I have done a night shift at work.

The walls are quite thick here so I have no idea why I hear so much, I never heard the ex tenants nor my downstairs neighbour, I can't even hear if I have tv on in living room and I am in hallway or when neighbours are using hoovers.



See above its well enough insulated that I can't hear anyone else, I can barely hear cars passing by if I am in bed and can't tell when neighbours are leaving their flats, the ex tenants had dogs and I never heard them apart from the few times they were left alone all day in emergencies and they barked even then it was barely audible unless you were in room below them.

I think your expectations of living in a flat are somewhat unrealistic.

I'm really not sure what resolution would satisfy you....

dc197

mrxry wrote: »

Did I say they did? No but because you don't know what to expect

That was the point.

mrxry wrote: »

And then I have to put up with what sounds like the child dropping stuff and running/stomping about

Good luck getting anyone to stop a child making these kind of ordinary childhood noises.

Perhaps you could ask them to put a carpet down if they do not already have one, or put down extra thick underlay. Maybe you could pay for it.

Or maybe living in a flat is not for you.

System

what you want to do is get yourself a detached house and then no neighbour noise concerns

mrxry

dc197 wrote: »

That was the point.


Good luck getting anyone to stop a child making these kind of ordinary childhood noises.

Perhaps you could ask them to put a carpet down if they do not already have one, or put down extra thick underlay. Maybe you could pay for it.

Or maybe living in a flat is not for you.

Seems to have reached a point where people are misunderstanding.

I have lived in flats for 10 years, lived away from home 16 years

In all the noise here is far better than some properties I have had which have had walls so thin you could hear people burping in place above or their tvs on, or everytime they walked about, or ones where the neighbours were on drugs and had parties a few nights a week, or when in student accomodation I put up with 9 months of daily parties by person in next room which ran 24/7 (and landlord kept them on at end of year since they never paid rent late and illegally evicted me as I paid late a few times)

I expect some noise, I handle the walking about as its quite muffled, rarely do I hear a door close loudly from my older neighbour downstairs when hes tired but the noise upstairs feels more like its not intentional but more not making an extra effort to be quiet.

I can handle drilling if I am told about it, I can handle a child crying if I am prepared, I don't want to know their every movement but if I knew they put child in living room during day and bed at say 6pm I could plan around it and then if random things occured out of their control you can handle it.

The crying barely bothers me as its muffled enough the annoyance is they are not taking steps to minimize noise.