Noise complaint from neighbour

Norman_Castle

Bendy_House said:

TELLIT01 said:

Following the death of my neighbour I occasionally used their drive to park one of our cars on, with the agreement of their son.  Fortunately I wasn't using it the day the new neighbours moved in, which the previous occupants son had failed to warn me about!  It can happen.

And, if the new neighbs had turned up whilst your car was there and had left a note for you, what would you have done?

Of course - gone straight round to offer profuse apologies, explain why it happened, and assure them that it was a one-of. And, "Welcome!"

Ie, not what this cove did.

Not sure what a "cove" is but this is what the op said the neighbour did, "he came out and said he had been a good friend of the previous owner and she'd let him park there, but he would move it (he has his own space). Thankfully he hasn't done that again"

seilduksgata

Norman_Castle said:

seilduksgata said:

 It's a back to back house in London - I've consulted with the person in the back to back and the next door neighbour (whose work hours I'm working around) - this guy is his other side neighbour.

So there's a house between you and him? Circular saws make a lot of airborne noise but that shouldn't reverberate through buildings. Exactly what are you doing with it?

Cutting the plasterboard into strips while on the wall so I can tear it off in one clump which is much faster than using a pry bar. As I said, my neighbour who is also his neighbour can hear him eating, hear his conversations etc so something is very wrong with the walls I think. Mine has little holes in the mortar between the breeze blocks so I suspect that’s letting more sound in than normal. Hence wanting to soundproof to have a bit of privacy in my bedroom and not hear my neighbour!!

seilduksgata

Norman_Castle said:

Bendy_House said:

TELLIT01 said:

Following the death of my neighbour I occasionally used their drive to park one of our cars on, with the agreement of their son.  Fortunately I wasn't using it the day the new neighbours moved in, which the previous occupants son had failed to warn me about!  It can happen.

And, if the new neighbs had turned up whilst your car was there and had left a note for you, what would you have done?

Of course - gone straight round to offer profuse apologies, explain why it happened, and assure them that it was a one-of. And, "Welcome!"

Ie, not what this cove did.

Not sure what a "cove" is but this is what the op said the neighbour did, "he came out and said he had been a good friend of the previous owner and she'd let him park there, but he would move it (he has his own space). Thankfully he hasn't done that again"

Well not exactly, he didn’t apologise and the tone seemed to suggest he was angling to be allowed to park there by me. I didn’t offer so he moved it. Since then he’s forgotten who I am a few times, tried to flog me his brother as an electrician and asked what I found rather condescending/invasive things like ‘have you moved in yet’ ‘well what do you need to renovate?’ - seems to generally treat me like an idiot.

seilduksgata

warby68 said:

If he's a little further away then I'm not sure I'd have mentioned the work either but now you know it bothers him, I'd still have one more try at the friendly option.

Ultimately you have to get the work you want done but you also have to live there afterwards. That's why I don't jump on the 'rights' bandwagon. 

The observation about the area having older and long standing residents is probably correct. New people have to prove themselves. A bit of apologetic sucking up whilst still getting on with the work can work wonders. I'd minimise use of the saw though when other options are better. 

Yes, I get what you’re saying. Think I can avoid using the circ saw directly on the wall now most of the wall is done but the house needs (probably, having EICR next week) a complete rewire, replumb, kitchen and bathroom need removing and replacing, etc etc so there will be other work happening and some of it will be noisy. I can keep being apologetic but as I said, I can’t really alter my schedule to fit neighbours beyond the 2 ones with houses adjourning mine. I don’t want to invite this man in though, or give him my number as I don’t feel safe doing that.

Bendy_House

Norman_Castle said:

Bendy_House said:

TELLIT01 said:

Following the death of my neighbour I occasionally used their drive to park one of our cars on, with the agreement of their son.  Fortunately I wasn't using it the day the new neighbours moved in, which the previous occupants son had failed to warn me about!  It can happen.

And, if the new neighbs had turned up whilst your car was there and had left a note for you, what would you have done?

Of course - gone straight round to offer profuse apologies, explain why it happened, and assure them that it was a one-of. And, "Welcome!"

Ie, not what this cove did.

Not sure what a "cove" is but this is what the op said the neighbour did, "he came out and said he had been a good friend of the previous owner and she'd let him park there, but he would move it (he has his own space). Thankfully he hasn't done that again"

Oops, sorry - that's right. I got caught up in his subsequent belligerence :-)

(A 'cove' is slang for a male :-)  )

Bendy_House

seilduksgata said:

Norman_Castle said:

seilduksgata said:

 It's a back to back house in London - I've consulted with the person in the back to back and the next door neighbour (whose work hours I'm working around) - this guy is his other side neighbour.

So there's a house between you and him? Circular saws make a lot of airborne noise but that shouldn't reverberate through buildings. Exactly what are you doing with it?

Cutting the plasterboard into strips while on the wall so I can tear it off in one clump which is much faster than using a pry bar. As I said, my neighbour who is also his neighbour can hear him eating, hear his conversations etc so something is very wrong with the walls I think. Mine has little holes in the mortar between the breeze blocks so I suspect that’s letting more sound in than normal. Hence wanting to soundproof to have a bit of privacy in my bedroom and not hear my neighbour!!

Once the old p'board is off, then inject any obvious holes with expanding foam.

Do some research on sound insulation - I'm not sure what the best stuff is - but also ensure it's sealed tightly against the floor; use exp foam or frame sealant there too.

Some noise is transmitted through walls, but if there's an actual gap anywhere, then that's the easiest path.

twopenny

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer - it's an old saying.
Be reasonable, having long established residents can be a good thing. They tend to know the comings and goings and will keep an eye open for anything suspicious around your house while you're away from it. Annoying when young I remember but can be helpful in times when things go wrong. So being polite is useful. You don't have to be their best friend.
Do what you can to keep things on a reasonable footing but plod on with the work. 
Do not use anyones relatives for jobs.
Anything goes wrong you will be the bad guy and years of resentment. Been there. Just say you have your own lined up thank you.
You are going to have to live with these people. 

Gavin83

While we can discuss your rights all day ultimately you’ll need to live next door to these people for X number of years. Personally in your position I’d stop assuming he’s patronising and TTP as nothing he’s asked/suggested seems that unreasonable. 

Maybe next time you go there to do some work knock on his door, take a bottle of wine or something and apologise for the noise. Ask him if he’d like to know what you’re doing and while you don’t know exactly when you’ll be doing it whether he’d like you to knock and let him know before you start each time. 

If you make him feel a little more part of it and make the work less of a surprise he might be a little more relaxed. Or he could just be a !!!!!! and might not relax but at least you can say you tried.

Alternative is you do nothing and have a neighbour you aren’t on speaking terms with until one of you moves out.

Rosa_Damascena

Bendy_House said:

lesalanos said:

If he doesn't show some contrition and continues to be shouty or intimidating, do consider calling up your local bobby 

Which then causes potential issues when selling your house and you have to declare the neighbour dispute 

So, if this guy keeps on coming round and being shouty and demanding, what should this single woman do?

Answer the door with the circular saw in hand?

Bendy_House

Of course, a moderate response.

But based on what the OP has told us - 'yelling' and such like - I have suggested a politely assertive approach, but more importantly one that puts the onus on the cove to explain their behaviour.

When someone is being belligerent or lairy, a puzzled, "Why are you shouting/yelling/being aggressive..?", and having this repeated if they try to avoid answering, is usually quite defusing. It takes the wind out of their sails. Their intentionally-provocative approach is made to look silly, because they cannot justify it.

And, if they persist in behaving like this, you do call the local police.