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AIBU?

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Hell is a terraced house with a hot tub, bar and outdoor tv.

337 replies

SorbetSarnie · 20/06/2025 23:59

Or more accurately, hell is what I'm going through living next door to this abominable set up.

Family from hell moved in not that long ago. Drunken pot smoking father who attended a house party in the mid 90's and apparently never left, a wife who to be fair seems like she's lost the will to live or smile, and an assortment of teenagers who like to invite all their mates round and shout about dildos and cumming in people's eyes.

The garden has slowly morphed into something resembling a butlins, which is fairly impressive as we all only have narrow postage stamp gardens. It started with a hot tub, progressed to an outdoor bar, and has culminated this weekend in some sort of wooden shack thing made of fences with a tin roof, housing an outdoor television.

The second the sun comes out it is thumping tunes ALL day, which to be fair sometimes gets turned down a little at 11 pm. Unfortunately tonight it has now been replaced by some shitty action movie being loudly played in the garden, as the family members converse in their usual dulcet yells. Must have affected their hearing with all that drum and bass.

Yes, we have tried talking to them. The father seemed to indicate through grunts that he had understood my attempt at communication with a primitive life form, however we were then treated to angle grinding in the street regularly for a few nights, as he loudly complained about the 'stuck up bitch next door' and proclaimed that I'd be 'having that'.

No, I currently can't move. I'm working on it but realistically not going to be any time soon. I'd imagine the house would be a hard sell at the moment too, most prospective owners would run a mile.

I guess I just wanted to rant, I'm so tired. I've actually found myself on the brink of tears a few times tonight, mainly from frustration. They went away last week and it was wonderful. The entire estate was practically silent, just the usual buzz of every day life going on made me really appreciate just what loud obnoxious bastards they are.

OP posts:
Freud2 · 21/06/2025 10:48

ScouserInExile · 21/06/2025 08:58

Thank you @Freud2
You have my sympathies. It is indeed very difficult to adjust to noise when you've been used to peace and quiet. More so if you've enjoyed an amicable relationship with your old neighbours for years, as we had.

I hope the noise issue doesn't escalate for you.

Thank you!

mrswhiplington · 21/06/2025 10:46

Bananalanacake · 21/06/2025 08:58

Next time they start beating the crap out of each other leave them to it, things might quiten down with one of them dead and the other in prison.

Exactly what I thought. Leave them to it. We’ve had shitty, noisy neighbours over the years. It can make life miserable. I used to dread coming home and weekends but things changed eventually. I dread my neighbours moving now.

springruns · 21/06/2025 10:44

Can you go on zoopla or Rightmove and try and find out the land lord it’s rented through? I’d be blasting load music at 7am and making as much noise as I could.
report the council.
put carpet grip on the top of the fence so next time they climb over the spike there hands!

EasternStandard · 21/06/2025 10:44

Pippinsdiary · 21/06/2025 09:24

Just rmemeber if you file noise complaints it’ll come up when(if) you go to sell your house. It’s the only thing that stopped us as ours has just sold

That is a fair warning if so

Sounds bad op, not sure what I’d do such bad luck to face it

Swiftie1878 · 21/06/2025 10:44

Corgiears · 21/06/2025 00:18

It’s called hyperbole.

??? No it’s not!

It is funny though.

ruethewhirl · 21/06/2025 10:44

spicemaiden · 21/06/2025 10:34

I vote for you getting the biggest outdoor speakers you can get and blasting out Enya, Kenny G, Michael Bolton and The Venga Boys

And Black Lace. Or Spitting Image's Chicken Song on repeat...

PiggyPigalle · 21/06/2025 10:41

shuggles · 21/06/2025 00:55

OP, while it may cost some money, have you explored options around headphones to filter background noise, or ear plugs? They can't annoy you if you can't hear them and if you aren't engaging, they will inevitably become bored and move on to fighting each other again (and to be honest, if the father and teenager are fighting each other, then they're both losing and you're winning, so no need to intervene).

You think OP should live as though she was deaf, because society's dross has moved in next door?

smallglassbottle · 21/06/2025 10:41

Play Wagner's Ring Cycle if you need to choose classical music. It is truly awful (unless you're into that sort of thing) and very heavy and laborious. Goes on for hours too.

kistanbul · 21/06/2025 10:40

I had similar neighbours during lockdown. it drives you insane. I have some probably unethical suggestions

You could try to ruin their hot tub fun by creating anchovy ice cubes and lobbing them into the garden/hottub to make it all fishy?

I assume the poster above is talking about an infrasound generator which will make them feel horrible for no apparent reason - like the garden is haunted!

There’s also this for teens, https://mosquitoloiteringsolutions.com , but again it’s not necessarily ethical

Mosquito The Anti-Loitering & Teenager Repellent | Mosquito

The Mosquito anti-loitering device. A safe, benign way of preventing anti-social behavior before it starts. Don't suffer in silence, install a Mosquito tod

https://mosquitoloiteringsolutions.com

skyeisthelimit · 21/06/2025 10:39

There should be a section in their tenancy agreement about not causing problems with the neighbours, so if you can find out who the landlord is, you can report their behaviour to him.

smallglassbottle · 21/06/2025 10:37

SorbetSarnie · 21/06/2025 09:42

I don't suppose you have a link for that wondrous device@smallglassbottle?

They have emerged, as was inevitable.

The bass is thumping. The tub is thrumming. The dad is yelling.

I would love a ticket to the town in Switzerland with @Naerolls and @Lillypj please.

I'll ask dh what he did as it's not a device in itself, but a small system. He gets back a bit later.

spicemaiden · 21/06/2025 10:34

I vote for you getting the biggest outdoor speakers you can get and blasting out Enya, Kenny G, Michael Bolton and The Venga Boys

Ramblethroughthebrambles · 21/06/2025 10:30

This sounds awful - I do feel for you. I agree that the ray of hope is the other neighbours beginning to respond. If you are able to speak to a few of them you may feel less alone with this and able to co-ordinate any response, if they seem sensible in their approach.

Do you think any of this might be revenge for you (quite reasonably) calling the police or is this just a household that just don't give a crap about their effect on others? This would affect my response - ignore and hope they get tired of it if first, but complain if second.

The mosquito and universal remote are great ideas. Storing those up myself for future use!

EstherGreenwood63 · 21/06/2025 10:29

I'd be committing murder. You need to move. Scum won't change. 💐

amooseymoomum · 21/06/2025 10:23

These days people are so selfish with all their garden paraphernalia. bring back the days when it was a deckchair, a push mower, and kids just playing ball who were told to shut up if they got noisy.
the trouble is they are enjoying themselves and do not give a toss about anyone else; they seem like that through and through
If you ring the police, you risk retribution, but does the council have a department that deals with noise nuisance? I think they do, and often they set up cameras to record things. I know if it was HA, it would be eviction, but I think they must be able to do something.
I'm sorry not be able to suggest anything else, but just to day you have my sympathy.__

chachahide · 21/06/2025 10:23

MrsBobtonTrent · 21/06/2025 10:20

We had this for a while (neighbour rented their house out for the summer to a perpetual party).

  1. If you don't have children yourself, try a mosquito alarm. Silent to most adults, very annoying to teens.
  2. A gadget I bought on Amazon called "tvBgone". It turns any television off when you press the button - it was about a tenner at the time. This stopped the garden television as they assume there was problem with it. It's a marvellous device and I have also used to to great effect turning off those loud infomercial televisions you get in diy shops near the long queues.

Try to nudge them indoors, then nudge them to keep their windows closed. And goodness don't call the police when they fight - let natural selection thin the herd.

Thin the heard 😂

MrsBobtonTrent · 21/06/2025 10:20

We had this for a while (neighbour rented their house out for the summer to a perpetual party).

  1. If you don't have children yourself, try a mosquito alarm. Silent to most adults, very annoying to teens.
  2. A gadget I bought on Amazon called "tvBgone". It turns any television off when you press the button - it was about a tenner at the time. This stopped the garden television as they assume there was problem with it. It's a marvellous device and I have also used to to great effect turning off those loud infomercial televisions you get in diy shops near the long queues.

Try to nudge them indoors, then nudge them to keep their windows closed. And goodness don't call the police when they fight - let natural selection thin the herd.

OnAMissionToLoseWeight · 21/06/2025 10:20

I’m more for a less confrontational approach when it comes to these types.

I would secretly film them and find out who the LL is and pass on the footage. I would also purchase a universal remote control and constantly turn off their tv.

Danni2224 · 21/06/2025 10:20

TheWorminLabyrinth · 21/06/2025 10:10

It is snobby to assume that the only people who could possibly act like "selfish morons" are private or council tenants.

I didn’t say they are but you can’t turn your garden into drinking den party venue it’s plain idiotic.

Braygirlnow · 21/06/2025 10:17

start chatting to other neighbours, find out if they would join you in making a complaint to council, council can contact landlord about complaints.
Get as much evidence as possible ie loud music abusive language, ect.
Have cameras on back of house to pick up these.
That device that omits a high frequency noise that someone else mentioned on here sounds like a great idea and the universal remote to turn tv off....they will think it's broke lol.
Best of luck I hope you can find out who the landlord is, they need to know so hopefully they will give them notice to quit 🙏

bombastix · 21/06/2025 10:16

Wagner, Philip Glass, Stockhausen

Melvyn Bragg “In Our Time” on a loop

AtomHeartMotherOfGod · 21/06/2025 10:12

Urgh... poor you. Can you get a WiFi blocker a la burglars stopping Ring doorbells?

Otherwise I think Mozart sounds a great idea. One of his operas... maybe Don Giovanni; nice and light for a summer evening. That'll really fuck them up.

LancashireButterPie · 21/06/2025 10:12

MarshaMarshaMarsha · 21/06/2025 05:01

God posts like this make me absolutely dread the day my elderly neighbours on both sides decide to sell up. Even though we are in a detached, the thought of an outdoor bar or hot tub and especially a TV makes me feel physically sick!!! I have every sympathy for you OP.

Actually our elderly neighbour was a nightmare, she would fall asleep listening to radio 4 on full volume, with her windows open.
Classic FM belting out whilst she was gardening outside.
We'd ask her to tone it down and she would bless her, but her cognitive problems meant that after a day she would forget that we'd ever asked.

TheWorminLabyrinth · 21/06/2025 10:10

Danni2224 · 21/06/2025 10:09

It’s not snobby to expect people to act like civilised human beings instead of selfish morons

It is snobby to assume that the only people who could possibly act like "selfish morons" are private or council tenants.

Danni2224 · 21/06/2025 10:09

It’s not snobby to expect people to act like civilised human beings instead of selfish morons