To hate this time of year, or rather my neighbours at this time if year

[ConfuciousSayWhat]

One has a bonfire on the go, one a barbecue, two have trampolines, and they all have various music playing at full volume. Is it too much to ask that I be able to sit in my garden in the sun in reasonable peace without stinking of smoke?

benny they are illegal here (London), doesn't stop the twats from having them, and always during the day, in the sunshine.

Bonfires aren't illegal. Not even in London.

Any nuisance they cause can be though.

I would love to hear the people sat outside at the Hotel opposite, or next door and their friends enjoying a bbq; or even the other side singing lullabies to their crying 2 week old. Instead we have builders digging out foundations for a house that will put the whole of our garden in the shade. And they have today had deliveries of breeze blocks ready for laying foundations. And I live in a small rural village. So yes, YABVFU

Oh I love the smells of summer! I always call round to my neighbours' house to let them know if I'm planning a BBQ in case they have laundry hanging outside; usually invite them as well. Problem solved

I'm rather hoping that the little girl over the fence has learnt a couple of new tunes on her clarinet, the same two over & over were a littttttle grating last summer 😁

It's a bit of a mixed bag around here, but not too terrible I guess. Only one neighbour seems to have a bonfire fettish and the others can all be quite noisy & have BBQ's but not constantly.

Some young lads have moved into one of the houses, but as they don't have a garden I'm hoping that they take their music down to the local park.

Little Miss Clarinet & her brothers have a trampoline & a swimming pool and every now & then I get to feeling like throttling them asking them to play on the M4 be a little less noisy, but it's not too often.

soup you are quite right.

Boop if your neighbours weren't in and you could see their windows were open, or their washing out, would you go ahead with your BBQ regardless?

If I could see washing hanging out, I'd wait till they got home first

Same with open windows. We get on well and I wouldn't want to ruin it by making their house stink. Plus if they had left windows open/laundry hanging out, I'd know that they probably wouldn't be gone for long so waiting wouldn't be a big deal.

I'm on the fence with this. I think that people should get on with doing whatever they want to in their own gardens, but they should also be considerate of other people too. Our neighbours are ok, but I do feel quite resentful of the way that they take over ever nice day with their bbq (he burns everything) and their awful euro pop music. They don't invite neighbours, or give us warning to get washing in etc. They bbq their dinner every single night when it's not raining. I do feel slightly pissed off as I would like to enjoy my garden in a bit of peace and quiet sometimes. They have young children, and sounds of kids playing, tramplolining etc, doesn't bother me at all, just the other stuff is wearing.

Reading the last paragraph back, I think my neighbours are selfish. They hijack every nice day and do exactly what they want and the rest of us can whistle. I have no problem with the everyday sounds of summer goings on, just don't want their crap rammed down our throats every day.

I have neighbours who think they live in Australia and as soon as there is any spell of dry or warmish weather light a BBQ every day! At weekends it can be lunchtime and evening. I nearly always have washing out on days like that - who doesn't given the general state of British weather - and windows open, so my house is regularly filled with acrid smoke. I slam the windows, loudly but a bit like others I don't like to say anything for fear of making things unpleasant. Don't get me wrong I've nothing against the odd BBQ on a nice day in the summer but it's the daily occurrence that gets on my nerves.

Could be worse OP. I moved from my last place as my neighbour and lots if her friends used the balcony above my living room window to:

A) smoke and flick fag ends onto my lawn and bedding
B) shout, swear and do rap kareoke
C) throw binbags off onto my lawn
D) have shouted conversations/arguments with visitors - shouted over loud music

She and friends were too intimidating to confront. In frustration at me closing the security gate another neighbour vandalised it so it couldn't be closed, it was a great neighbourhood...

Heir sounds like we've got the same neighbours!

Oh I couldn't be doing with having a BBQ everyday, I'd get on my own nerves. Maybe once a fortnight, tops.

Rhubarb01 LOL was just going to respond to you saying the same! I wouldn't mind, but he can't bbq. It's a stinky cremation every flipping night.

I'm with you. We had trampoline, bbq and bonfire in one day last weekend. I'm asthmatic and ndn can't seem to get that damp smoky flames are not helpful. The odd party or bbq is fine, music while gardening is fine, mowers etc fine.

No problem at all the barbecues and a bit of music, providing it's not too loud and gets turned off at a reasonable time. Love to hear families enjoying themselves in the summer - takes me back to my own childhood.

Music outside annoys me. We once had neighbours at the end of the terrace who would play the same song at top volume for hours on end. It was like something out of a CIA torture manual. They actually turned it down when someone finally snapped and knocked at their door. Apparently they hadn't realised it might get on someone's nerves.
The other things, especially BBQ, are to be expected in summer and don't annoy me unless it goes on all night. In our neighbourhood everybody has the occasional BBQ or guests round, so no one can complain really.

Agree with whoever said move to Germany, on Sunday's we're not allowed to make any noise including cutting the grass or washing the car. Heaven help you if the polizi is called cause you're making too much noise. I think bonfires are illegal here too

We lived in CH for a while. No bonfires, no clothes washing, mowing or car washing on Sundays, nor over the lunch period , rubbish separated and recycled, no noise overnight or at lunchtimes. Fireworks only on specific dates.

I live in London so there are a load of houses really close to each other. I love summer and all the sounds of fun coming from other people's gardens. You'd all hate us, today we had a shrieky 4 year old on a bouncy castle, a shouty baby, the football on the radio, a bbq, the works! None of my neighbours are particularly quiet nor totally obnoxious and if anyone has a problem we just have a quick chat to resolve it.

Bonfires = wankers
Bbq = ok
Kids on trampoline = ok. ( but not late at night )
Loud music = wankers
Loud shouting, shrieking etc late at night = wankers

Love your user name, MW is REALLY thick, he reached an all time low last week, he was actually viciously arguing with a lady over the pedantic s of a lost baby. I have never seen him get so worked up, it was a horror.

Anyway, as you were

. I think that people should get on with doing whatever they want to in their own gardens, but they should also be considerate of other people too

In built up areas there has to be compromise and common sense.

a) wants to play loud music and light bonfire, he enjoys his garden - his right

b) wants to sit listening to the birds and breath fresh air, - he cant due to mr a.

I have neighbours who sit out every night in good weather until the early hours getting progressively drunker and louder until the early hours, they have teens who are starting to get in on the act now .

I may have bought a nice set of jangly wind chimes today . These things are of course completely unrelated.