Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Next doors alarm wakes us up

20 replies

loulou0987 · 20/05/2016 09:50

We live in an end of terrace house attached to not a not very chatty single guy.
He has recently started setting his alarm at 05.55 which wakes up DS (3) who will then not go back to sleep. DS is becoming increasingly ratty as the weeks go on and there is no respite at the weekend from the alarm either. We are now taking him out in the car at weekends so he will nap.
AIBU to ask him to turn it down or move it?

OP posts:
coco1810 · 20/05/2016 14:39

No absolutely yanbu!

SouperSal · 20/05/2016 14:42

Can you move where your DS sleeps?

Banderwassnatched · 20/05/2016 14:43

I'm not sure what he's supposed to do, will moving the alarm a few metres across the room make a difference? Really?

Ivegotyourgoat · 20/05/2016 14:43

I'm not sure. How long is the alarm going off for? I guess the guy needs to get up for work.

nobilityobliges · 20/05/2016 14:44

I think it's fine to ask very nicely, but obviously approach it from the perspective that he is doing nothing wrong (which he isn't) and asking him as a favour to see if anything can be done. If it's his bedroom and the alarm is not currently right next to the party wall though, it might be that he can't do much about it.

Princesspeach1980 · 20/05/2016 15:07

I would definitely ask, it probably hasn't occurred to him that your DS can hear it. My terraced house neighbour once set his alarm for 4.30am to go to the airport for his holiday, and forgot to switch the bloody thing off. It was right next to the joining wall in our bedroom and would beep for an hour every morning before switching itself off! Went on for 6 long days before we spotted his mum popping round to check the house and begged her to switch it off Grin

Original poster
loulou0987 · 23/05/2016 09:27

Thanks all. I think I will approach as nobility says! Its just frustrating!

OP posts:
SheHasAWildHeart · 23/05/2016 09:29

Neighbours can be so selfish.
We've had new people move in across the road and I kid you not but at 11.30pm on Saturday they were in the front garden doing woodwork, sawing new doors and all sorts of racket :/

MajesticSeaFlapFlap · 23/05/2016 09:33

Ooh we were the alarm setting neighbours 3years agoBlush

We live in a flat and when new people moved in downstairs they came up and said they could hear our alarm at 5:30am, we changed the alarm to my phone and had it on vibrate on the ottoman on a cushion and it seemed to make a big difference.

MargaretCavendish · 23/05/2016 09:33

I once had a neighbour who asked us to turn down our (6.15am) alarm - we switched from a beepy alarm to a radio coming on, which they said was better. However, they then asked that we stop walking around before 8am, which we obviously did not do! So by all means ask, but don't push your luck!

sepa · 23/05/2016 09:34

I wish our next door neighbours only had an alarm going off (not saying that you shouldn't talk to them)!
Have you spoken to him at all before?
Reason I ask is because our neighbours know that we can her their DD crying, hammering & drilling till early hours and playing music, they however don't care but had the cheek to tell me to be quiet when their DD was young and I was calling oh in my garden at midday so I don't ask them to be quiet as it would fall on deaf ears!

DecaffCoffeeAndRollupsPlease · 23/05/2016 10:27

I get paranoid about this. Would much rather neighbours brought up issues than silently seethed at me.

RubbleBubble00 · 23/05/2016 10:57

White noise machine in ds room. Might blend out the noise of the alarm.

harshbuttrue1980 · 23/05/2016 11:19

To the poster who said that neighbours are selfish in relation to this - really??? My alarm goes off at 5.45 because I need to go to work! I do get up within seconds of it ringing, so its not as if its on snooze for ages, but I need the alarm. Getting up for work isn't selfish - selfish is things like loud parties in the middle of the night.

I live in a block of flats, and if you're in flats or terraced houses, then those sorts of noises are just things we all have to put up with. My neighbour has night storage heaters and is on economy 7 tariff, so he sets his washing machine to come on in the middle of the night. Its his right to do this as otherwise the cost would be ridiculous, so I wear earplugs. Could your kids use earplugs?

heron98 · 23/05/2016 12:36

I have to get up at 445 for work. My neighbour complained about my alarm (weird, as DP who sleeps next to me never work up Grin.) Now I am so paranoid that I hardly sleep at all and try to stay awake if I go to the loo in the night.

I do think YAB a bit U. Other people's noises are a fact of life.

SoThatHappened · 23/05/2016 12:44

My alarm goes off at 5:50am. I have to go to work. Its classic fm so as gentle an alarm i can put on. No loud beeps

If a neighbour complained about it I would ask them to stop walking around and banging cupboard doors after 10pm.

So you might not eant to start that.

I bet a single guy is frequently disturbed by your 3 year old being noisy.

harshbuttrue1980 · 23/05/2016 13:00

SoThatHappened makes a good point...us early risers have to go to bed early. My neighbours don't. Therefore, they disturb me a bit at night (nothing unreasonable, just normal noise), and I make normal noise during the daytime. If you complain, you could end up starting a bit of a noise war. And I imagine that your 3 year old does disturb him on weekend mornings when early risers like to have a lie in! Again though, its part of living in a terrace.

shovetheholly · 23/05/2016 13:04

There is a huge difference between asking a favour and complaining! No-one really minds the former (especially not if it is asked with a gift of a bottle of wine).

Some alarms are really shrill! Especially some of the phone ones - they really carry!

sepa · 25/05/2016 21:40

I would never have a problem with an early alarm going off if the person gets up and turns it off. I was close to shoving my sister phone somewhere when her chavvy shitty singing alarm was going off for 30 minutes! Thankfully I have since moved out and have a very cute baby alarm clock Grin

Original poster
loulou0987 · 27/05/2016 11:27

All sorted! I asked him and hes turned it down! It was ridiculously loud and went on for 5 minutes (enough to throughly wake up DS!)
He sets it everyday including weekends so there was no "day off!'
Not sure about the ear plug suggestion, is that safe for a 3 year old??

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page