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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Neighbour reporting us to environmental health for a noise that only she can hear

159 replies

Mufferdoodle · 16/05/2018 21:51

Soooooo arrived home this evening to a nice little letter from the local council, informing us that they’d like to come and investigate the nuisance noise coming from our house on Monday.

I can only assume this noise is the same noise that our next door neighbour has been mentioning at every opportunity for the last 18 months. She claims to be able to hear it at all times of day and night and it sounds like a heartbeat noise. We have never heard this noise but she put a letter trough our door about a year ago saying that one of the trades people who she had called out to investigate said noise had told her that it was 100% coming from our house (even though he also didn’t actually hear the noise).

As neighbours, I think we are pretty decent. We have 2 small children (who are in bed for 7 ish) we go to bed at 9 ish. We don’t play loud music, or make much noise at all really. We did look out for this lady (she’s in her 70’s) I’ve taken her out for the day, bought her a few bits for her house, check on her in cold weather etc etc.

The house is ours - it’s not rented. It’s in a nice quiet cul de sac and we get on with all of the other people who live nearby.

So question is - aibu to tell the council they can’t come poking around my home unless they have a recording of the noise?? I feel really upset and anxious about the whole thing and to be honest I’m 99% sure that neighbour has tinnitus as she has told me a couple of times that she can still hear the noise with ear plugs in.

What would you do??

OP posts:
Northernpowerhouse · 18/05/2018 08:38

My mum had this with a neighbour who moved in with his family in the other half of a two semis. He went on and on at her for months about some mysterious noise coming from her house. He knocked on the door to complain, he put notes through etc.
My mum was convinved she was doing somethimg wrong and did all sorts of things - re arranging her rooms, putting sound insulation in, wearing headphones for the tv. She was really stressed and upset about it. In the end, SHE asked EHO to come and check. It was interesting that HE didn’t want this.
They came to bith houses, did whatever checks and recordings they needed and interviewed them both. The conclusion was that there was no case to answer and any noises from my mums house were within normal levels. My mum felt so much better.
It turned out of course that the neighbour had done this before and upset a lot of people. He did try to continue with his notes and complaining until it was pointed out to him that we were thinking of reporting him for harrasssing an elderly lady. So, things are a lot better now.
My advice would be EHO is your friend in this situation.

LoislovesStewie · 18/05/2018 08:56

I might have missed this, but what sort of noise is allegedly being made? I'm for EHO visiting so that this ends for you sooner.

ChaoticKate · 18/05/2018 09:19

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hum

I heard about this phenomenon a few years ago. Incredibly stressful to some people who could hear it and yet completely inaudible to most.

thetemptationofchocolate · 18/05/2018 09:24

I hear this Hum occasionally. I wondered if it was tinnitus but as it comes & goes I think that's unlikely. Would love to know what causes it.

Juells · 18/05/2018 10:47

@LoislovesStewie

I might have missed this, but what sort of noise is allegedly being made?

A bit like a heartbeat IIRC. 'nuff said! Hmm

bobstersmum · 18/05/2018 10:55

Are there any pylons near you? We lived near some years ago and when walking very close to them they gave off a sort of rhythmic humming, we used to say the houses right next to them must have heard them!

kaytee87 · 18/05/2018 11:03

Following, I'm intrigued to know what this 'noise' is.
I'd let them come.

KhalliWalli · 18/05/2018 11:03

I was in this situation. We had a sink overflow and some water went through the floor of our apartment and dripped down our downstairs neighbor's wall. We felt really bad and were very apologetic. After that, she kept banging on our door saying she could hear a drip coming from our apartment. There wasn't. It got so bad that at one point she was banging a broom or something on the ceiling, shouting at us to stop flooding her apartment. It was awful.

Eventually my new boyfriend went down to see her and within seconds had diagnosed the drip - it was her wall clock! The ticking of the clock she had mistaken for dripping.

OP, I am wondering if it could be a similar thing?

LoislovesStewie · 18/05/2018 13:08

The reason I ask about the noise is that I kept hearing a whistling noise, as I have tinnitus my OH said it was that. Then I realised it was a light bulb making the noise. Replaced it and the noise stopped. I thought I was going mad!

Ipdipme · 20/05/2018 21:38

Good luck for tomorrow OP

SoFake · 20/05/2018 22:08

I used to be an environmental health officer and dealt with plenty of people like your neighbour. I’d recommend letting the EHO come and have a look around. It’s in your interests and I’m sure they won’t take very long.

I know it’s really hard but I would try and have a little teeny bit of sympathy with your neighbour. In most cases when I dealt with people like your neighbour there were MH issues.

Good luck. I hope this gets sorted out quickly.

YouTheCat · 20/05/2018 22:30

I can hear florescent lights when they're about to run out. It's very irritating. I can also hear the sonic cat scarer that someone has in the next street every time I pass the house. It's a horrible noise that makes me feel nauseous.

It does sound like your neighbour may have a hearing problem though.

MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 20/05/2018 23:05

Surely if she had a medical problem she’d hear it whenever she went out? Not just at home. Or doesn’t she ever leave the house?

You don’t have any kind of wind turbines near you? They make a really annoying thumping noise.

CruCru · 21/05/2018 08:14

Yes, good luck for today.

NeverTwerkNaked · 21/05/2018 08:21

I’d just let them come. Our EHOs at work are very sensible. They probably suspect it’s an imaginary noise but a visit means they can close down the case.

LoislovesStewie · 21/05/2018 08:32

I hear odd intermittent noises with having tinnitus, it does seem to come and go,but I can suffer for weeks at a time then have a break from it.I think it is masked by external noise sometimes but can make me think that the noise is real. So she may be hearing a tinnitus type noise, or just have mental health issues.

QuoadUltra · 21/05/2018 18:52

What happened, OP?

Original poster
Mufferdoodle · 21/05/2018 20:53

They didn’t come today as I had spoken to them on the phone about the situation. They’ve given the neighbour recording equipment so they’re going to contact me again once the recording of the noise is done. I genuinely don’t believe they will find anything and I genuinely believe once it’s proven that there is no noise she will sell up (here’s hoping 👍)

OP posts:
KingIrving · 05/06/2018 06:03

Any news back from them? I would be so self conscious if I knew I had a microphone pointed at me.

fuzzyduck1 · 05/06/2018 06:34

Start playing loud music all the time then she won’t be able to hear the noise she complaining about

Jaxinthebox · 05/06/2018 06:37

@mufferdoodle - what was the outcome?

Roussette · 05/06/2018 06:44

I'm glad it's sorted, more or less, for you OP. Personally I would've welcomed them coming round and proving there was nothing in my house!

Talking of noises, I have an awful one at the moment. For about three weeks in the bedroom I've been hearing this sort of noise. It's intermittent, some times worse than other times. It's a 'zzzzz' almost sort of electrical. I've had my ear to the wall, and DH and I have stood in complete silence trying to listen and work out what it is, it's near a window but I don't hear it when I open the window. I was beginning to think I was going mad, although DH could hear it too but not as much as me.

The other day, I was losing patience, and banged the wall hard continually. The noise rose and intensified.

We finally found out we have a bees nest up in the eaves above the bedroom near the window. There is nothing we can do. Companies who get rid of wasps nests won't touch bees nests.

Luckily none can get in, we just have to put up with it. Apparently it's going to get a lot worse before it gets better and will be gone by December... great Angry

Bumped into a NDN, they have two, one each side of the house and have had to move bedrooms!

sueelleker · 05/06/2018 06:51

Can you get a local beekeeper to remove them?

Roussette · 05/06/2018 07:01

No. Beekeepers obviously love bees and it would mean killing them! There is no obvious nest but we can see them going in an out through a small hole near the flashing. They are more or less protected so there's nothing we can do, the noise is driving me potty though.

Gwenhwyfar · 05/06/2018 07:11

Interesting about the heartbeat noise and ear plugs. When you wear ear plugs you can usually hear your own heartbeat very loudly!

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