Bloody outdoor Christmas lights!!!

[ThornAmongstRoses]

One of the houses opposite mine has put Christmas lights up all over the front of the house - which admittedly looks really pretty.

However, they leave them on all through the night, on one of the flashing settings, and my bedroom is like Blackpool Illuminations

I’ve got continuous bright blue, red, green and white flashes of light coming through my curtains, under my curtains and around the sides of my curtains.

It’s so hard to sleep

This is the 3rd night in a row now, I’m shattered, I’ve already had enough and the thought of this going on for another 4 weeks is killing me.

I know it’s their house to do with as they please....but it’s 22.45pm and surely it’s just considerate towards all the neighbours (I won’t be the only one affected by this) to at least turn your lights off overnight?

Am I being a humbug?

I’m going to have to buy some black out blinds aren’t I...

[OverTheRubicon]

Agree, it's also pretty shocking for the environment and for animals to have lights on all night.

[Whattheactual20201]

Oh you are not being unreasonable I am not at home at the moment but my DP sent me a video of the house opposite and complaining it’s on all night 🤣
There will be a conversation when I get home 😐🙈

[MsTSwift]

Just go and ask them politely and briskly to turn lights off at 10. Reasonable request. Can’t see why they would feel strongly about having them on all night. Why are you being so wet?!

[billybagpuss]

Last year one of our neighbours had a decoration outside that played jingle bells on a loop, I was lying in bed holding my breath waiting anxiously for the phrase ‘dashing through the snow’ I was clearly not alone as it only happened for one night. They didn’t realise as they slept at the back of the house so couldn’t hear it, we sleep (or didn’t sleep) at the front.

I’m sure your neighbours will be fine with the request.

[sofiaaaaaa]

Your neighbours are definitely having a Christmas light display competition amongst themselves!

[Crakeandoryx]

Timers switches! All set to go on at 3 and off at 9.30.

[MillieVanilla]

Oh I hate when people do this
I have big lights up (in my window or they'd get pinched in my neighborhood) but I don't have them on flashing settings and they go off at 9pm
It's inconsiderate otherwise
I would very politely ask them to turn them off at a reasonable time, I wonder if it's the same rules over lights as music, which is 11pm or fireworks which is midnight?

[monkeytennis97]

Christmas no no- flashing lights opposite another house. My NDN has this. Feel sorry for the new family over the road with young children. I can see the flashing reflecting off their house.

Why do people set it to flash?!

[Mrsbclinton]

What a ridiculous waste of energy.

[OnTheBenchOfDoom]

Ours are always on a timer, we had an outdoor socket with a timer put in specifically for our Christmas lights.

We love sleeping in a dark room though so we have Venetian blinds with a roller blind in front of that and blackout lined curtains too. Bliss.

[lemonsquashie]

Imagine how annoying it must be for them in their own bedroom.

Be careful how you word your request. They sound chavvy

[lemonsquashie]

@squeekums

Ours go off between midnight and 1am, when we go to bed
Being in aus it isnt even dark at 9pm. Most families leave home at 9 to go light hunting

People asking how we afford the electricity
LEDs run cheap, some solar ones run free. Our heating and cooling cost more to run

Im surprised you do this in the middle of summer? I would have thought it's to brighten up the dark winter nights

[TeenPlusTwenties]

Ours stay on until 10:30/11 but come on again from 6am-8am.
However ours are on static (why do people like flashing lights?), and we don't have anyone opposite.
Otherwise OP, use a face mask?

[Cygne]

Maybe I should put a note through the door. An anonymous one? I can’t say I fancy any backlash.

Unless there is a history with your neighbours, there's no real reason why there should be a backlash to a polite request made in person. Notes can come over as quite passive aggressive anyway unless you're extremely careful.

[Lovemusic33]

I have black out curtains.

We have flashing lights up, I’m sure it pisses the neighbours off as my house kind of faces outwards towards ten other houses. I do however switch them off at 10pm.

[CookPassBabtridge]

I love Chrisrmas lights (definitely not just for children!) but we have a neighbour who has neon blue ones that flash and it goes in everyones windows.. it's like everything in life, there's a line of common sense and consideration. Bright lights = lovely! Bright lights flashing like it's a rave when everyones in bed = wtf..

[RaspberryCoulis]

I hate flashing lights. A neighbour across the street has them around their door, they appear to come on when it gets dark - which is about 3.30pm in Scotland in December. They can't see them from their living space which is at the back of their house, but everyone else can seem them flashing away in lurid shades.

I don't want to close the curtains at 3.30pm. I certainly don't want to pin a duvet cover over the window.

So who exactly are these flashing lights on the outside of the house FOR? Because the occupants can't see them. It's all a bit "look at us".

[muddyford]

Under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, artificial lights causing a health problem or nuisance are illegal. Criminal law not civil. Councils have to take action.

[trappedsincesundaymorn]

We had a neighbour, a few years ago, who's lights were continually flashing. We politely asked if they could tone it down, but to no avail. They eventually stopped after my OH was carted off by ambulance after having the mother of all epileptic seizures. I often wonder if people who insist that their lights look great and "it's not hurting anyone" actually stop to think that maybe, just maybe, they do.

[trappedsincesundaymorn]

Hurt people, not look great was what I meant....it's early and I haven't had my coffee yet.

[ThornAmongstRoses]

OH was carted off by ambulance after having the mother of all epileptic seizures

I’ve got epilepsy

When I go and visit my mom at Christmas I have to ask her to turn all her Christmas tree lights off because their bright white and blue rapid flashing patterns give me so much anxiety.

[LakieLady]

I thought I was going to have this problem.

The house across the road has the most hideous display of Christmas crap - a massive lit up Santa, flashing white lights dangling from the full length of the guttering, flashing blue lights round all the windows and loads of other shite. And to add to the irritation, the blue and white lights flash to a different sequence that coincides every few seconds.

When I went up to the bedroom on Sunday night, it was like someone was having a disco on my window sill, blue and white light was flashing and flickering all round the curtains. Thankfully, it was all turned off by 10pm. It's still really annoying though, it's hard to watch tv properly when you can see flashing lights all the time.

I agree with a PP about blackout blinds. Why the fuck should people go to the expense and hassle of fitting blackout blinds just because some inconsiderate arsehole wants a light display that can be seen from outer space for 4 or 5 weeks a year?

Some of the houses round here look really lovely: tasteful white or coloured lights, non-flashing, that are threaded through hedges, on small trees or along fencing and they're great, but the flashing thing is really intrusive.

When I'm in charge of the world and everything in it, I'm going to have laws about this sort of thing. And in the meantime, I'm renaming my house Grinch Cottage.

[Neron]

YANBU. The semi's opposite me are lit up, which does look nice. One has bright blue neon lights all around their house. Next door has bright white static and flashing lights which are on the house but also reindeer objects they've placed on their garden. They also have a projector which displays something on their house.
We are directly opposite and a bungalow, so our bedroom is super bright. The lights on both houses are on all night.

[linerforlife]

Goodness me why have you waited three nights? Surely after the first night you pop over and let them know? Why are people on MN so weird about neighbours??

[wowfudge]

Just speak to them for crying out loud - no anonymous note sending just have a chat with them.