To not expect neighbour to use washing machine overnight

[BornInTheWrongCentury]

Just that really. Over the last couple of months our neighbours started using their washing machine/tumble dryer overnight, it was going on on at about midnight and stays on till around 3am.

My husband asked a them politely a few weeks ago when he saw them outside if they’d mind changing the time they have it on as it really disturbs us. We’re in a mid terraced house and they are the end of the terrace. Their kitchen is below our bedroom. The previous occupants took out a wall in their kitchen that separated the kitchen from their hallway so it’s open planned now so all sound from their house is amplified now anyway and noise seems to travel up the wall into our bedroom.

After my husband mentioned it to them they stopped for a couple of weeks but now the noise has started again as they are putting a wash on at about 10pm and it finishes at 1am.

It’s really upsetting me that I can’t go to bed and read/fall asleep in peace until at least 1am now.

If it’s relevant we own our house and their house is social housing. They are the end of the terrace so if I complain to the council or their housing association they will know it’s me. They are the kind of couple who seem ok as long as you’re on the right side of them but they are rather loud and look very intimidating and to be honest I don’t want to make things worse or get into an argument with them.

They are pretty good neighbours apart from this issue as in the only other noise we hear is their children (they have very screechy, door slamming children but I can cope with that during the day!) They don’t have parties or play thumping music - it’s just the issue with not being able to go to sleep when I want to. I don’t know if I’m just being over sensitive where I so tired.

What would you do?

YABU - just be grateful it’s nothing worse than a washing machine and try to ignore it/go to bed later when you know you’ll fall straight to sleep

YANBU - be brave and speak to them again asking them to not use after 11pm and complain to the council if they refuse?

@Iknowwhatudidlastsummer

to all the posters who are in a huff because of the mention of social housing

if the OP was being affected by a fault in the guttering or roof on the side of their neighbours, don't you think it would make a big difference to deal with the home owner or the local council? Or would you expect the neighbours to deal with it regardless

It still would be irrelevant! In fact even more irrelevant. Because you’d know exactly where to go be that the neighbours or the HA depending who owned the property and you could even cut the neighbours out!

It’s not relevant to the HA that the neighbours are putting the washing machine on at night (apart from a possible fire risk) but I’ll tell you what we’ll tell you when you can put your washing machine on in your own home! Oh wait no your going to be pissed off - strangely that’s the thing HA have no right to tell OPS neighbour when to put the washing machine on. So no it’s not relevant and it comes over as a holier than thou oh those “social tennents causing a problem” especially when it’s their social tennents and we own our own home!

@Brefugee - sounds great!

@IsadoraQuagmire - yes, I've definitely come round to this way of thinking too. I remember someone telling me about extremely strict rules in Switzerland and thinking they sounded petty. I now dream of living somewhere where the expectations are clear and everyone can rely on them. I'm guessing that being able to point to something that's clearly set out and accepted by others helps resolve things amicably (as Brefugee mentions) whereas here there are wildly divergent views on what is ok. I mean, how can you argue with people who think you're being petty because it's actually a pleasant sound as some on here have argued?

Today 11:08 socketpocket

YABU. It's also irrelevant that you are a home owner and they are tenants.

It is relevant as if the op puts an official complaint in about her neighbour and the op wants to sell her house. She is legally obliged to let buyers know about her complaint. Mind you it depends were you live.

You are not being unreasonable and I can’t believe the people saying you are. I would never put washing on after 7pm, I have too much respect for my neighbour’s right to have peace and relaxation in his own home.

I would speak to them again and explain how noisy it is

@Fieldofyellowflowers

I'm gonna say YANBU because I have a washing machine that is really loud and wouldn't dream of putting it during the day.

Er @Fieldofyellowflowers you might want to read what you actually wrote there

You wouldn’t dream of putting your noisy washing machine on during the day? So you’d only put it on at night?!?!

I’m guessing you mean you’d only put on during the day or you wouldn’t dream of putting it on during the night!

Hmmm it's a tough one, is it worth falling out with the neighbour?

I'd probably get eat plugs.

that is antisocial - economy 7 doesn't make that much difference for a washing machine.

so they are selfish pigs, making late night noise in an attached house. But as you see, a large proportion of MN are also selfish pigs. Sorry.

*ear 🙄

@BornInTheWrongCentury

I am really sorry at those who thought I’m a making a dig at them because they are social housing tenants - I really wasn’t. It’s just I wondered if I could speak to their housing association for advice on whether I’d be doing the right thing by speaking to them again

I honestly didn’t realise that so many people use their washing machines/tumble dryers at night. It wouldn’t have ever crossed my mind as personally I wouldn’t dream of making a noise that could disturb neighbours at nighttime and I honestly thought that any noise after 11pm would be classed as a nuisance due to everyone deserving a good nights sleep. If I knew I was disturbing either of my neighbours sleep I would feel terrible!

I guess I will need to look at purchasing some earplugs!

Are you saying that you didn’t realise that it was probably cheaper to run the machine at night than during the day? You need to understand that they may not be doing this for their own convenience but because they need to be very careful with money. Perhaps that knowledge would help you tolerate it a little more? I cannot tell if you already knew this when you first posted.

Sorry part and parcel of living in a terrace. It's why you'll pay more for a semi. You chose and bought your house knowing it was a terraced house. Your neighbours on the other hand probably didn't get much choice in having a terraced or unterraced.

We used to put all our appliances on over night as it was much, much cheaper. 2p a unit over night compared to 7p a unit during the day. I think you need to suck it up and buy some earplugs.

Biscoffaddict

Wouldn’t bother me. I find the sound of a washing machine really relaxing. Think it’s the white noise. I agree with other posters this is just terrace living.
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If you are being woken up at 3am every second morning, you’ll find it doses become a problem.

We run our washing machine and dishwasher at night because it’s cheaper. You’re massively unreasonable.

I’m surprised that so many people think it’s okay to be noisy at night just because it’s a washing machine making the noise.

I thought that it was generally considered unreasonable for people to be causing noise to travel into a neighbours home after 11pm unless the noise is caused by something unavoidable like a baby crying.

A washing machine running during the daytime is normal neighbour noise. It’s not necessarily normal neighbour noise during the night, some washing machines can get very noisy, especially if they’re vibrating a lot.

If you do speak to the neighbours again, it’s probably worthwhile being specific about times, e.g. please can it be finished by 11pm as we’re usually in bed then.
And it might be an idea to see if you can measure how loud it actually is, the council will probably have some sort of noise threshold that will have to be exceeded for noise complaints.

The fire risk would worry me.

Possibly their machine is noisier than it should be because it is on an uneven floor and the feet are not properly adjusted. Could you or your husband raise this possibility in a friendly way perhaps?

@murbblurb

that is antisocial - economy 7 doesn't make that much difference for a washing machine.

so they are selfish pigs, making late night noise in an attached house. But as you see, a large proportion of MN are also selfish pigs. Sorry.

Wow what an tolerant mature response .......

Actually you might not think it’s makes a lot of difference, but even if it’s a five pence saving to some people over time, those five p savings add up, and soon they have a couple of quid they wouldn’t have had if they were running a washing machine at peak time compared to economy 7 time.

But sure ok they’re a selfish pig for priorising putting food on their table oh sorry sure okkkkkkkk

Disclaimer - I absolutely do not know the finiancial situation of OPs neighbour, however much of a difference to some one that can afford to run it off peak may make a world of difference to some one who can’t and it’s absolutely unreasonable to call some one a selfish pig because they can’t afford to run it off peak!

@wowfudge

Wear earplugs. There is usually more noise transmitted in terraced houses. You cannot expect them to do their laundry when it suits you - it's normal noise of family life.

Not in the early hours of the morning, it's not!!

It's anti-social.

And maybe they are having to wash more frequently if one of them is working outside the home in healthcare or something and has to wash work clothes every day due to potential Coronavirus exposure.

@VinylDetective

We run our washing machine and dishwasher at night because it’s cheaper. You’re massively unreasonable.

Saving you money isn't the OP's problem.

You disturbing neighbours is unreasonable

I don’t live next door to OP @Nanny0gg!

I can't believe all the people saying you are being unreasonable.

It is totally unreasonable to make so much noise so late!

Perhaps all those says you are unreasonable have never experienced this! It's awful when a totally preventable sound is stopping you sleeping. My ex neighbour did this and it sounded like a helicopter was taking off for hours at a time well in to the night

@VinylDetective

We run our washing machine and dishwasher at night because it’s cheaper. You’re massively unreasonable.

if you have attached neighbours, it's likely to be in the lease that YOU are the one unreasonable.

If you are a home owner, you are just a nuisance neighbour. I am not sure that's anything to boast about

It might be relevant tho at they are social housing as they may well have agreed to not making noises that will cause a disturbance ,

I’m in a privately Owned block of flats am not to make noise (washing machine/ tv etc) between the hours of something like 10pm -8 am I think

YABU lots of people run their machines over night. Get some ear plugs or switch bedrooms.