To ask how much noise is too much noise

[hydroranga]

I know noisy neighbour threads are ten a penny so direct me to another one if appropriate.

New neighbours. Semi. 3 months In and the noise they create is horrible. But all within council guidelines.
Examples:
Music. Daily with double doors open. I can hear it all day. Concert for all the local gardens
Car. Leaves running 10 mins a morning (I assume whilst heating it up?) and in pm if sat in it (with sleeping kid)
Dogs. 3 small yappers. Bark at everything whether family are in or not. Usually stop when told but it's constant. (Ie: bird flies by)
General shouting/talking loud late into eve on patio.
Obviously I'm going to chat to them about it as there's always some sort of noise coming from them but thought I'd check myself first. Am I just being a miserable git who has gotten too comfy from to living next door to a quiet 97 year old (sadly passed hence new neighbours) and is this the normal neighbourhood noise to expect? Have I become that irritable wfh person?

Ps: they have building work commencing soon and I can put up with that as it's envitable. It's just the constant tap tap tap tap of noise.

They are noisy selfish fuckers. One day I will crack and go out there with a shotgun. That's what people like that do to other people.
If I could afford a home with no other neighbours in a 10 mile radius I'd get one.
Unfortunately you need to be rich to be isolated.

That would upset me too. You can live with the ten minutes car idling and have no choice about the dogs. But I think it’s reasonable to ask that they use headphones for their hours long music and that they keep voices down on patio after 9pm.

I've learned over the years that unfortunately there are a lot of inconsiderate people (or perhaps it's that I think I'm very considerate!)

They probably don't realise how much their noise carries so a very polite chat might work, depending on the kind of people they are.

I'm so shocked how many of these threads there are on MN. I have twatty neighbours but I'm not sure if this knowledge makes me feel better or not! Mine is more constant crashing about whilst the oafish male neighbour is at home, it honestly sounds like a fight has broken out every time he comes home from work. I cannot decipher why on earth he has to slam all the cupboard doors in the whole house when he gets in. He must be carved out of fucking granite with the noise he makes going up and down the stairs... but I digress. I worry once it gets warm the crap music will start since they've done their garden.
Are your neighbours unaware or genuinely horrible/likely to be aggressive? If you had a nice, friendly conversation how do you think it would go? I think my neighbour is fairly thick. The (nice) people the other side of them have gently mentioned his noise to him in a jokey way but he doesn't take the hint, sadly.

I've been round when they first moved in, said hi and took flowers etc. We chatted over the fence in the warmer days last month but as they've only been in a few months I know very little about them. They don't seem particularly keen to chat and I'm fine with that- we tend to smile more than chat!

The road is extremely quiet and has quite a few older occupants. No kids at all, all grown up and moved out. They're the first young family here for years so I wondered if I was just out of touch.

I'm hoping the loud talking at night won't get worse as it warms up but as it's usually all beige 8pm I don't think I can say anything really .

I will certainly mention the music.
It feels crappy to have to just put up with the yappers as they seem to bark at a sparrows fart. I'm not a dog fan so don't think I'm particularly objective about their noise

I'll start with the music. Feel I'm entering Victor meldrew territory here

Hmm, not sure you can do much about the dogs. Hopefully over time you will zone it out as they clearly have. I do think the music is a bit unreasonable but sadly a lot of people can't manage to do anything without the soundtrack of their rubbishy tunes. I'd go with the charm offensive, just drop it into conversation if you can.
Similar to you, BTW, we had an elderly bachelor as neighbour previously who was an absolute dream to live next door to. I think that's why it feels like such an intrusion. I am really aware of my noise and would be mortified if I was upsetting someone but I guess others don't really consider it.

My neighbours are absolutely grim. Constant screaming and yelling. I bought some special earplugs that kind of dull down the frequencies that cause stress response without muffling everything. They’re called Flare. Best £20 I’ve ever spent! I can have them in and still take work phone calls.

From what you’ve said your neighbours are loud people, not necessarily being deliberately obnoxious. Perhaps if you and other neighbours are quiet they don’t understand how much the sound travels. Could you enjoy listening to your own music when you need a break from theirs?

You can ask them about various individual things and they may cooperate to some extent, but it sounds like they don’t notice noise much and if they’re a young, busy family it’s unlikely you can really change them.

I would suggest focusing on one thing to ask them to stop/change that’s really bothering you and seems likely to be something they could do without it impinging on their own enjoyment too much, then look more at what you can do to soundproof your home (or move if you’re not wedded to your current place). In general I would say that you can’t really change people. If they are noises in all sorts of ways, that isn’t going to stop.

I think you have a right to sit in your garden or house without having to listen to other people's music

Dh made an infrasound generating machine for our neighbour patio monsters. They'd go in after about 15 minutes of this running. You can't hear anything, you just feel unpleasant and uncomfortable, but don't know why.

@Macncheeseballs

I think you have a right to sit in your garden or house without having to listen to other people's music

Thinking it doesn’t make it so..

I don't think you can do much if its before 8pm but I get how annoying it must be

@bellropes

Dh made an infrasound generating machine for our neighbour patio monsters. They'd go in after about 15 minutes of this running. You can't hear anything, you just feel unpleasant and uncomfortable, but don't know why.

Oh do please tell us more about this!

Can you buy them, for those who cannot build two lego together.

I live in a fairly quiet street but there are noises such as engines, building/diy work, music, dogs and children as well as sounds from the nearby industrial estate. It's just background noise that doesn't really register. As I type I'm in my summerhouse and can hear my own radio, my neighbours' roof being repaired plus their dog, a radio from further down and another from behind and then some local kids playing in the street (my own included). It still feels peaceful.

@veeeeh I don't know, I'll ask him what it involves. He's into sound and electronics and things like that.

The dogs won't get better. Moved from a quiet cul-de-sac with mongel barking dogs to next to a school on a main road. The peace being next to the main road is devine.

@bellropes

Dh made an infrasound generating machine for our neighbour patio monsters. They'd go in after about 15 minutes of this running. You can't hear anything, you just feel unpleasant and uncomfortable, but don't know why.

That sounds bloody marvellous.

Similar threads have mentioned buying a dog whistle and using it whenever the neighbours dogs bark or yap. Adults cannot hear it, but I think small children can. Might be worth looking into if you can't find the infrasound device mentioned above.

Okay, dh says he used an XR2206 function generator from Amazon (about £10) and it runs off a 9 volt battery.

A TDA 7297 amplifier from Amazon (£7).

And

A Visaton VS FRS8/4 loudspeaker - high quality, high frequency from Amazon (£17).

The function generator, set on a high frequency range of around 15000 hz into the amplifier and then to the speaker. He placed the speaker facing a hole in the fence next to the neighbour and set it running - adjusting the frequency to the threshold of hearing (it's very high) and left it running. It used to take around 15 minutes for them to go indoors. It causes irritation and an uncomfortable feeling. The technology is similar to the Mosquito teenager deterrent, but dh's had a much higher volume and you can adjust it to irritate adults. The younger the person, the higher the frequency. You can't tell where the noise is coming from.

The dogs may settle a bit over time. I've always found that with neighbours dogs. It does take longer with more dogs, though.