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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Noisy neighbours

69 replies

wearenearlythere1 · 02/08/2021 20:50

We built an extension and as the garden had a strong slope we ended up raising the level up. So now there is only a 4foot wall. We also removed the vegetation on our side because we needed the space.

Our neighbour behind are complaining because the extension is causing an echo (they also have no vegetation). I agreed to raise the wall hight with a fence panel, so we are not looking in. She still is not happy because she wants the noise blocked off. She says she can hear every conversation I have even when I am in the house. The kids in the garden. How do I even meet that demand?

OP posts:
Jocasta2018 · 04/08/2021 07:21

I think before you do ANYTHING, go round to theirs & have a listen.
Plus maybe raise the height of the wall - loss of privacy isn't great fun.

Roselilly36 · 04/08/2021 07:24

I think your neighbour is unreasonable, if you have neighbours expect noise, our neighbours have a noisy dog but we would never complain about a dog barking, as that is what dogs do. You need to live and your children need to enjoy their garden. You have tried to accommodate, stopped talking on the phone in the garden etc, planting. Not a lot else you can do.

GrrRightBackAtYou · 04/08/2021 08:05

No to the artificial hedge!

Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 08:05

@Jocasta2018

I like the idea of going round there to listen but i would feel really odd going into their house. Maybe it is covid but I can't think of anything more uncomfortable then standing their waiting for noise with an audience. Do you know what I mean? Also if there is a big echo, like she says there is, I'm not sure what I can really do about it. My garden is very small now (dimensions higher up in thread), I can't give lots of space over to vegetation. The extension is built now and with houses in this area there is only one way to extend.

I think the true issue is I don't work school holidays and want to be in my garden everyday I can. She works from home in the garden/ table in kitchen right by the garden. She want to sunbathe and read a book. The kids are noisy and I am probably noisy so it annoys her.

OP posts:
GrrRightBackAtYou · 04/08/2021 08:08

Sorry it’s the mirror but it endangers wildlife and there is a risk of run off micro plastics
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/plastic-eyesores-threat-precious-wildlife-23499158

ChardonnaysPetDragon · 04/08/2021 08:12

Blimey, you chopped off the real plants and now you want to put some plastic ones in instead.

No wonder everything is fucked up.

Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 08:21

@GrrRightBackAtYou

Thanks for the article.

OP posts:
Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 08:23

@ChardonnaysPetDragon

I did have to chop down the real trees so we could have a garden. This is just a topper for a wall (which was already there). I thought it would look nicer. Maybe you need some coffee Wink

OP posts:
yellowrosette · 04/08/2021 08:27

It sounds really intrusive, I experienced this once (will not say where). The echo is LOUD. Please be a bit more considerate.

bestbefore · 04/08/2021 08:27

Have a look at Screen with Envy style screens - can be fixed to the top of a wall www.screenwithenvy.co.uk/ - guess they will absorb some kind of sound? I don't know actually but they look nice!

StiggyZardust · 04/08/2021 08:29

I sympathise with you. My neighbours have built a massive box on the back of their house, it's a kitchen. They open the door at the side and it sounds like an echo chamber. We hear every single word they say. It's unbearable.
We're going to move within the next year.

StiggyZardust · 04/08/2021 08:31

Meant to say I sympathise with your neighbour!

Notcontent · 04/08/2021 08:36

You say your garden is very small now and I think that’s the problem. I live in a terrace house and the row of terraces behind me have very small gardens and they create exactly the sort of echo effect you describe.

Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 08:38

@StiggyZardust

I'm sorry you are in a bad spot right now. Don't get me wrong I do have empathy for the situation. What do you mean men more considerate?

OP posts:
yellowrosette · 04/08/2021 08:45

Houses on roads - lets say terraces, were never meant to be extended into shanty towns. The space between homes was basically enough to keep some semblance of privacy. The number of times people come on here, clearly to receive the kind of selfish replies we see here "this woman probably will always have a complaint"... "if she wants silence she should move to the country" etc... And I think really you're wanting to be told that she's completely unreasonable - and possibly lying. It's honestly quite sad that anyone would assume that someone who now has to put up with this, is probably just wanting to cause trouble. That doesn't make sense. I do not get the impression that you realise how much effect your intrusive noise has on others. If you create an echo chamber right by someone's home, this is what happens. It is not fun for them and their home now is no longer peaceful. A few plants really isn't going to solve that.

Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 08:52

@yellowrosette

I don't say any of those things about her. Unfortunately with house prices the way they are it isn't as simple as moving. I wish it was. The extension We did is pretty typical of the neighborhood, we basically copied another houses online design. There is one thing you can do with this style of house and we did that, like many before us and I am sure many after us.

It is hard to live in 2021 with a Victorian style layout and living space, change is normal. We used good quality materials etc. We did the best that we could in the situation.

OP posts:
NoProblem123 · 04/08/2021 08:56

I suspect they have extension envy.

ChaosMoon · 04/08/2021 09:09

I'd suggest you put trellising on top of the wall, rather than a fence and get some climbers. Some honeysuckle and clamatis grow quickly, as do Mexican Potato Plants. (Not a real potato). That should do a better job of dampening the sound than plastic plants.

You can train them to grow up quite close to the wall and not lose any space. If you don't have the open ground to plant them, you could attach planters to the wall or sit them on top, if it's wide enough.

SMabbutt · 04/08/2021 09:16

Could you try fixing trellis to the wall and planting climbers to absorb the noise. horticulture.co.uk/fast-growing-climbers/ give some ideas. It could give your garden a pop of colour, muffle the noise and they don't have to take up a lot of your ground space.

thelastgoldeneagle · 04/08/2021 09:20

I can see her point. Your extension sounds like it took away some of her privacy and she had to point this out, so you then offered to put up a higher fence so you weren't looking in to her garden - why were you allowed to put windows on her garden side? Four feet fence is nothing. I'm not surprised she's cross.

I agree with others - go to her garden, see what you can hear.

Is the extension carpeted? If it's not, maybe the bare walls and floor and making the echoing worse? Did your architect mention it?

thelastgoldeneagle · 04/08/2021 09:23

I hate walking into the garden and looking into their kitchen.

Hmm Not as much as she hates it, I bet. And you chose it!!! Why were you allowed to add windows that faced her house?

2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney · 04/08/2021 09:37

Sorry op you have probably been unreasonable . You are not allowed to raise ground level by more than 300mm or 1 foot . You by the sounds of things have raised it by 2 ft or 600mm. I would be aggrieved too. Did you apply for planning permission for your extension?

2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney · 04/08/2021 09:49

Now I have read the full thread and in particular your posts it doesn’t sound as though you got any professional involved at all . You took plans from SM we basically copied another houses online design so you took presumably copyright architect plans and used them . You failed to take into account her privacy and produced a design that would have never passed planning you raised the ground level without planning permission and lost amenity space in your own garden also possibly contrary to local planning policy and you think that the neighbour is being unreasonable ! In her shoes I would be heading for the planning department enforcement team and getting your extension removed ! And if I knew your address I would help her!

God help you when you try to sell your property with an extension without the necessary approval.

Original poster
wearenearlythere1 · 04/08/2021 11:10

@2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney

Wow 😯 wow!! Where did you get that whole storyline?

We bought a very typical house and looked at plans of what other people had done. We even put notes through people's doors, met the owners to generate ideas. BUT we hired a professional architect, went through building control, consulted with our neighbours. The property is fully signed off in line with all regulations. The garden is actually bigger than the minimum size. We used triple glazing and top end insulation.

OP posts:
Puffalicious · 04/08/2021 11:22

Ignore ridiculous posters OP! 2bees what are you all about? Someone pissed you off this morning?