New neighbours complaining about our toilet

[Amanda98]

We’ve got a new build where one side of our house completely backs on to a neighbours garden - that’s the back wall/boundary of their garden essentially.

Downstairs, we have a toilet with a window which is on the side of the house where that wall is, and has a small window which opens at the top. Their garden is slightly lowered so it isn’t within reaching distance. It’s a fairly odd design but we’ve lived here for years with no issues.

The neighbours have recently changed. In one of the early weeks in April when it was warm, they put a note through the door which asked we keep the window closed when it’s sunny because of the smell. We don’t really open it much anyway so thought nothing of it.

We’ve since had a further note through this week asking it stays closed on Saturday because they are hosting a BBQ for a family members birthday. We also have family over on Saturday and the downstairs loo is the one they’d naturally use.

Are the neighbours being CF? They surely can’t expect us to introduce a rule where we only crap upstairs whenever they say so!

And all they could hear down the line was "Oh shit"!

I hate to break it to you, but your shit definitely smells as well, and you can't clean a toilet while you're mid-dump.

This is nuts and I’d be ignoring them, simple.

They sound mental.

How smelly are your dumps?

So weird that anyone on this thread thinks their dumps aren't smelly! There'll be variations of course, but no one's dumps smell good, except to coprophiliacs I guess.

I think it is odd that they are posting notes through your letter box, rather than having a polite conversation with you about it. I would ignore the notes, you do not have proof that they are even from your neighbour, they could be from anyone. Relax and enjoy your own space, and visitors, and ignore any nonsense notes.

Sounds like it opens and overhangs into there garden
tread carefully or I’m sure you’ll end with something stood directly outside your window so you won’t be able to open it anyway

During their barbecue, you should pop round and complain that the smell of the smoke is disturbing you while you're trying to have a dump.

They knew it was like that when they bought the house. Just tell them that is how it is and you will open your window. Keep the window closed while you are actually using the toilet. If you give in now they will always be asking you. If they are that bothered they can move their seating away or better still plant fragrant shrubs,
Having said that most people don’t use the downstairs toilet for anything more than a wee.

Why is your effluence so stinky OP? Are you vegans ?

Is their garden postage stamp size?
I honestly can't imagine how awful your downstairs loo must smell for it to affect people outside.

I was thinking along similar lines.

Do you live rurally, OP? They sound just the sort to complain about the smell of slurry spreading.

Can’t be pleasant for the neighbours, isn’t there a fence separating the boundary and shielding/blocking the window from their view? My neighbours bathroom has a bathroom side window upstairs overlooking our house, it’s not too bad as it overlooks onto the detached part of our house down an alley - however in the mornings I can hear the man hacking and phlegming - sometimes when I’m cooking dinner too which really turns my stomach.

While I get you, I also feel for them if it's really that bad that it doesn't disperse and is wafting into their seating area🙈

It’s not normal to have foul smelling poos at all - people are very wrong about this. Yes a slight smell perhaps but nothing that lingers after a minute or so. I can’t smell if my daughter has done a poo, and vice versa. Nor my parents come to think of it. And hardly ever at work and there’s no windows.

But so many people’s diets are shit it comes out in their shit I guess.

Can we have a diagram please?
Does the window overhang their garden when open!

Wow. Your shit literally doesn't stink. 😂

Sounds like everyone in the OPs house is a bit backed up if they smell that bad.

And you yourself said that ‘in a house with 4 men it won’t smell of roses’ as if male shit somehow is worse than female shit. 😂

How smelly is your loo that it needs airing so often and others in the area complain.

Also who visits someone else's house to crap? Shy of having medical issues like IBS/chrones etc... its not common for family to come over to visit and then line up to consecutively christen your toilet.

Are you sure its not a noise issue, maybe they are trying to in a faux polite round about way attempting to tell you that the acoustics are amplifying so all and sundry can hear the cavernous echo of you pebble dashing the bowl. Which to be fair would put me off my sausage at a BBQ.

Ignore the letter, but buy some poo drops.

Tell them you dont want to smell their rank barbeque when you're taking a dump.

If I was having a bbq I definitely wouldn’t want the smell and sound of four men’s toilet visits going direct into my garden. It does sound like a poor design and they moved in after you so had the opportunity to think it through. While of course they can’t ask you to keep toilet window shut, I do feel for them. The sound of one man pissing would be enough to put me off my burger let alone four and the smell issue too!

Why can't the neighbours move their BBQ area to another part of there garden? Isn't that the logical answer I don't think anyone has suggested

It sounds like from ops posts that their seating area is near said offending smelly window.