Neighbour has complained about Portaloo

[Helenwalker2]

We are having some work done on our house which has required a portaloo to be placed at the front. This was a requirement of both parties who quoted if we weren’t to allow access to a toilet indoors for the various trades who will be on site (absolutely no chance with the horror stories I’ve read on here and from a couple of friends).

Our property is at the end of our street so we have only one direct neighbour. When it was first delivered the woman who lives next door made a comment about it being unsightly and hoping it won’t be there for too long - I confirmed the works are going to take up to 3-4 weeks but would keep her updated.

We are 2 weeks on, and this morning our neighbours husband knocked. He said they are unhappy with the smell and want us to move it to the back of our house in the garden. I confirmed we had previously asked and this wasn’t possible. Note we don’t believe there to be any smell albeit were away this weekend.

The woman then knocked this afternoon. Moaning about how bad it smelt at the weekend and how we are unreasonable to have placed it outside the front of our house and so close to their windows.

I said the work is still on plan and it will be gone in the next week or two. She then said she is going to complain to the council as they’ve had ‘advice’ that it isn’t permissible to place portaloos at the front of houses where there’s an attached house (as both ours is being semi detached).

AIBU to stand firm? We don’t believe there’s any truth in what she’s said and by the time the council get round to doing anything, it should be gone.

This.

I’ve had workmen for a few weeks, they use the downstairs loo and there haven’t been any issues. You’re being ridiculous not letting them use your indoor loo, how is it stressful? For the sake of neighborly relations I think you should suck it up for a week and get rid of the portaloo. Some people have a much better sense of smell than others, I would hate to have toilet smells wafting through my house from next door.

Meh! Let them complain. By the time the council come out and make a decision it will have gone anyway

I think they only smell when they get emptied- we had one at work as we were getting building work done and when they emptied it, the smell made your eyes water but other than that, not a thing

YABRidiculous for not letting them use your loo.

Another who doesn't understand why you would rather have the unsightliness and annoyance to the neighbours than just let workmen use your toilet. I've never heard of anyone doing that and it would never have occurred to me. Each to their own I guess and probably too late to do anything now but given your neighbours' dissatisfaction I wouldn't do it next time.

No she isn’t. Who wants workmen traipsing through their house? Especially if the only loo is upstairs.

OP ignore them!

They do smell. I’ve never lived next to one that doesn’t smell just before it’s emptied, but them’s the breaks if you live in an urban area.

OP, we had work done which would have meant a portaloo for 8 weeks. I left bleach next to our loo, and then cleaned it every night as I didn’t want a portaloo in the summer months - it’s really not that big of a deal to manage.

We had a portaloo in our front garden when we had our extension, we live in a semi and our front gardens are separated by a wall and a hedge.

It was in our front garden for about 2 months as having a constant stream of workmen in my house when I had a newborn was a non negotiable.

It was emptied regularly and didn’t smell, I remember the truck that would come to empty it would connect a hose up to it when it was emptied which is why I’m guessing having it at the back where access is a problem is the issue as it can’t be emptied.

What’s your neighbour like normally?

Honestly, its pretty grim having a toilet outside your house.

Not sure what horror stories you’ve heard but when we had work done on our house and had various trades in, they were using our downstairs toilet and the project manager had a house key so they could come and go without us having to worry about being around.
They hoovered at the end of each day and cleaned the toilet they were using, so it does seem a little odd not to give them access to a designated toilet if you have more then 1 or let them use yours.
Having said that my brother had a portaloo in the garden when he was having work done because their only working toilet during the work their en-suite which meant going into their newly carpeted bedroom and you couldn’t smell the portaloo at all and it was there for months.

Your neighbour is being ridiculous. Let her complain to the council. I doubt they'll be interested. In the unlikely event that tbey are, it will be gone by the time they get round ti sending anyone out.

My next door but one neighbour has one outside the front of their house at the moment, and I can guarantee if there was the slightest whiff the neighbours joined on would be complaining, but they definitely haven't. It's been there quite a few weeks now.

Completely standard where I am.
just double check on the council website and take it from there. id work out if it’s worth falling out over or be seen to be proactive and have it removed early given the short time left

We had one on our little drive for about 8 months and we’re semi detached. Sometimes we’d get woken up by the neighbours milkman using it!

Let her complain. She's being absurd.

She must have a super human sense of smell, given that the loo in your garden, she almost certainly has double glazing, and the prevailing temperature is now 15 degrees or below.

I suspect she just doesn't like how it looks.

I think it's weird and disrespectful (often with a dose of snobbery) not to allow workmen access to a proper loo with hot running water unless you actually can't provide that.

Just ignore OP!

Or ask her if they can use her loo instead if she’s that unhappy.

It will smell. Even if no one's used it, it'll have that horrible disinfectant smell that they all have.

I'd be absolutely gutted if I caught a whiff of that every time I left my house for 4 weeks, just so my neighbours didn't have the inconvenience of their workmen using their loo.

🤣🤣🤣🤣 bog off 🤣🤣🤣🤣
but yeah this totally.

I think you are within your rights but double check that with your council but it will need to be attended to on a weekly basis - maybe have a word with the contractors.

I wouldn’t be happy about it at all

If she thinks there's a smell, maybe she needs to check her plumbing.

I would ignore but afterwards send her flowers and an apology card.

It's never occured to me to ban workmen from using my loo. I must have been lucky with the tradesmen I've hired.

I mean she can't do anything about it (unless she chooses to be petty later as revenge), but I probably wouldn't like a literal box of urine and excrement outside the front of my house either.