To think it’s antisocial to power wash the patio today

[AirborneElephant]

Where I am today is a beautiful sunny day. It’s warm enough to sit out with a jumper. The first sunny day ALL YEAR, and tomorrow and for the rest of the week it’s going back to being wet and dreary. So I made my lunch, sat outside, and revelled in the sun and birdsong. Until about an hour later when my neighbour started pressure washing his patio, and he’s still at it now.

Yes, I know it’s the middle of the day. I know it needs doing, I will do mine at some point. I know I am privileged to have a nice garden to sit in. But TODAY? The only sun we’ve had for months? AIBU to think that’s fucking selfish?

I hate the sound of a naffing pressure washer any day of the year @AirborneElephant so YANBU to be annoyed by the sound, but you can't dictate when people do things in their own garden. We have a man in a garden near us who has a 63 acre lawn - well I reckon it MUST be as the fecker takes 3 fecking hours to fecking mow it! The noise (FOR 3 HOURS) from the bastard petrol mower sends me over the edge! 😠

So I get music on my MP3 player and stick my headphones in my ears when I'm in the garden to drown out the noise. Maybe something to think about for the next time something similar happens?

nb; the annoying man has about 1 acre of lawn/grass. But 3 chuffing bloody bastard HOURS?! Why does it take so long??????? And it's often once a week through summer! ARGH!

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Yes it is better to do it in the sun. It will dry much more quickly and the results will be clearer much sooner.

I assume they weren't actually spraying and showering you with the jet wash.

Try putting up with neighbours who use gardners, whose only tool seems to be a petrol leaf blower. 9 months of the year….hours on end every bloody week!

No it’s not selfish.

Oh dear. Now you are talking bollocks. 🤣 Save your energy.

There'll hopefully be other sunny days. The year is far from over and we are barely into spring. It's still only February.

Grip is needed.

I am so on your side OP!!!! Why do people need to do noisy jobs on the first day of nice sun? Why can’t they just listen to the birds and enjoy the warmth and peace. You are not at all selfish for wanting to enjoy your lunch without the background roar of a pressure washer! It’s not like you went round and shoved it where the sun doesn’t shine after all!

I agree with you OP. Lovely sunny day, spring or summer - neighbours take it as the cue to start up every garden power tool they possess. I hate noise and sympathise, power washers have a really ear-shredding drone/whine. Never as bad on the 'just cloudy' days (which are better for doing chores in the garden anyway) - the sun seems to bring the fuckers out in force.

What about it has annoyed you?

Has he sprayed you accidentally, or soaked your garden furniture, or is it "just" the noise?

I'd take someone pressure-washing their garden over an old neighbour of mine that used to yodel in the communal garden. She was not especially good at it....

I don't understand that either. It wouldn't have bothered me at all unless I was ending up being sprayed.

OP doesn't mention being sprayed so I doubt she was being. However, now she will probably come back and claim that she was.

Of course it’s not selfish.

it’s a garden job - generally they are done when the sun is shining!

Yes a grinch….my DP power washed front and back gardens today….both looking really fresh and spring ready

Doing noisy work when it’s sunny - fine.

Jet washing - shouldn’t be doing it at all, due to the ridiculous water consumption and polluting runoff. See also leaf blowers.

Why is there no point? It all gets wet anyway surely?…. (Disclaimer, I’ve never power washed any patio or path in my life. Didn’t know I should be 😄)

@AirborneElephant when you decide to clean your patio some of your neighbours may be enjoying a lie in, or an afternoon nap, they may be entertaining or busy revising. Will you check with everyone before you proceed. Or will you just crack on?
We only clean our patio when it’s relatively sunny and warm as it’s much worse getting wet when it’s cold weather.

I feel your pain op. Theres always one tool or another out playing with his power toys where I live. It is new builds, wtf are these men building. Last summer was just noise from am-pm

If people really can’t stand normal noise in the middle of the week then perhaps they should move to a house miles away from neighbours.

I did my patio today and if I knew my neighbours moaned about it I would think they were crazy folk as it’s a perfectly normal time to make noise doing everyday jobs outside the house.

I understand it's annoying if you'd planned a quiet sit down for half an hour in the garden but it's midweek in February, hardly prime sitting in the garden weather. Also, being February and the weather having pissed it for the last 6 or 7 week everyone's paths and patios are slippery green death traps so it makes absolute sense for someone to be jet washing at a suitable opportunity. Had I not been at work I might've done my drive because it's only a matter of time before one of slips and breaks a leg on it.

Your neighbour was not being selfish, they were just being practical.

And as a shift worker I would hate that. So, you can't please everyone.

Theres plenty more hot sunny days to come. Now its been pressure washed, the next sunny day you can sit in peace and the dirty job has been done.

Seriously this is not a big deal

FFS why did no one tell me the sun will never shine again after today? Did I miss a PSA in the BBC?

OP he's pressuring washing at a perfectly normal time of day when he has the time to do the job. Why would you think it's selfish? Do you think your neighbours should consult you every time they want to do some work in their garden? You said you'd been sitting out for an hour before he started so I think you've spoilt your own day by thinking he ruined all of it.

It's just life. The sun isn't going anywhere.

I live in a back to back terrace. Some utter fools 3 doors down light bonfires periodically. We have postage stamp size gardens and it’s scary. Sooner or later it will get out of control and spread. It’s not the kind of area where you go starting confrontation with neighbours but part of me wants to report it next time it happens. We need firemen to come and give them a good bollocking after putting it out.

Put on your noise cancelling headphones or earbuds and quit bitching.

He's doing a chore in suitable weather. You're sunning. If you want absolute quiet, go live where there's nobody.

Same here, nob head neighbour, drilling, sawing then topped it off with an essential mow of his f@@king lawn.

I was raging, I tell ya 🤣

When did people turn into such miserable, entitled bores?

He is doing a perfectly normal garden job in the middle of the day on a Wednesday in February. Will you be checking with your neighbours beforehand when you want to jet wash your patio or mow the lawn to make sure nobody will be having a sleep or wanting to read their book in the garden?

If you are this annoyed by perfect normal noise then either move to somewhere with no neighbours or buy some earphones.