Neighbour complained about dryer

[alisonelli]

I have just had a text from my next door neighbour saying my tumble dryer is too loud and its "having a significant adverse impact on their quality of life".
For context, we live in detached houses, its on carpet in the utility room, I'd say there is at least 6ft gap between the houses, with cavity wall and a fence. I don't run it early in the morning or late at night. I'd say it runs between 10 and 3 if that. Its an eco one, so it does go on for about 3 hours, but uses little electricity. I have 2 kids, who play lots of sports and I have clothes I need to get dry.
What do I do?

I'd say they are about 60

'No one has the right to zero noise intrusion from neighbours. If you feel this noise is excessive, contact environmental health.'

Who will tell him he's being a bullying twat.

How long have they had solar panels? Could they be humming?

Can you hear it from outside?

Honestly these posts are unhinged. "Block the number" FFS! Why not go and speak to them and see if you can hear anything? Maybe it's something in THEIR house!

Because why put up with shit?

If they'd said they can hear a noise and think it's maybe your dryer, then I'd offer to come hear anything because they're being polite so I'd meet them the same way.

But texting rudely that using your dryer is unacceptable?! No they can fuck off. That's not how to be neighbourly, so I'd meet them with the same.

She's already been nice about using her garden to clean solar panels. Neighbour has decided this niceness is weakness and the tumble dryer thing is an escalation. She's lived there 2yrs, funny how it's only now he's complaining! He's decided since he pushed on one thing and got his own way (because she genuinely didn't mind) that he can push on other things and rule her life now. Nipping that attitude in the bud is exactly the right thing to do.

Unreasonable people don't respond well to polite reasoning, so why bother doing it? Just block and avoid the drama.

I really wouldn't describe 60 years old as elderly! Im 60 next week and far from elderly 😆

They are probably hearing something else.
Dont keep the little window shut. You need ventilation.
You are doing nothing wrong.
Legally they wouldn't be able to do anything.

is there any reason why your first course of action would not be to go over and listen with them?

I would text him a link to noise cancelling headphones on amazon.

It is normal household noise during daytime. They can jog on!

Your tumble dryer is reasonable household noise. I get sick of hearing mine but that's because I have to be in the same room for much of the day and I have pissy bedding to wash every day - I can't even hear it from the next room with the door pulled to.

Old enough to have whinge mode then over stupid petty things. Is it from him or her? Some men get like this as they get older and become embarrassing to their wives / partners as a result. Not enough to think about in their own lives really.
I don't get why they don't actually speak to you in person like fully functioning adults. The texts can be ignored for a start.

Because you can’t indulge people like this. It’s ridiculous.

Do you have anger problems hun?!

Their texts look pretty polite to me. And lots of people aren't great with text communication, particularly people who might be autistic. Maybe assume the best of people rather than this wild idea that they are evil twats determined to wage a campaign of harassment because their neighbour allowed them to wash their solar panels (???).

It sounds minor but actually, if you've lived next to someone whose appliances, for whatever bonkers reason to do with sound transfer or buildings or whatever, is really bloody distressing. It's not the noise, it's the vibration.

My old NDN had a boiler that for the whole season would hum through the walls - it was the poxy pump that needed turning down. I suffered 3 years before they let me PAY for a heating engineer to go and fix it with the simple turn of a screw. Although they couldn't hear it it would make me feel sick coming on and keep me awake the whole night - you can imagine my mental health after that!!!!

They aren't old, or annoying, or idiots or need their car keyed - but sound is odd and you're clearly causing them distress that could be simply sorted with some rubber matting, levelling the machine or maybe seeing if the workings are ok.

Because that is starting a whole level of drama. even if OP's tumble dryer is noisy, well so what. People are not entitled to absolute silence unless they live in the middle of a field in the middle of nowhere. God help them if they have someone move in next door with a drum kit or similar!

The wording of their text shows they are not reasonable people so there is no point engaging.

Someone else called them elderly not the OP.

My tumble dryer is really noisy. If someone knocked the door while it was on I wouldn’t hear them (has happened several times.) I only have it on very occasionally though and no one has complained. My next door neighbour’s dryer is noisy too and it’s on a lot more than mine. We are in a terrace though so I find it odd your neighbours are complaining from a detached house.

Our next door neighbour has her tumble drier in her wooden shed. We are terraced with small houses and small gardens. It really isn't an issue and it's hardly the loudest noise. Id go round as others have suggest while it's on and ask to listen to the noise. Id also carry on!

Wonder if he’s just got a hearing aid. They do pick up noises you hadn’t been aware of.

Is it actually your tumble dryer they can hear or something else? How do they know it's your tumble dryer that is on.
My tumble dryer is quite old and one of those which vents to outside. I can't hear it from my kitchen with the door to the utility room shut, so I'm damn sure that my neighbours wouldn't hear it through their walls or even with their windows open.
Is your machine particularly noisy?

I am in the ‘why not go around and check’ group.
Occasionally batshit things do actually happen. Maybe it does some weird transmission through the concrete. Maybe you do actually need to do something.
You don’t know unless you check. It will take five minutes of your life.
(Unless they have previously complained about random things repeatedly in which case ignore them).

Thank goodness someone has some consideration here. It is obviously causing the neighbours real distress so why not be kind and work with them to see what can be done to sort it out?
Have you even been into their house to see what it sounds like or feels like in there?

Totally agree, once you give into these people they will keep pushing and pushing. There will always be something else to complain about.
Live your life normally like the rest of us OP.
Ignore farty chops.

Why be so selfish?