I read a thread on here the other day about someone who had a problem with a housing association resident. Mine’s the other way round. The house next to us (50’s terrace) used to be a council property, untill the occupiers purchased it. They were great, although the garden was left to grow long, we never heard a thing. Unfortunatly, they couldn’t keep up the repayments on the house and lost it to the bank. The house was auctioned, and a young couple moved in. They immediatley went on a blitz of DIY, garden was landscaped, porch built and the like.

About this time my wife gave birth to my son. 2 days after she got out of hospital I had to go round at 11.30pm and ask him to stop drilling into the party wall. During the hot summer (son’s window open due to the heat) I had to politley ask him if he could leave mowing his lawn to a more sociable time than 10pm. All tiny little things, that he always acknowldged with a “Oh, sorry mate, didn’t realise the time”. No dramas.

They then ripped all the carpets out of the house and laid laminate flooring, unfortunatley without any soundproofing underneath. They fitted UPVC doors themselves as well. The upshot is that I can hear absolutley everything. I know what they’re having for tea. I know when they’re having trouble with the bank. I know when they’re having sex. I know, even, when they turn the light on and off. We worried how to broach the subject. Then the parties started.

They’d made friends with a few of the neighbours (I never had. Just a passing “hello” as their social lives revolve around pubs and drinking). They started all going round next door, as they had the larger living room. It was every Friday, and it drove us up the wall, but we kept quiet and didn’t say anything as there’s not a lot you can do. They had a lot of kids over, and the doors started slamming. The vibration from that is hard enough to make the picture frame on the night stand fall over. And being kids, they were running in and out of the house every minute or so.

Then the parties increased. 2 or 3 times a week. Running till 3 am or so at the weekend with impromptue karaoke by then end. I wouldn’t mind if they could sing. 😉 I mentioned in passing a few times that we could hear them, but didn’t complain.

Fast forward 6 months to last Christmas. Around the 18th the parties started. 5 nights on the trot. I got so angry, but kept myself in check. Eventually, after the 1,235,690 time they slammed the door I went round. It was about midnight. “Hi mate, I don’t suppose you could ask the kids to stop slamming the doors, it’s waking my nipper up?”. Unfortunatley, it would seem he’d had a bit of booze. He squared up to me, saying I did nothing but complain. I said I’d spoken to him twice, over 6 months ago. He got aggressive, took a step towards me. I told him I’d speak to him tomorrow when he’d grown up and walked away. I’m ex forces and didn’t want to get in a fight with him, for one he was drunk and it wouldn’t be much fun if I wasn’t, and secondly my job at the time was teaching and I needed my criminal record check to be clean.

We never spoke again. For about 3 months after there was deliberate door slamming. Fireworks at 2am with drunking giggling. Music turned up to amazing levels at 4 am. They trashed a couple of bushes in our front garden (well, I asume it was them). My car gathered a few new scratches. I ignored it all. Eventually everything returned to it’s normal (although still excessive) level. Due to their relationship with others, we became the pariah of our end of the street, however those opposite and to the end sympathised with us. The attitude of all but our immediate neighbours softened though, and after a few arguments with next door (we could hear those quite clearly, obviously) the parties have stopped, and this Christmas we got cards off all of them except those next door. The parties are more like once a month now, although they still have his sister’s kids round every Friday, with the associated slamming doors till about 11pm.

All of this has no relevance to my question. 🙂 Sorry if you’ve read this far expecting advice on the above. I’ve learnt to live with all that and I just needed to get it off my chest.

My question is about the noise now. We can still hear footfall, talking, TV, sex, light switches etc… I’ve looked into soundproofing, but I’m unsure how to go. This would be a significant investment for us (we only redecorated last summer, so would need to be done again). Are there any sound engineers on here? Can you point me in the right direction? Cost isn’t an issue to a point. I just want to stop the noise, as to move house will lose me my 2.5% mortgage as well as the circa 10k to move.

I hope someone can help, it’s driving me up the wall. If it helps, party wall is single skin brick. We have a split staircase wall, bedroom wall and living room wall (which includes an open fire place, you should hear him throw logs in it!).

If you can’t help, thanks for reading anyway. My poor wife is at her wits end. Even my 18 month son shouts “BANG!” everytime they slam the door now. Unfortunatley, I work overseas, so she has to deal with it herself.

We can hear similar levels of noise from both sides, I’ve only complained once after I could hear next-door-but-one hammering on the wall between tracks at 3am, she was apologetic but she was generally a loud mouth and you could hear her chatting on the phone.

We can also hear light switches, humps in the night and had the tell-tale 2 weeks of tapping that meant one side was laying laminate.

This New Years eve was a good example…on one side their terrier was yapping from 12 to 2am as its owners were out, then from 2 to 4am ish the other side returned home from a party with some mates, cranked up the stereo and banged out what I assume was Jungle music, interspersed with drunken shouting and laughing out in the street.

But as its occasional (and new years eve) I let it go rather than make a scene and risk deliberate noise making. I’d have thought your wall is double brick but no cavity, thats what ours is (1895 terrace though). Can’t be single as otherwise I’d have gone through it when hammering out new back boxes when re-wiring!

Had a mate soundproof his bedroom wall with insulation and stud work but it wasn’t very effective as the wood transmitted the noise through, so if you are going to do it, do it properly.

As above. Our neighbours (above) did this to his flooring with little effect.

On the post-11 noise front WHY ARENT YOU RECORDING ALL THIS along with a personal contact at the council noise team?

After 11pm you don’t have to endure noise. Lightswitches-yes but late parties and music no. Its his problem if he has laminate floors.

Once you start this process don’t get into any conversation with him.

Your a saint- when it happened to me I acted in the first week and was onto the council daily getting them onside keeping all communications.

Do it. Don’t let these people rape your. Bloody wallet as well.

Oh – I’m guessing he must work shifts?

No, he does seasonal work driving combine harvesters and the like. We didn’t want to start going down the offical route due to having to declare it if I sold the house. It’s our dream house (backing onto fields, small hamlet, not far from the local town, big garden and large airy rooms) and selling it would break our hearts. We spent so long getting enough money for a deposit (I spent 2 years working overseas to do it).

My Neigbour has reported me 3 times to the EH dept for noisy use of tools in my garage .

have now had 3 random visits from the EH folks they asked me to run all the different tools Lathe / Milling machine / drill .
and then told me I was doing nothing at all wrong and then sent me letters to say the same .

does this mean the serial complainer next door will have to disclose this to any potential buyer of her house .

We didn’t want to start going down the offical route due to having to declare it if I sold the house

“3yrs ago we had a domestic with our next door neighbours/since solved”

Whats the problem?

Why come home after a hard days work to living on your nerves? Your underlying stress levels will be at a permanent heightened level.

On the confrontation aspect- if he confronts you and you act in self defence there is no way you’d get a criminal record. You need to start recording things with the council and making your local Police liason team aware- this will back you right up in your favour for the future.

In essence, you are living in fear. You really shouldn’t be.

Touch-wood I have had fantastic relations with ALL my neighbours bar the one incident. Everyone on my road gave us Christmas cards this year and our next door neighbour (loves Reggae music) 🙂 gave us homemade shortbread 😀

On the confrontation aspect- if he confronts you and you act in self defence there is no way you’d get a criminal record.

You wish.

Yeah you need to make records but first I’d see if you can gave a sensible chat at a sensible time with them. Explain you can hear everything including there adult pleasures, the embarrassment factor might help.

I think sensible chat is off the cards. The level of vitirol towards my wife is incredible, I’m not even sure why. I’m away overseas for 9 months of the year, when I’m home they tend to behave themselves (although the noise doesn’t decrease). When I’m away my wife gets the evil stares, parking across the front of our drive and purposefull door slamming (you can tell, if that makes sense). I think he’s a little scared of me, which would explain why it stops when I’m home.

I still think good sound insulation is the way to go, googling it comes up with some companies that offer it, and a few forums that discuss it in positive terms. I just want to make sure that with all the work that needs to be done with the redecoration etc. it works first time and we don’t end up with a cowboy bodge job.

I know it must be horrible, I used to live in a mid terrace where you could literally hear the person next door having a pee!

I never had truely noisey neighbours, but it can start to rule your life. On one side I would hear my neighbour go out about 8 at night to the pub, knowing that she would probably come back in about midnight with some drunken bloke, they would laugh alot with the TV on (she had the most annoying laugh!) and then they would go up stairs and have sex for about 1 1/2 hours.

Only after that would I know that I would get some sleep, but it recked my life, I wouldnt sleep until she slept after 2 in the morning.

In the end she moved out and the house was empty for a while, however I have since come to realise that the only really answer was for me to move house…

They’ve gone for that open plan sparesly furnished/laminate floor look in their living/dining room (about 10′ by 20′) so it’s like a big soundbox. I’ve debated breaking in through the party wall in the loft and laying some nice shag pile carpet and some lovely drapes (they have no curtains) for when they get home. 😉

then they would go up stairs and have sex for about 1 1/2 hours.

Impressive!

what sort of house do you live in tree-magnet?

We are moving out of out 1910 terrace at the end of the month after being there for 7 years. The walls are single brick and we can hear our neighbours both sides and without doubt they can hear us.

I guess I’m trying to say that, although it must piss you off something rotten, its the price you pay for living next to other folks.

My kids are noisy (3 and 4 year old boys) and I guess so are we (shouting at them 😉 !)

On a number of occasions I’ve apologised to my neighbours for the undoubted annoyance we must be causing, to be told not to worry because ‘you have to be allowed to live in your own house’.

You can soundproof all you like, you can confront all you like, you can get the council noise abatement people involved all you like but the ONLY way to have a peaceful life is buy a detached house.

I’m not doubting you as decent neighbours or doubting that the people next to you are a PITA. Just saying that if you take a longer term view on whats best for you and your family then the answer is to move.

I don’t doubt for a second that our neighbours, decent and friendly though they are, will be very pleased when we move.

Tree-Magnet thats awful (trying to make your wife feel uncomfortable).

yossarian – totally agree. Young children is a different kettle of fish though. Its not intentional noise on your behalf- i.e. your not insulting your neighbours or trying to ‘get at them’.

If you move- the smug **** wins.

Agree on the sex though. Beats my record by 1hr29mins. Are you SURE its not recorded?!!

Thanks Yossarian, I agree with you, and the reason I’m back working overseas is to build up the money required to move. We’re in a 1950’s redbrick ex-council house. I don’t mind a bit of noise, you kind of expect it. I’ve lived in terraced houses everytime bar one (ex mil, so moved every 3 years) and you expect the odd raised voices, kids playing loudly etc, but not being able to clearly hear every word they say. I’m not realisticly expecting a 100% noise proof house, otherwise as you say, the only way to go is detached. I just don’t want to know how his day has been, or that she’s hidden the bank statement again hoping he wouldn’t find it and see she spent £200 in matalan.

Trouble is, moving, as well as losing a large chunk of money in fees and my gleaming mortgage, would mean leaving this house, which is perfect in every respect except for the people living next door.

Beats my record by 1hr29mins.

it has to be with two people to count, hora 🙂

Last year I spent some time looking into soundproofing party walls, unfortunately I couldn’t find any solution that was within my budget. From what I could discover sound proofing is all about absorbing the sound energy and that really needs to be done at source. ie in his house. The only way that I found we could reduce the noise levels in our house would be to build a new stud wall our side and use acoustic blanket inside that. Ofcourse the floors need to be done aswell which would mean taking up all of the boards to fill that with insulation. Although I was going to do all the work myself the cost and the subsequent reduction in room size was prohibitive.

Do you have fireplaces? Start there I reckon- most of next doors noise (and vice versa) its transmitted through ours- the shared voids there.

I know when Man U score (or when they nearly do in our back living room!) 😆

Just start drilling/playing loud music at 6am or whenever they’re normally quiet.

Your not in teaching now?

Next time he makes a comment etc put him on his ass.

Do you have fireplaces?

Yeah, but I used mine. Oil fired central heating, so a log fire using deadfall from the local woods is a no brainer.

Your not in teaching now?

Next time he makes a comment etc put him on his ass.

That’s in consideration. Next time I’m home is March…

Ok 1 1/2 of sex might be exagerating. The sex maybe only lasted 5 mins, but I’m talking from giggles on the sofa to coming upstairs. Both of them having a pee and then more giggling/excrutiating laughing, the raising of the titantic, and the associated waiting for moisture build up in the tunnel all took its time, then theres stop for opening cans of larger for the momentus occasion followed by more giggling/excrutiating laughing, toilet stops x 2. Giggling then snoring. She was in her 50’s too and ugly which probably didnt help with the speed of things, or the horrible images in my mind!

Yes it ruled my life!

I wouldnt move home because of him. I’d make sure he moved home. Why let the idiots win?!

Next time he makes a comment etc put him on his ass.

your problem is that if you are away for 9 months of the year, your wife is going to cop all of shit if you get physical with him/them.

also if you go down offcial channels to resolve it then yes, you have to disclose the fact you have an issue with them when you come to sell.

so what are your options? is booze is the trigger for most of the nasty stuff then it won’t stop if you aren’t there.

Got many friends in the area? A mate of mine had a similar problem and it was eventually resolved when he and about ten of his mates paid his neighbours a visit one evening. All very polite and jovial but the point was well made and well understood.

Who are your neighbours? Locals? Many proper friends? Can you use alternative methods to put a little pressure on them? There is another way to work this but its not for everyone. I’ve used it on a couple of occasions with excellent results. Its called operation mind**** and its all about raising the background noise in their lives to a level where they start to feel stress from a number of insignificant events that all add up. As I say its not for everyone but it works. 😉

The sex maybe only lasted 5 mins

Impressive!

Good point. Then you get the wife to call the Police and say the neighbours are intimidating etc her?

Police call round a few times and that’ll embarrass them infront of the neighbours as well.

I’d start raising the bar in some way though. At the moment the lad seems to think he can do what he likes without redress.

First day I moved into a new flat in London I was round that same night banging on the neighbours door at 11.40pm and I was on his back for the next two weeks until it was resolved. When I say banging I was on literally about to kick his front door in if he hadn’t answered it (with a golf club in hand and literally shitting himself). He had a serious drink problem and promised (when sober) to cut it back on the music. Spent all evening in the pub and invetibly he’d comeback off his face at pub kicking-out time to carry on drinking at home and listening to loud music. I even came into his flat, sat down and talked to him- even stupidly gave him a bloody bottle of wine! It was the council noise team that stopped him dead though. Croydon council was amazingly efficient whereas my bestmate had very different results with Brighton Councils noise team.

I can do hassle everywhere in my life – not when I comeback to my home though. That is my sacred quiet place. If a neighbour came round and complained about noise to me I’d be mortified but then we are built different to the inconsiderate-types.

FOR GOODNESS SAKE! this is an OPPORTUNITY! pop around their house with a bottle of rohypnol laced tequila one night when they’re drunk, get them to sign a total waiver and rights agreement then drill tiny holes through all the walls and install fiberoptic web cams. Now set up a website offering pay per 5min viewing intervals per camera, nothing expensive, just say 55p per 5mins (you don’t want to be too greedy). Get your good lady wife to also sell space on aforementioned website for relevant products at relevant times, say Asda larger offers when they are having a party, kleenex and blue pills for after hours, B&Q/Jeremy Kyle/cash converters DVD’s for the day time.

Thanks for all the advice guys. Good to hear I’m not the only one who’s in this boat.

So no good experience of sound proofing then? Bugger, I’d kind of hoped there would be something out there that’d work. 🙁

Right, I’ll have to set fire to their house then.

Going back abit – if Im honest if someone keyed my car and I had a ‘dispute’ ongoing I would have had it out on the spot even if he was alot bigger. Again I don’t mean to sound keyboard-warriorish and I dont condone or suggest violence but hes the bloody one whose pushing it along this way.

This guy sounds like a classic bully. Always gotten away with getting his way at the expense of others.

Sorry if your question has been answered better further up but i’m not reading all the replies.

We had a problem with our elderly neighbour a few years back, she hated us with a passion as did her relatives, a few arguments over hedge clippings every once in a while.

But her TV drove us insane she had it sooooooo loud you could here everthing she watched put up with it for 5 years or so, but when the little uns arrived we were having none of it. Spoke to her and relatives about it but they didn’t want to know told us it was our problem.

Got onto to Council Enviroment Officer, Council sorted it within 2 weeks, as you don’t get on with anyway you’ve nothing to loose and it would save you the expense of soundproofing.

You really don’t want to be taking it to a violent level unless obviously he starts it.

Good Luck

Got onto to Council Enviroment Officer, Council sorted it within 2 weeks, as you don’t get on with anyway you’ve nothing to loose and it would save you the expense of soundproofing

Yes, it worked for me.

Well, I don’t know that he did it. It just happened to occur around that time, in a small hamlet in the countryside…

Don’t get me wrong, those that know me will tell you I’m perfectly capable or looking aftermyself. I should mention that when we had our confrontation before xmas last year he took a step towards me when he was shouting, so I took one forward as well to put my nose an inch from his. He stepped back in his house and mouthed off a bit more before I told him I’d speak to him the next morning when he’d grown up. I think in reality he’s scared of me, which is why the excessive noise (drilling, parties at 3am etc) stop when I’m home now.

I don’t want to get confrontational or violent as it’s my wife who has to live there with my 18 month old boy alone when I’m not there. Also, they know that the amount of noise they make causes distress, so they’re not above starting the 3am slamming doors, fireworks at night thing again.

Fireworks at 3am- Disturbing The Peace

n. The unsettling of proper order by creating loud noise by fighting or conducting other unsocial behavior that upsets people. Punishable by either a fine or brief term in jail, disturbing the peace is considered a misdemeanour?

Surely speaking to your local Police Officer who start a log/ask advice on this?

Why are you worried about future resale? When do you plan on moving? You love your house you say. If you dont plan on moving for a few years- a dispute in the PAST wouldnt affect resale. Its only recent surely that would unsettle a potential buyer.

Yeah, I see what you mean.

My wife and I have discussed it a fair amount. The thinking was that I came out to Iraq to build up a nest egg for the future, and try soundproofing the house so the noise is at an acceptable level. They’re not much noiser than normal neighbours since their fall out with the rest of the neighbours and the cessation of 3am parties. It’s just that it’s excessivley loud due to the lack of soundproofing between the properties and his DIY open plan living modifications. If the sound proofing didn’t work, we’d use the nest egg to move, but accept that we’re going to lose the big garden, nice location etc… Trouble is, if we speak to the police, nothing comes of it (which it isn’t out of the realms of possibility due to the fact they’re not excessivly noisy anymore) then we’ve effected our ablility to resell. Also, revenge for calling the police will be back to what I’ve described up there, while I’m away and I don’t think the wife could take that.

I’m coming across as a bit of a wuss really, which I’m not! 🙂

It’s just upsetting my wife. I don’t mind so much when I’m home, I live most of the time in Iraq in a metal box next to a runway, I’ll sleep through anything!

Its a shame that you couldn’t bring a few lads from work home in a works vehicle in their working clothes for a party / BBQ

That might alter the neighbours opinions of you a bit

I’m coming across as a bit of a wuss really

When it effects your home it brings out different emotions/reactions in people.

You really cant do with hassle when you come home- thats understandable and normal.

I’m coming across as a bit of a wuss really, which I’m not!

i would say you are coming across as a reasonable individual (which you may or may not be 🙂 )

if the parties and nasty vindictive stuff has stopped then I think it unlikely that you are going to achieve anything positive by complaining about thin walls tbh.

why not rock up on his doorstep with a bottle of whisky and your hand extended? It might not work but then again it might have the desired effect, particularly if you tell him what you do for a living and how the thought of your missus and baby being unhappy upsets you to the point of ferocious insanity…

There’s a good selection of products plus some sound advice
Here

why not rock up on his doorstep with a bottle of whisky and your hand extended? It might not work but then again it might have the desired effect, particularly if you tell him what you do for a living and how the thought of your missus and baby being unhappy upsets you to the point of ferocious insanity…

I think that’s very sensible advice.