Noisy Neighbours

Yellow1 · 12-11-2013 9:45am #1

Hi,

I'm hoping someone can give me some advice on an issue that has been driving me and my partner nuts over the last 18 months. We live in a duplex apartment and are having a problem with our neighbours on one side. It's not loud parties that is the problem here as is normally the case, it's more of an unexplained banging/tapping noise that goes on all day and during the night.

The neighbours are asian and work very odd hours (no problem there) but when they get home at 11/12 at night they start making alot of noise that is disturbing our sleep. The noise is very unusual and I'm not sure what it is, it sounds like they are chopping food but it goes on for hours. Its like a persistant tapping noise. We have our suspicions that they are preparing food for a restaurant as there is no way they are eating the amount of food that is being prepared. The noise appears to be coming from every room in their apartment and can go on intermittantly until 6am. It's not loud enough to wake the neighbourhood up but its loud enough to get through the concrete walls and wake us up.

I have tried asking them to keep it down between 10pm and 8am (as per our management company rules) but they insisted they weren't making any noise. I have tried ear plugs. I have also tried complaining to the management company but have heard nothing back and the noise is continuing. The neighbours were actually away for about a month recently and it was bliss, no noise at all, now that they're back the noise was back last night. I'm convinced something dodgy is going on in there.

Only 3 people supposedly live there but we see different people are coming and going all the time, like in shifts. They have large empty industrial sized tubs of mayonnaise and sacks of rock salt on their balcony. I'm sure they are using the place as a commercial cooking premises. I have kept a log of the noise for the last few months and have even recorded it on my phone as evidence if I need it. Has anyone any advice on this or been in this situation?
Thanks

ChRoMe · 12-11-2013 9:53am

Yellow1 wrote: »

Hi,
I'm hoping someone can give me some advice on an issue that has been driving me and my partner nuts over the last 18 months. We live in a duplex apartment and are having a problem with our neighbours on one side. It's not loud parties that is the problem here as is normally the case, it's more of an unexplained banging/tapping noise that goes on all day and during the night. The neighbours are asian and work very odd hours (no problem there) but when they get home at 11/12 at night they start making alot of noise that is disturbing our sleep. The noise is very unusual and I'm not sure what it is, it sounds like they are chopping food but it goes on for hours. Its like a persistant tapping noise. We have our suspicions that they are preparing food for a restaurant as there is no way they are eating the amount of food that is being prepared. The noise appears to be coming from every room in their apartment and can go on intermittantly until 6am. It's not loud enough to wake the neighbourhood up but its loud enough to get through the concrete walls and wake us up. I have tried asking them to keep it down between 10pm and 8am (as per our management company rules) but they insisted they weren't making any noise. I have tried ear plugs. I have also tried complaining to the management company but have heard nothing back and the noise is continuing. The neighbours were actually away for about a month recently and it was bliss, no noise at all, now that they're back the noise was back last night. I'm convinced something dodgy is going on in there. Only 3 people supposedly live there but we see different people are coming and going all the time, like in shifts. They have large empty industrial sized tubs of mayonnaise and sacks of rock salt on their balcony. I'm sure they are using the place as a commercial cooking premises. I have kept a log of the noise for the last few months and have even recorded it on my phone as evidence if I need it. Has anyone any advice on this or been in this situation?
Thanks

If this isint a wind up, you have just described a grow house. Any condensation on the windows? Bit of a smell?

The sound you are describing is probably fans.

old_aussie · 12-11-2013 10:01am

It's the sound of sewing machines.

Thargor · 12-11-2013 10:08am

ChRoMe wrote: »

If this isint a wind up, you have just described a grow house. Any condensation on the windows? Bit of a smell?

The sound you are describing is probably fans.

And the mayonaise and rock salt gives the smoke an extra kick?

They're obviously prepping food industrially as you suspect OP, start complaining to the council, ring the management company every day until you get a reply, complain to the neighbours repeatedly.

Kristopherus · 12-11-2013 10:11am

ChRoMe wrote: »

If this isint a wind up, you have just described a grow house. Any condensation on the windows? Bit of a smell?

The sound you are describing is probably fans.

They're hardly so naive to have a growhouse in an apartment complex. But just to be sure,OP, you should contact your local Garda station. If they find nothing, you can then contact the local Environmental Health Office of the HSE. They will quickly close down a food preparation outfit.

Amalgam · 12-11-2013 10:12am

Thargor wrote: »

And the mayonaise and rock salt gives the smoke an extra kick?

OP might be mistaken, some growth medium can look like rock salt, so, not too far fetched..

Yellow1 · 12-11-2013 10:20am

ChRoMe wrote: »

If this isint a wind up, you have just described a grow house. Any condensation on the windows? Bit of a smell?

The sound you are describing is probably fans.

Can assure you this isn't a wind up. I had originally thought about a grow house too (I even thought the tapping noise could be them cracking up crystal meth but think I'd been watching too much Breaking Bad) but like Kristopherus said I doubt they would be that naive. The bags on the balcony have rock salt on the label so it's definately that and not something else. We went to the Garda station before to complain about the banging (my partner went down at 2am one morning as he was so annoyed being kept awake when he was up for work at 4am) but they told us they can't do anything and we have to go to the council. I think contacting the Environmental Health Office of the HSE is a good idea, I'll do that. Thanks for the advice.

djimi · 12-11-2013 10:22am

This happened to my grandparents a few years ago; they are preparing food for a restaurant. You need to get into the management company and keep at them, because there is no way that this kind of carry on would be allowed by the complex rules. If possible, also get onto their landlord (if they are renting), and keep ringing their landlord, preferably at random hours throughout the night, until they get the message and sort the problem out.