Noise new build semi-detached

snoopy29

Hi all,

Have moved into a new bed semi 3 weeks ago and the neighbour appears to be a shift worker and gets up at 06.00. Im a very light sleeper whereas the other half completely conks out at night. The house has a good layout with stairs being the main adjoining part and the main master on the outside walls, as far apart from the neighbour as possible.

However, I still hear this guy every morning at 6am banging doors and his telly sounds so loud I kept thinking I've left my own on in the room under our own bedroom. I also wear earplugs but he still wakes me up every morning. I have yet to say hello to this guy but my Dad and OH have spoken to him and he seems decent enough which makes me think he doesn't realise we can hear so much.

This is really cracking me up at the moment but my OH thinks im making a big deal out of nothing. This is really ruining the buzz of buying our first home together, which other than this problem, I love.

Anyone any advice?

ted1

snoopy29 wrote: »

Hi all,

Have moved into a new bed semi 3 weeks ago and the neighbour appears to be a shift worker and gets up at 06.00. Im a very light sleeper whereas the other half completely conks out at night. The house has a good layout with stairs being the main adjoining part and the main master on the outside walls, as far apart from the neighbour as possible.

However, I still hear this guy every morning at 6am banging doors and his telly sounds so loud I kept thinking I've left my own on in the room under our own bedroom. I also wear earplugs but he still wakes me up every morning. I have yet to say hello to this guy but my Dad and OH have spoken to him and he seems decent enough which makes me think he doesn't realise we can hear so much.

This is really cracking me up at the moment but my OH thinks im making a big deal out of nothing. This is really ruining the buzz of buying our first home together, which other than this problem, I love.

Anyone any advice?

Learn to live with it and ensure the building is built to regulations. The chap is just going about his life doing what any ordinary person would do. He can't be held at fault because your a light sleeper

o1s1n

He gets up at 6am? That's not unreasonable at all and would be pretty common. (I wake up at 6:20am myself and thought it was fairly normal)

That's crazy though that you can hear things from next door if your master bedroom is on the outside wall. I'd hate to think what the joining room must be like :eek:

You could look into soundproofing but it's very costly (and you'll have to sacrifice some of your space to do so)

chris85

I work normal hours and up by 6.30am every morning. Not the guys fault at all here just going about his business. More possibly an issue with the building having thin walls which you could look at soundproofing if it bothers you.

snoopy29

I wasn't saying 06.00 was unreasonable, I just thought that the fact he bangs the doors so much and the tv is so loud it wakens me up, would it be ok to ask him if he could keep it down a bit that's all?

Obviously its his house and he's not doing anything unreasonable. I spoke to his mother as we were moving in and she said oh have you met my son and I said no, and she laughed and said "oh don't worry you'll hear him coming". So obviously he is known to be a loud person and I don't think he's doing it maliciously or anything.

I've lived in a semi all my life so I know what its like, however, this is louder than I've ever had to deal with before.

tinkerbell

Welcome to the world of semi- detached living OP. Perhaps look at putting some sound proofing in or something, but that's the risk you take when buying a semi d property and it sounds like you bought one with extremely thin walls. And no you cannot approach him and ask him to keep it down just because you're a light sleeper.

snoopy29

So its reasonable for him to have his TV so loud it sounds like its my own on downstairs?


hmmm right if that's the overall opinion fair enough I'll have to stick with it or put the house up for sale.

fleet

I once stayed in a place that had the neighbour complain about noise even though everyone in the house next door was asleep (no TV, music etc.) in bed.

It might be work examining whether you're being woken by the sunlight (no or thin curtains), background road traffic etc. and mis
-attributing your wakefulness when you realise your neighbor is up.

snoopy29

Thanks Fleet but unfortunately it is definitely him. I have black out blinds on the windows and the house is in an estate in the country so no road noise at all.

Should have bought the detached!

fleet

snoopy29 wrote: »

Should have bought the detached!

You will probably get used to it.

My country friends used complain about how noisy their terraced/semis were in Dublin. They're correct of course, they are noisier, but having lived in rural places since myself the silence is almost as deafening to me :-)

P. Breathnach

I'm sure that it would do no harm if you spoke to him, told him you were a very light sleeper, and asked him to try to be quieter in the morning.

But you have to bear in mind that it might not be his fault (especially if your OH doesn't think the neighbour's behaviour is unreasonable). I also note that you don't mention excessive noise at other times, which suggests to me that the real problem is that you are awakened extraordinarily easily.

So if you do decide to speak to the neighbour, perhaps you should represent it as a problem emanating from you rather than from him.

snoopy29

He did waken the OH at 07.00 yesterday morning. He was playing loud music in the afternoon's when the weather was good but that seems to have stopped.

I was thinking of saying like you suggested, putting the problem on ourselves, something like oh im sorry of were banging our doors cause they are sticking quite badly, do you find the same problem etc etc and starting it that way.

I'm really not looking for a row with him and I know im a very light sleeper so was hoping to say something in a nice way.

Mousewar

I had a similarly designed house (stairs attached). Impact noise (doors slamming) will be worse as your neighbours doors are so much closer to your side than they would be on most semi-attached houses which have stairs on opposite sides. Non-Impact noise will be less as the main bedroom and living rooms are away from each other.
I had sound insulation put in at considerable cost. It dulled the non-impact noise (talking, TV) but didn't eliminate it. It did almost nothing for the impact noise. Wasn't worth it ultimately.

My advice: Meet the guy and get to know him a bit. Don't make your first meeting with him a complaint. When you meet him, the noise issue might come up organically. But first things first - meet him. It makes things a bit easier when you know the guy, trust me. Once you have a relationship with him, you can bring up issues like this but not before then.

Ultimately, if your goal is complete noiselessness from next door you will never achieve that in your current house and insulation won;t solve it. You will have to accept a degree of noise - doors, music, whatever or else move to a detached house.

snoopy29

Thanks mousewar, sounds reasonable, I will try to talk to him over the next few weeks and see what happens.

garhjw

Perhaps you could also ask him if he hears noise from your house at certain times....

the_syco

Do you hear or feel the noise? If the latter, you can small stops for your bed legs to dull the noise.

snoopy29

Can feel a very small vibration from the TV but its mostly just the noise from the sound.

Cuddlesworth

snoopy29 wrote: »

Can feel a very small vibration from the TV but its mostly just the noise from the sound.

Thats unusual, since I'm assuming the vibration would have to come through at least 20 feet of outside wall. I wonder if you're sharing joists. Do you have floorboards and do they run lengthways from the front to the back of the house.

chopper6

New builds,eh?

ted1

snoopy29 wrote: »

Can feel a very small vibration from the TV but its mostly just the noise from the sound.

probably a sub woofer pumping out the bass

Mousewar

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

Thats unusual, since I'm assuming the vibration would have to come through at least 20 feet of outside wall. I wonder if you're sharing joists. Do you have floorboards and do they run lengthways from the front to the back of the house.

I'd say you're right - a lot of stairs-attached houses share joints. it's the devil's work.

snoopy29

Downstairs is concrete and upstairs I don't know what way the joists are running but as far as I remember they were plywood sheets, don't remember seeing floorboards.

Teyla Emmagan

Could you sleep in one of your other bedrooms? I think you are being a bit oversensitiveness TBH. He's not really getting up that early.

snoopy29

I may have to move into another bedroom, its just we've spent quite a lot of money putting built in wardrobes into the master bedroom and it also has the ensuite. But its an option.

Doop

Just out of curiosity ... are these timber framed houses?

mdwexford

Playing a tv loudly at 6am is certainly unreasonable imo.

Getting to know him first and then asking if he'd mind doing you a favour and keeping it down a bit that early seems like good advice. He shouldn't have a problem with it if he's decent.

I'd certainly try and be a bit quieter in his position but then I wouldn't play my tv loudly at that time.

The_Conductor

Doop wrote: »

Just out of curiosity ... are these timber framed houses?

Not really an issue- depending on the particular type of noise, it may be amplified by concrete or timber. The OP has already said that downstairs is definitely concrete- which presumably is where the neighbour has their TV.

Some people swear by concrete built being quieter- having studied material engineering and forestry- it doesn't hold. It depends on the noise- some are better, some are worse.

The_Conductor

OP- at night/early morning- when background noise is lower, even relatively quiet people can sound like elephants stomping around the place. By your own admission you're a quiet sleeper. Its far from unusual to hear doors opening and closing- tv, radio or even conversations next door- unfortunately. If you wanted quiet- you should have bought a detached property- in a quiet area. Regardless of what your neighbour does- its not going to get much better.

Henry Ford III

I was sure my neighbour was a Star Wars addict......

Rubberchikken

bearing in mind what his mother said to you re. 'you'll hear hime coming', not only is he probably a noisy person, but maybe someone has already spoken to them about the noise he makes.

never lived in a semi-d but i feel your pain. would hate any kind of noise when trying to sleep and 6 am, is the middle of the night people:pac:

snoopy29

Part of my job is actually to undertake noise surveys but not for residential properties, its mainly for environmental reasons. But 06.00 is technically night time hours.

I did buy in a quiet countryside location in a nice quiet estate, its just my neighbour that's not quiet. They are block built houses and yes I understand I have to get used to a certain level of noise and as I said I've lived in semi's all my life and apart from one particularly bad house in Bettystown I've never heard this much noise before.

I think I will have to say it to him. This morning I slept through and thought great I'm getting used to it but then I looked out and they are both obviously on a day off cause cars are still outside.

maryk123

Snoopy29
I think this is going to bug you until you say something to him. Approach gently you will feel better once you have it said because this is going to get worse.

We had this and got soundproof in main bedroom but ours was attached to next door. Can't hear tv etc but can hear doors and banging as that can't be blocked.

It will slowly consume your life say it and get it over with. You will know then what you are dealing with as to how he reacts. If he is decent it will be turned down (in fairness he may not know he is being loud) and if the noise increases well then you have another problem

I wish you all the best

fleet

There must be a place that rents a sound level meter.
Something that records as well so you can eliminate your own noise.

No point approaching the guy if he's being inside the normal range and it's just the OP being over sensitive.

snoopy29

I have a noise meter myself, as I said I do noise work. It is a dull but audible noise from the tv but the tonal element of the door banging would increase the noise level against the allowable 45dBa allowable at that time of the morning.

but anyways Im not looking to get all legal and technical, I just want him to keep it down a bit, even till 7am, that's all. I can live with door banging etc at other time.

The_Conductor

Many mobile phones have noise meters (particularly any aimed specifically at the construction industry). I've an old Nokia I keep handy- just for the noise meter.

iguana

Have you thought about playing loud white noise while you sleep? It's a trick I picked up while apartment living in London and it's been a huge help as it blocks out a lot of outside noise, while the white noise is actually very soothing and helps lull you to sleep once you get used to it.

snoopy29

Just an update on the situation, he is now getting up between 3.30 - 5.30 am and still banging doors. I had friends over at the weekend and they were quite cross because he woke them up also. The neighbour in question also told me he banged his front door so loudly the lock has broken into pieces. This is a double glazed wooden front door, he appeared to think this was funny. I know this was my time to say something but I lost my nerve.

Surely its ok to say something now? I'm seriously sleep deprived at this stage.

LynnGrace

snoopy29 wrote: »

Just an update on the situation, he is now getting up between 3.30 - 5.30 am and still banging doors. I had friends over at the weekend and they were quite cross because he woke them up also. The neighbour in question also told me he banged his front door so loudly the lock has broken into pieces. This is a double glazed wooden front door, he appeared to think this was funny. I know this was my time to say something but I lost my nerve.

Surely its ok to say something now? I'm seriously sleep deprived at this stage.

Yes, definitely time to say something.
I lived next to a door banger. By the time I moved out, I was fit to kill.
It's a matter of having a bit of consideration for others, IMO. Just wondering, is your house generally quiet, he may not realise how easily the sound carries...not that that is an excuse for door banging, especially at unearthly hours.

snoopy29

We do live in a quiet country estate and I really think he doesn't realise the problems it is causing me. My OH doesn't want to say anything and he thinks im being ridiculous because it still doesn't wake him up. I love everything about the house but this is seriously ruining the whole thing for me and I honestly just want to leave at this stage.

Even when he is out the back on his mobile he is totally shouting. Myself and few friends were having a glass of wine outside on Saturday and we eventually moved inside cause we couldn't hear ourselves talk!

Kevo

As a temporary solution maybe get better ear plugs. I find wax ear plugs are far better and let me sleep through just about anything. I've used these ones before and would recommend them.

PS I don't work for Quies :P

brooke 2

snoopy29 wrote: »

Just an update on the situation, he is now getting up between 3.30 - 5.30 am and still banging doors. I had friends over at the weekend and they were quite cross because he woke them up also. The neighbour in question also told me he banged his front door so loudly the lock has broken into pieces. This is a double glazed wooden front door, he appeared to think this was funny. I know this was my time to say something but I lost my nerve.

Surely its ok to say something now? I'm seriously sleep deprived at this stage.

I cannot believe that you have said nothing to him yet! He sounds pretty harmless
and is probably totally unaware of all the stress he is causing you by his inconsiderate
behaviour. You should pluck up the courage to ask him to take it easy with the door
banging and TV noise early in the morning. Good luck!!

rasgav

Simple, friendly communication is the key. If I was doing something that was unwittingly annoying my neighbours, I'd much prefer they said something to me.

gabsdot40

I can't believe you are going to ask the guy to be quiet in his own house. The noise you describe is not unreasonable IMO.
You don't say if you have children but there may come a time when your crying baby wakes him up at 3.30am. How would you feel if he came in complaining to you about that.
When we moved into our house the neighbours had small kids and were very noisy, lots of shouting, running up and down the stairs etc. Now 18 years later their kids are grown up and we're the ones with noisy kids. I'm glad I never said anything about it back then.
I've often been woken up by our neighbours alarm clock, we can hear conversations they're having perfectly from our bedroom and other stuff that goes on in that room.....Presumably they hear the same from us.
That's what you get when you live in a semi D.
It's very unlikely that your neighbour will change the habit of a lifetime just because you ask him to keep it down so the only solution is for you to just learn to live with it.

K.Flyer

There is obviously a huge deficit in the sound proofing between both of your homes and this is something that you are going to have to address, otherwise, from how you come across here, you may loose your cool and say or do something you may regret for a long time.
Also, you say that he talks quite loudly or shouts. Maybe he has a hearing problem and does not realise how loud he is. That could be quite tricky to get around, so you are back to sound proofing as your only option.

snoopy29

gabsdot I'm sorry but I disagree. There is a common courtesy which should be shown to neighbours in my opinion particularly when its semi d living. He goes to bed quite early some nights and I make sure I keep things quiet on our side out of respect for him and his early mornings. I would like the same respect to be shown to us.

I don't think banging doors at 3.30am is respectful, I'm surprised you think this is acceptable?

Mousewar

gabsdot40 wrote: »

The noise you describe is not unreasonable IMO.
You don't say if you have children but there may come a time when your crying baby wakes him up at 3.30am. How would you feel if he came in complaining to you about that.

Not much you can do about a baby crying. There is something you can do about banging doors (i.e. don't bang them). They're two different things - one can't be helped really, the other takes a modicum of effort to prevent.

OP - have you talked to him yet?

snoopy29

I haven't managed to yet as I don't want to specifically call to his house to chat about it so I'm trying to wait until he starts chatting to me and drop it into the conversation. He seems like a nice fella and apologies if I have come across wrongly in this post but that wasn't my intention. I do understand that a certain level of noise is to expected but I don't think this is an appropriate level at that time of the night.

BeatNikDub

snoopy29 wrote: »

So its reasonable for him to have his TV so loud it sounds like its my own on downstairs?


hmmm right if that's the overall opinion fair enough I'll have to stick with it or put the house up for sale.

You don't need to put the house up for sale! That's a bit of an over reaction indeed!

You are only there a few weeks, you will get used to this!

I am a relatively light sleeper and for a year I lived beside some carmelite monastery that played a recording of bells at 6 and 7.30am every morning, that in my opinion would wake the living dead. I could also hear the next door neighbour get up at 6.30am every morning without fail and go to the loo!
I didn't know how I was going to manage, or why the whole area wasn't up in arms. Anyway, after time (a month or so) I just got used to it and began to sleep through it. I loved the place otherwise and learned to focus on all the good things instead! After all, it is just a bloke going about his business of the day. He means no intrusion on you!

Try and relax, lack of sleep gets us really het up and stressed.

snoopy29

So I spoke with the neighbour last week as he asked me was the noise from the dog upsetting me, I said no not at all but we did hear a lot of noise from doors closing. He seemed genuinely surprised by this and seemed confused why we were hearing so much. He said he hears absolutely nothing from us and wondered do we live there at times. I was as nice as I could be about it and apologised for being a cranky neighbour but it was really affecting my sleep. He seemed to take it ok and said we'd speak again about it and "he was on top of it". There was a significant improvement for 3-4days but now its back to square one again. He has his TV on so loud with the door open in the evenings I can barely have a conversation outside with someone sitting next to me. I can tolerate this but not the door banging.

Anyone any thoughts? Dunno what to do at this stage:(

Mousewar

snoopy29 wrote: »

Anyone any thoughts? Dunno what to do at this stage:(

Yikes. You could try banging the absolute crap out of your own doors. He could do with a bit of reminding that doors banging cause noise.

snoopy29

I explained that I knew they did shift work and went to bed early so I said we tried to be quiet after around 9pm cause we knew they were sleeping and he said oh don't worry they would both sleep through anything anyways.

He is a nice guy, he really just doesn't seem to get it at all. This is beginning to cause rows with my OH as I know I'm getting cranky now with lack of sleep and am really focussing on it. Can't imagine living here for years with all this noise but I do like the house and the area.