Noisy neighbour, shouting toddler

Clio2009

Hi All
i need some advice as it is now 3 years i have issues with my neighbourgs and do not know how to sort it due to noise level.
the first year and half i could hear them having sex and his GF was really loud when they were at it and even woke me up multiple times at night, and when i say loud it was loud as 3 appartment could hear them.
after a year and half of writing them complaint letter and a face to face argument they finally stopped arguing
then it was the arguing at late hours of the night and things thrown on the walls etc.. shouting etc...
then she fell pregnant and for the past 21 months i can hear the kid shout.
at the beginning it was a crying baby which you can tolerate as it is a baby and needs nappies change and feeds. fair enough.
but now the kid took the habit of shouting for hours and it is not crying it is actually shouting. they do not really get up to find out what is going on with her. she shouts days and nights which is annoying as i deserve night sleeps. if they take her with them in the bed she still shouts and bangs her head on the wall and they dont stop her.
i asked them 6 months ago to insulate the wall saying that i would pay the cost of it with them. half of it. until now nothing was done as he does not want it to be done on their side of the wall.
his wife does not work so i do not see why i should pay for the total of the cost alone, lose days off, when they are the ones making the noises why should it always be me suffering from their noise and paying for it again. i even migrated in my sofa from time to time. they know as i told them but it does not seem to annoy them.
that kid always shout even when she is happy. and i have enough now and do not know how to force them to have the wall insulated!!!!
do you have any advice

Kipperhell

Clio2009 wrote: »

Hi All
i have enough now and do not know how to force them to have the wall insulated!!!!

You can't. I understand you are not happy but that is not really important in any way, other than to you. You can complain about the noise but that will not be effective either

I also wouldn't expect it to truly solve the problem either way. Chances are you are getting sound transmission through joist or similar. The sound insulation won't interrupt this transmission.

Sorry to hear your troubles but building regs really don't do anything to stop sound issues so were ignored by many builders.

Freddie59

Kipperhell wrote: »

You can't. I understand you are not happy but that is not really important in any way, other than to you. You can complain about the noise but that will not be effective either

I also wouldn't expect it to truly solve the problem either way. Chances are you are getting sound transmission through joist or similar. The sound insulation won't interrupt this transmission.

Sorry to hear your troubles but building regs really don't do anything to stop sound issues so were ignored by many builders.

They have to rest at some stage. And when they do give them a taste of their OWN medicine. Idiots.:mad:

Clio2009

well i though maybe if i recorded and went to a solicitor to have them forced to soundproof their wall it would work?
i proposed them a while ago nicely to split the cost in 2 i would pay for half and they would for the other half. but to this no answer. i just do not know what to do.
they have to rest well they do but then the kid shouts nearly all nights and loud and long. it is 21 months i was not able to enjoy the bed and sleep in the week end mornings. cos she shouts and it is not crying it is shouting.when she cries fair enough sometimes they do but it is more a shouting such as i am here please mind me. and no they dont in the morning they stay in bed and when i asked them if they could mind their kid the lady told me it is the only mornings i can stay in bed with my husband well she should have though about before!!!
night time is generally being awoken at least 4 times as she shouts
shouts in day, shouts in the shower, shouts at night, i can not anymore
i have migrated some nights on my sofa
are you sure sound proofing wont stop the noise of their kid shouting?
i do not see myself living in these conditions for the next few years....
something has to be done!
is there any legal routes to force them to soundproof or anything else?
rgrgrgrgrgrgrgr

Kipperhell

Clio2009 wrote: »

well i though maybe if i recorded and went to a solicitor to have them forced to soundproof their wall it would work?

is there any legal routes to force them to soundproof or anything else?
rgrgrgrgrgrgrgr

NO! Sound travels through a medium and sound insulation is effectively adding mass to to make the sound difficult to travel. If you share floor joist sound will likely travel along those and resonate in a cavity such as ceiling or floor space.

Like holding a pillow above a guitar neck but still plucking the string causes sound. Insulating the walls would have an effect but it may well be too little and quite costly. You would need to insulate floor and ceiling and that may still be too little depending on how the sound is travelling.

Maybe somebody else knows something but I have tried a few things before and basically I have been reassured their is little you can do. New construction methods seem to have a bigger issue.

Max Power1

Freddie59 wrote: »

They have to rest at some stage. And when they do give them a taste of their OWN medicine. Idiots.:mad:

+1.

A bit of death metal when its queit in their house, (speakers close to the wall of course) should get the message across. The good thing is, same as you cant stop them - they cant stop you so its win win, or lose lose

iguana

Max Power1 wrote: »

+1.

A bit of death metal when its queit in their house, (speakers close to the wall of course) should get the message across. The good thing is, same as you cant stop them - they cant stop you so its win win, or lose lose

All this will do is get the OP in trouble. There is no way a parent can be ordered to make their child be quiet, but anyone can be ordered to reduce music noise and get in trouble if they don't.

OP, as I suggested in the PI thread to someone with a similar issue, your best bet is to produce white noise in order to block out the child's noise. Download wave or sea sounds and play them on repeat as loud as you need at night. The constant white noise will help you sleep once you get used to it and should block out a lot of the child sounds without being heard by your neighbours.

Max Power1

iguana wrote: »

All this will do is get the OP in trouble. There is no way a parent can be ordered to make their child be quiet, but anyone can be ordered to reduce music noise and get in trouble if they don't.

OP, as I suggested in the PI thread to someone with a similar issue, your best bet is to produce white noise in order to block out the child's noise. Download wave or sea sounds and play them on repeat as loud as you need at night. The constant white noise will help you sleep once you get used to it and should block out a lot of the child sounds without being heard by your neighbours.

Ok well then download some loud screaming child sounds and play them instead :P

mathie

Is this the sequel to 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'?

Clio2009

Max Power1 wrote: »

Ok well then download some loud screaming child sounds and play them instead :P

i like that and i thought about it
well after the 10th letter i gave them and a few weeks of lack of sleep , especially last night i just wrote a last letter telling them to do something to the wall or i ll see them in court as i have enough, that kid grgrgr and the her high hills at night enough now
and if i have music loud once she complains so i bangged the door instead this morning sucks

tenchi-fan

There are 3 kids in the house next door to me. There's also about 2 foot of concrete between us so I don't hear a thing! I think that's just one of the disadvantages of having an apartment.

Massive Muscles

Stop living in an apartment.

iguana

Clio2009 wrote: »

i just wrote a last letter telling them to do something to the wall or i ll see them in court as i have enough,

Sorry OP but if you even got a complaint to court you won't get anything but a bill for the court time. You can not sue parents for their child's noise. You can not get an abatement order placed on a small child. You can not have them evicted due to child noise. I have sympathy for your situation but by law there is very little you can do about child noise. If you suspect the child is being mistreated you can report that, but only if that is your honest feeling.

If your property is quite new and it does not come up to building regulations with regard to sound-proofing you could have some success contacting the builder or management company and insisting the soundproofing is improved. Otherwise the only thing you can do is take responsibility for sound-proofing your own property or move if you can.

Max Power1

I still think the best option is my downloading screaming children sounds.
Alternatively, get a dog. A REALLY angry one that barks a lot, especially at night, if you catch my drift!

Clio2009

Max Power1 wrote: »

I still think the best option is my downloading screaming children sounds.
Alternatively, get a dog. A REALLY angry one that barks a lot, especially at night, if you catch my drift!

yep there are some on Youtube, so if they did not do something on the wall by the 15/05/10 well then i will put kid shouting sounds at night to awake them that is sure:D

iguana

Clio2009 wrote: »

yep there are some on Youtube, so if they did not do something on the wall by the 15/05/10 well then i will put kid shouting sounds at night to awake them that is sure:D

If they know you don't have a child you could get done for harassment, especially in light of the letters you have sent them. Be very careful about what you are doing here, you could get yourself in trouble.

Seriously, if you rent the apartment move. If you own it work out a practical way to get on with your life. How about swapping your bedroom and livingroom around? If you can sleep quietly in the livingroom, put your bed in there. Or if you can sell it, do.

ztoical

Clio2009 wrote: »

yep there are some on Youtube, so if they did not do something on the wall by the 15/05/10 well then i will put kid shouting sounds at night to awake them that is sure:D

You are aware you could be getting yourself into a lot of trouble if you do that...while you can't do anything about an actual child crying, a recording of a child crying is a different matter. You can be done under the Environmental Protection Agency Act and get a pretty large fine or time in prison.

If you've been unable to find a solution by taking to your neighbours then contact your local authority, chances are slim they will do anything as it's a baby crying and babies cry, but perhaps they can try mediating between you and your neighbours.

_michelle_

i understand it must be awful for you however children are exactly that children, they cant be forced to be quiet or not to cry because it doesnt suit people, my 2 yr old is going through a faze of waking up screaming & yes we go in straight away to settle him but sometimes it can take upto 2 hours (ive spoken to my neighbours & they understand) but i wouldnt be happy if they continually complained about the noise! i would suggest you go in CAMLY & RATIONALLY & just ask can they try & sooth the baby but again it may only make matters worse.
hope you get some peace soon.

Clio2009

iguana wrote: »

If they know you don't have a child you could get done for harassment, especially in light of the letters you have sent them. Be very careful about what you are doing here, you could get yourself in trouble.

Seriously, if you rent the apartment move. If you own it work out a practical way to get on with your life. How about swapping your bedroom and livingroom around? If you can sleep quietly in the livingroom, put your bed in there. Or if you can sell it, do.

seriously not a chance i go and sleep in my living room cos of them
why should i be annoyed cos of the lack of respect of other
before the kid it was the sh''ging so between that and the arguments late at nights and the banging doors and the hight hills and the kid sorry but i wont take it

i can't swap my living room and bedroom that is not possible as in my living room there is my kitchen and my pet, and i can't sell either am stuck plus i love my flat so why should i move????

no i dont think so no
they do the noise they fix it if not i'll see them in court or will awake them at night as they do to me

Clio2009

_michelle_ wrote: »

i understand it must be awful for you however children are exactly that children, they cant be forced to be quiet or not to cry because it doesnt suit people, my 2 yr old is going through a faze of waking up screaming & yes we go in straight away to settle him but sometimes it can take upto 2 hours (ive spoken to my neighbours & they understand) but i wouldnt be happy if they continually complained about the noise! i would suggest you go in CAMLY & RATIONALLY & just ask can they try & sooth the baby but again it may only make matters worse.
hope you get some peace soon.

Hi, in the day time ok i dont mind but all night, they never get up when she shouts and i dont mean cry i mean shouts. when it is 3 years you are awoken by your neighbourgs all the time it takes a toll i have enough
i go to work tired and this affect my work so i talked to them many times and they just dont care. and when i complained for a year about the shagging calmly i was told it was natural for them to shout when they do it and for the kid same stuff it is natural
but for me to open my curtains in the morning i should not open them and air my bedroom cos the noise annoys her. i even proposed to have the wall sound proofed and split the cost in 2. no answer i proposed many things and solution that they ignored so.....
am done with the talking after 3 years of being nice and let them walk over me this time or they soundproof the wall on their side or we'll meet in court to have them force to do it or i wake them up at night.

Massive Muscles

You won't win in court. Move out, seriously I'm suprised you have put up with that for so long.

Clio2009

Massive Muscles wrote: »

You won't win in court. Move out, seriously I'm suprised you have put up with that for so long.

Well with all the records i have i have with dates and times, sollicitor told me i have a good chance to win as it is not from time to time but repeatively and that what he will ask the court to do is to force them to have their side of the wall soundproofed so we will see.
anyway they got a letter with an ultimatum yesterday morning so we will see
thought funnily enough last night there was not a noise and kid did not shout at night so we'll see
maybe they will understand this time i really have enough

The_Conductor

I would advise everyone to calm down and take things easy- as I'd rather not shut this thread. Please be measured in your responses, and reasonable. OP- you need to pursue this properly- getting random advise on the internet from strangers who might not know the implications of what they're advising- is not the way to go.

Regards,

SMcCarrick

Unwilling

Oh I feel for you I really do.
I have a neighbour who's tv is very loud all the time and it is very frustrating. Especially when I am trying to study.
The worst is that it is a 1940 ex council house - build of solid stuff.
We're in 'discussions' at the moment but getting no where.
I have a builder now looking into the sound proofing for us - alternatively we will ahve to sell up and move on - as it IS affecting my quality of life!!!

Good luck

Clio2009

well i talked to the builders and property management for the last 3 years, and i am always told they will look into it but they don't. i really feel stuck and the only way i had was to prove the noise is quite high by hiring a noise nuisance recorder and a specialist to measure how high the noise is. we shall see
hopefully i will be able to get something done as it is hard not to sleep at night cos of neighbours and go to work tired due to lack of sleep. easier for them as she does not work and he starts work late in the day. but that's the joy of the apartment block life

tenchi-fan

Unwilling wrote: »

Oh I feel for you I really do.
I have a neighbour who's tv is very loud all the time and it is very frustrating. Especially when I am trying to study.
The worst is that it is a 1940 ex council house - build of solid stuff.
We're in 'discussions' at the moment but getting no where.
I have a builder now looking into the sound proofing for us - alternatively we will ahve to sell up and move on - as it IS affecting my quality of life!!!

Good luck

A lot of people push their tv flat against the wall, so the speakers are basically against the wall. That's the problem!! Maybe you should position your hifi speakers against the wall. when you go to college pump up the volume and leave it on til you get home and see how they like it.

Run_to_da_hills

Freddie59 wrote: »

They have to rest at some stage. And when they do give them a taste of their OWN medicine. Idiots.:mad:

I had this same problem a few years ago in a house share in Ennis. I had a 12KW PA system that I rented for a party in the back of my van. I took it out and set it up in the room below then and cranked it with the best of Lisa Lashes. They stormed out of the room and came down, that was the end of them annoying the rest of the house.

stepbar

OP I think you REALLY need to move. At the end of the day you don't need the hassle, but for your own sanity you need to do it. I'm afraid there's no talking to some people.

nkay1985

OP, there's nothing you can do. I think you need to realise this. You're in a bad situation. It sucks for you. But that's the way it is. You can't change the situation where you are.

You can either learn to put up with it (which is quite difficult, I know) or you can move. Those are your options.

One thing I would suggest is get some good earplugs. I use them all the time as I work shift work and they're great. You might find them uncofortable for a couple of weeks but stick with them and you'll be fine. You shouldn't have to do things like this to get a night's sleep in your own home, but the fact is you do. Give it a try and hopefully the child will quieten down in the next few months.