Noisy Neighbours

[Lil H]

I have seen lots of posts on the subject, can anyone advise me what they have actually done in the situation.

I moved into my flat 3 months ago, it's on the ground floor and so I expected to hear some noise from the neighbours above, and I did, but just general everyday stuff which is not a problem. However, since Christmas I can hear them whenever they are in their bedroom (directlyabove mine). They argue at least 3 times per week, slamming doors and throwing things. But even when they are not arguing they are slamming around, at 2am!! I have to get up at 5.30am and the lack of sleep is causing me problems at work and is generally getting me down. What should I do? I never "bump into" them as we do not share a communal entrance and as I live on my own I am a bit worried about stirring up trouble, especially as they appear to be volatile people. I have thought about asking them if they have changed their flooring or perhaps just not saying anything and try to get some sound proofing installed on my ceiling. Any advice would be much appreciated!

[Lonnie]

I fully empathise with your problem, but I think your going to have to speak to them about it, they may be sympathetic, or they may not, but your not going to find out unless have a word, maybe you could take a friend with you for moral support, but the thing is, don't be confrontational, and your next actions would depend on how they react. If you decide on this course of action, post back as to what happens, because there are people on here who do give good advice.

[snook]

Hi Lil. Always a tricky situation. Maybe you could knock and try to get into conversation with them, about anything at all, maybe just to say hello, introduce yourself, that kind of thing. Don�t mention the noise problem at this stage. Try to get to know them a bit over a period (they are your neighbours, after all). Then, when you�re more at ease with them (might be a few days or weeks later), mention casually that you have to get up early every day and sometimes you have trouble sleeping because of the noise from their flat. You could say you have a sleep problem anyway (making it out to be your problem, and not really their fault). Since they�ll know you by then, they�ll probably (hopefully) see it from your point of view and see if they can help out (by being a bit quieter, fitting a carpet, whatever). I know this isn�t a quick fix, but at least (if it works) it means you get to know them, you get a good night�s sleep, and everyone�s happy. And that�s always better than conflict, or having to build barriers (even just sound-proof ones).

[mullein3]

have you been on the neighbours from hell web site..they will help you over their..sometimes if you say things to neighbours they get worse..out of spite..believe me i know!! if you look on that site i am sure an expert will help..best of luck..p.s..they sell ear plugs on that site also!!

[WendyS]

Always a difficult one but best dealt with in a friendly manner at first because they may not even realise just how much the noise can be heard outside their flat. You could always try doing what somebody I knew did. He knocked on his neighbour's door carrying a bottle of wine. When they opened it, he said something on the lines of " I know we don't know each other yet, so I wanted to bring you this to show I come in a spirit of goodwill, but I do need to talk to you about something which is happening in your flat which is really bothering me Could you spare a few minutes?".

They invited him in, opened the wine and he then found it more easy to explain to them how the noise they were making was making life difficult for him. They were mortified because they had no idea their noise could be heard elsewhere in the building and the situation greatly improved after that. It's worth a try, but not if they are Mulsim and don't drink, in which case some other friendly gesture might be more applicable.

Hope you find a way of resolving the problem.

[=rizla=]

Always a tough one, i'm guessing they wont be too happy if you mention they argueing is keeping you awake as they'd probably want to forget it, also plenty of people nowadays arent too happy if somebody complains about them no matter how tactful you are in your inital contact

On the other side of the coin i definitly wouldnt let it wind you up too much before you do something about it, they are most likely oblivious to their noise and an unmeasured 1st response will almost certainly wind they up.

One thing i have heard of involves you getting a tape/cd of a specific noise, be it whales, kids playing, white noise etc etc then 'training' yourself to sleep with it on at a reasonable level. The idea is your own noise is a 'safe' noise to youand once you get used to it ( 2 weeks?) it drowns out other noises and you dont wake (i'm guessing you need to get a louder alarm clock!!!!), also i've read even if your not too tired one night putting the tape on convinces your brain its sleep time and you go to sleep.

Never tried it myself, but as a shiftworker who's just moved into a close with plenty of little ones and a front facing bedroom i may well try it this year.