noise from ceiling fan in apartment below mine

[hearsalot]

Everytime my neighbor below me uses her ceiling fan I hear a buzzing/humming sound (she apparently doesn't hear anything in her apartment).  Any thoughts on how to fix this problem?  The sound is similar to a microwave or refrigerator compressor, and isn't terribly loud but is still always noticeable and quite irritating.  Any suggestions?  Thanks.

[hearsalot]

Should have added to the original post - we both live in condo's in 90 year old brick building with hardwood floors.

[johnbergstromslc]

Assuming your old wiring isn't arcing and about to burn down the house (knock on wood), the problem sounds like a motor mounting problem or just an old, unbalanced motor.  Any 'fixes' would be intrusive and unwelcome to the downstairs resident, so when it's annoying, it may be a better idea to raise the ambient noise level in your apartment.  You can get a cheap (but high-quality) white noise machine for about 50 bucks.

[hearsalot]

Thanks for the reply.  What about reinstalling the fan or getting a new one?  My neighbor seems pretty reasonable and I'm pretty sure would cooperate to some extent.  Has anyone here had experience with quieting a fan?  Any products that might improve on the installation?  Already I'm thinking rubber washers instead of metal, and depending on how the fan is secured, might there be other ways to "decouple" it from the joists or whatever it's anchored to? 

The buzzing is actually fairly low in volume, but is still driving me crazy! I'd love to reduce it to negligible level or get rid of it altogether.

[joel]

One way to "decouple" the fan mounting from the ceiling would be to use a ribbed neoprene pad.  They are only 3/8" thick and are available up to 18"x18" squares.  They can be cut to the diameter of the fan mounting (maybe a little bigger), holes drilled through for fasteners and wiring, and the fan re-mounted with the "decoupler" anti-vibration pad.  If the problem is one of acoustic vibration transferring to the structural supports then this should solve the problem.  Here is where to locate the ribbed neoprene pads (use the ones without cork center):  http://www.soundproofing.org/infopages/vibrationpads.htm#Vib

[hearsalot]

Thanks for the link.  I'll update here if/when I resolve the situation.

[ann123]

Hello, I had this problem once in an apt.  My bed was right over the fan.  What I did was I nicely asked the downstairs tenant if she would mind shutting it off at night because it kept me up.  She was nice about it and shut it off some times, other times I guess she forgot. But talking to her did help.

[lauretta07]

Actually, you can tell to the person living below your room that when he/she purchasing a fan, make sure it has a three-way or four-way wall control and nothing more. New fans can making a buzzing noise. So wait a few days to see if the sound goes away.

[Ainzo]

Thanks for the reply.  What about reinstalling the fan or getting a new one?  My neighbor seems pretty reasonable and I'm pretty sure would cooperate to some extent.  Has anyone here had experience with quieting a fan?  Any products that might improve on the installation?  Already I'm thinking rubber washers instead of metal, and depending on how the fan is secured, might there be other ways to "decouple" it from the joists or whatever it's anchored to?

The buzzing is actually fairly low in volume, but is still driving me crazy! I'd love to reduce it to negligible level or get rid of it altogether.

It is a good idea if you reinstall again your fan. I think the main reason why it is producing unnecessary sounds it is because of the wrong installation of the components. If you're prepared to buy new one, make sure the fan has a three-way or four-way wall control just like Lauretta07.

[funnyceline]

The motor of the ceiling fan could be worn, the bearing might already damage. You better suggest her to replace the ceiling fan to remove the unwanted sound.