Need Help With Noisy Neighbors

[Paul Ferrario]

We live in a new development.  Our house sits at an angle to our neighbors in such a way that when our neighbor plays his radio outside in his front yard, the noise pours into our backyard.  

The noise is actually amplified.  If I walk over to his driveway, the music does not seem as loud as it does in our backyard. He is not playing his music particularly loud, but the noise in our back is extremely annoying.

We have a traditional "good neighbor" wood fence.  Is there anything we can do to help absorb the noise.  We have planted cypress etc. against the fence, but they will take years to fill in, and I don't want to go to the expense of building a "freeway sound wall".  

Is there anything we can do to our existing wood fence to increase its noise absorbsion qualities?

Thanks
PAUL

[Boborther]

Paul,

Generally to be an effective sound blocker, an outdoor fence needs to be at least 8 feet above the noise source (the radio). Many times local ordinances do not allow this height for a private fence. (check for local ordinances that prohibit having fences higher than 6 feet)  The next best thing is to caulk in any holes gaps or openings in the fence. Anywhere air or water can pass through, so can sound.
Apparently your backyard area is producing what we would call a "Canyon" effect. There are many hard surfaces that are reflecting the sounds of the radio, and as a result the noise seems  to be amplified. Soundproofing the outdoors  from the outdoors is a challenge at best.
In Austrailia, they are perfecting a noise filtering device. Now I am not sure about all the technical aspects of this device, but I have read that it does work, and is very effective in situations such as yours.
Paul, there is also a company in Carlsbad, California, called "Quiet Flight" that is experimenting with a noise filtering device for aircraft and airports. It works on the same principal and the Australian unit. I have heard some real success stories with regards to their ability to cancel out unwanted noise in urban areas etc. You might do a little research on this company, and find out if this system would help to solve your problem with noise.
Paul, I hope this has helped you. There are sound absorbing materials that can be purchased for the backside of your fence, but they will only be marginally effective if the fence is not at least 8 feet higher than the noise source.

Thanks for the post.



Skip  
Super Soundproofing Sales/Technical Associate.  
Ph: (760) 752-3030FAX: (760) 752-3040  
URL: www.soundproofing.org  
e-mail: Skip@soundproofing.org  
For orders only (888) 942-7723

[Paul Ferrario]

  I was afraid you would say something like that.  I do plan on trying some of yur suggestions for the noise coming in through our windows.  I will also check out Quiet Flight and see what I come up with.

Thanks for the help.
PAUL

[Boborther]

Paul,



As I stated in the previous post, soundproofing the outdoors from the outdoors is a serious challenge.  A cheaper approach would be to confront the neighbor, and let him know your plight, and also let him know how you are planning to deal with the situation. you might be surprised at his reaction. He may have the helpful attitude, and want to be involved with your soundproofing effort. I know this sounds optimistic on my part, but hey, it's worth a try.

Thanks for following up Paul, you'd be amazed at the amount of people who will read your questions and my answers and will learn from your experiences. Thanks again, and good luck on the noise cancelling filter search!



Skip  
Super Soundproofing Sales/Technical Associate.  
Ph: (760) 752-3030FAX: (760) 752-3040  
URL: www.soundproofing.org  
e-mail: Skip@soundproofing.org  
For orders only (888) 942-7723

[KS]

If anyone finds a reference to this (Quiet Flight) company and whether they are selling to the general public, please post it here, I'm sure alot of us would be interested.

[Eric A.]

Hi All,



I found this forum as I was searching for a way to keep noise from my noisy neighbors, train, etc. from coming into my home. Paul's problem was something I was initially interested in solving, but have decided to work on cutting out the noise coming in from the many windows of the house first.



I found a link to Quiet Flight. Looks like they only work on Airplane cabin noise for now, but the technology looks promising and is hopefully a step in the right direction for solving problems similar to Paul's. I know there are many of us who would like to enjoy some quiet time in our own backyards.



Here's the link to Quiet Flight LLC: http://www.quietflight-llc.com/



Btw: I found this forum starting with a Google search on how to soundproof windows. I then went from Soundproofwindows.com to Soundproofing101.com to Supersoundproofing.com. A lot of good information was obtained from all of them and I have to say "many thanks!". I'm learning a lot more than I thought I would be about Soundproofing.

[Victoria]

What I have done to help me in this same type of situation is this--learn to lower my expectations of having quiet when living in this noisy world.  I have just accepted that nowadays, it's almost impossible to have quiet anymore.  Even while living in the country, I had to deal with hearing farming machinery and hearing dirt bikes--it was actually noiser than living in the city!!  We might long for the quiet olden days, but they had other problems we don't have now.  So, I have my trusty earplugs, white noise machine, and my lowered expectations.  You get more bothered and angry when you focus on the noise or are really wanting quiet.  I am actually enjoying getting older because my hearing is just naturally getting weaker and it's a blessing in this noisy world.  

[Diane]

Hi Victoria,

You have a great attitude and that is wonderful.  You will definitely have less stress, and lead a happier life!  But for most of us, unfortunately, noise is a problem that we can never get used to or accept.  Especially, when it is inconsiderate people intruding noise into our most personal of spaces -- our homes.

[donbryce]

I live next door to a rental home that is occupied by partying university students. I like the idea of attitude adjustment, but that doesn't cut any mustard at 3:00AM on a worknight, unfortunately!

I explored the fence solution, and plan to build just such a structure in the spring. We live on a hill, so my lawn is already about 2' above the neighbour's, so an 8' fence with tightly set boards should help a lot.

Is there anything weather proof that can be attached to the neighbor's side of the fence to help sound absorbtion? What about some sort of lattice work to break up the sound waves? Would a curved top, cup-shaped side facing the neighbour, help 'repel' sound?

One source of sound absorbing material that I may explore, as I have a sample, is a heavy rubber belt that is used in pulp mills. They change them out periodically and usually give them away (you need a big truck to haul though, thank goodness for buddies!).

[Allen McKenas]

My house has double-pane windows and is well insulated but is uphill from a highway AND next to an inconsiderate neighbor who put powered speakers on his porch AND is in a natural 'bowl' such that the even normal speech travels clearly the 400 feet between the houses!

The low frequencies are the worst. I guess that is a throwback to caveman days when THUMP-THUMP meant something big and hungry was on the way. I hope all those ##&&?? drivers with the rumbly stereos have their brains dissolve in a most painful way (which I understand actually does gradually happen)!

I built a barn between the neighbor and myself and the noise just goes around!

Would a fence 'sandwich' of plywood and lead sheeting make an effective noise barrier? I can't use a masonry wall because of the topology and type of soil.

[kim gordon]

Well. We have the problem of noisy neighbors except that we are litterally 3 feet away from the fence that separates us. So we're 6 feet away from their house, our bedrooms windows literally 6 feet away from one another. We have a privacy fence with boards that have space in between only on their side of the fence - is the only solution to put up more boards closer together on our side and plant some plants? I have bamboo on that side that I only just planted so it will take a while.. I can't believe there is nothing that I can put between the fence boards to dense it up a little bit! Oh, we have 6 feet of fence and 2 extra feet of lattice. How do I find out where my property line is and whose fence this is anyway? My neighbor is an extremely unhappy and complaining sort and I need as much info as possible before I can go in all smiley and nice and get anything that I want done.

Thanks so much! Kim

[Knuckles]

I have a similar problem. We have a small, in-city home that is very close to the house next door. Our bedroom window is approximately 6-8 feet from the back deck of our neighbor's house, and above the deck itself. I would say that the distance from the top of their deck to the bottom of our window is approximately 6-8 feet. We would like to construct a sound blocking screen of some sort around our window, so that we can still leave the window open in the summer, yet not have to worry about the noise of the neighbors. Have you any recommendations at all for this? It is sounding like I may need to try and build a fence that extends up beyond the window (basically from the ground level, all the way up to the eave. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[JC]

I have a similiar problem, only I live in Hawaii, where we are open to the outdoors all the time.  I am seperated from my neighbor by a 6 ft high rock wall, but they use their driveway and garage (which opens directly toward my house, as their outdoor recreation area. Their house is also two story. so the re is a another 10' of height on their side.  I think the sound is amplified by the walls of the garage (no cars, just bare walls), the concrete floor of the garage and driveway, bouncing off the rock wall, and reverbarating out of the garage echo chamber and the wall above the garage.  These are renters, and a construction crew, with plenty of alcohal and foul language. When they are 'partying', there is nowhere in my home that is immune from there noise.  What can I do?
 

[supersoundproofing]

First start with the windows- they must be shut to block noise! more athttp://www.soundproofing.org/infopages/windowplug.htm

Skip  
Super Soundproofing Sales/Technical Associate.  
Ph: (760) 752-3030FAX: (760) 752-3040  
URL: www.soundproofing.org  
e-mail: Skip@soundproofing.org  
For orders only (888) 942-7723

[Jane]

I read through all of the posts and didn't find one posting with a solution, just complaints. Does onyone have an economic solution for constructing a sound proof fence, 8 feet high--since most counties will allow an 8 foot tall fence at least on the side. Those of us in densely built cities or inner city home owners are aften victimized by "renters" who have no incentive to really be neighborly. So does anyone have a solution? Thanks