Working from home and noise in the day
Discussion
How do people feel about customers / neighbours etc working from home when you want to make a racket during the day, up until recently it wasn't a problem as everyone was generally at work in the day so you could hammer, drill, bash away to your hearts content, you didn't really make a noise in the evening as you know it would annoy the neighbours.
But nowadays nearly everyone it seems is at home in the day time, firstly its annoying as they are always around to pester you when you are trying to work, on Friday my neighbour collared me to fix his kitchen cupboard door when I was half way through a mortar mix. But its the noise aspect as well, do you just carry on as normal and say tough s
t you should be at work or do you try and change your ways somehow to accommodate them as they wont be able to work properly with a constant racket going.
This is more for the adjacent neighbours as opposed to direct customers as they know what they are letting themselves in for but its not the neighbours fault. Yes I know by making a noise at home I'm also "working from home" but I generally don't, I've just got a bit of spare time at the moment and want to make as much headway as I can.
But nowadays nearly everyone it seems is at home in the day time, firstly its annoying as they are always around to pester you when you are trying to work, on Friday my neighbour collared me to fix his kitchen cupboard door when I was half way through a mortar mix. But its the noise aspect as well, do you just carry on as normal and say tough s
t you should be at work or do you try and change your ways somehow to accommodate them as they wont be able to work properly with a constant racket going.This is more for the adjacent neighbours as opposed to direct customers as they know what they are letting themselves in for but its not the neighbours fault. Yes I know by making a noise at home I'm also "working from home" but I generally don't, I've just got a bit of spare time at the moment and want to make as much headway as I can.
I wouldn't even consider whether the noise I was making would be bugging them.
Am I supposed to check their schedule and do DIY stuff when they go out?
I WFH myself and if either neighbours are noisy (they are, one has a garden workshop, the other has two screamy kids) then so be it. I'd go to the office or find somewhere quiet to work if I wanted/needed quiet. I don't think it should be on them to consider me working from home
Am I supposed to check their schedule and do DIY stuff when they go out?
I WFH myself and if either neighbours are noisy (they are, one has a garden workshop, the other has two screamy kids) then so be it. I'd go to the office or find somewhere quiet to work if I wanted/needed quiet. I don't think it should be on them to consider me working from home
When I had the back gardens landscaped and knew there would be noise from deliveries, diggers, slab cutting etc. I warned my immediate neighbours and similarly when a neighbour had an extra storey put on his house last year he did the same for major works.
For general stuff, dogs barking, grass cutting, general DIY, presure washing, etc. its just tough I think and part and parcel of the new working world - same as people disappearing from calls / meetings to answer the front door (I mean what sort of weirdo answers the front door!)
I do have a couple of pairs of ANC and mic'd headphones that focus on voice etc but often dont bother with them and just rely on the array on my PolyStudio system which seems to do well and ive never had any complaints about.
For general stuff, dogs barking, grass cutting, general DIY, presure washing, etc. its just tough I think and part and parcel of the new working world - same as people disappearing from calls / meetings to answer the front door (I mean what sort of weirdo answers the front door!)
I do have a couple of pairs of ANC and mic'd headphones that focus on voice etc but often dont bother with them and just rely on the array on my PolyStudio system which seems to do well and ive never had any complaints about.
Not as bad as having a neighbour who works nights, I shouldn't think.
If I'm having work done, I put up with the noise. Likewise with the neighbours. My office is on the top floor, working through a re-roof was a pain in the arse, but you just get on with it.
People generally seem to be more intolerant these days of not just noise but any sort of aspect of living near to others which impinges upon them. The reality of living in a community is that you have to put up with other people's minor annoyances and in return they put up with yours. There's a bit of give and take as long as nobody takes the piss.
If I'm having work done, I put up with the noise. Likewise with the neighbours. My office is on the top floor, working through a re-roof was a pain in the arse, but you just get on with it.
People generally seem to be more intolerant these days of not just noise but any sort of aspect of living near to others which impinges upon them. The reality of living in a community is that you have to put up with other people's minor annoyances and in return they put up with yours. There's a bit of give and take as long as nobody takes the piss.
otolith said:
Not as bad as having a neighbour who works nights, I shouldn't think.
If I'm having work done, I put up with the noise. Likewise with the neighbours. My office is on the top floor, working through a re-roof was a pain in the arse, but you just get on with it.
People generally seem to be more intolerant these days of not just noise but any sort of aspect of living near to others which impinges upon them. The reality of living in a community is that you have to put up with other people's minor annoyances and in return they put up with yours. There's a bit of give and take as long as nobody takes the piss.
Years ago at a previous house, I was building a garage out of reclaimed materials including coregatted iron. If I'm having work done, I put up with the noise. Likewise with the neighbours. My office is on the top floor, working through a re-roof was a pain in the arse, but you just get on with it.
People generally seem to be more intolerant these days of not just noise but any sort of aspect of living near to others which impinges upon them. The reality of living in a community is that you have to put up with other people's minor annoyances and in return they put up with yours. There's a bit of give and take as long as nobody takes the piss.
Next door's wife was a nurse (as was mine). In the end I waited 3 weeks until a weekend when they were both on an early day shift at the weekend, and started my hammering at 7 am.
I've worked from home for 15 years now, and live on quite a large estate. Since covid it's been non-stop building works around here with extensions, garden remodels etc and plenty of noise but I am used to it and don't let it bother me. I wouldn't feel too guilty about some DIY noise, pretty easy for people to put headphones on if they are bothered by it.
We're building an extension at the moment. We have a builder who is here most days. I'm doing the electrics and plumbing, and some of the donkey work. Sometimes I can work around him when he is here, but sometimes I have to do a bit of drilling etc. when he isn't around, either because I am in his way, or I'm busy with work. I tend to ensure all noise stops by 6pm, and keep it as brief as possible at weekends.
I live in a residential area, and the main purpose of it is for people to relax after work. If somebody wants to use their house as an office, they have to put up with the fact people renovate their houses now and again. I am not going to pay the builder premium rates to work outside business hours, and I think the neighbours who want peace and quiet when they are not working have a more legitimate case.
Nobody has complained though; in fact most are interested in our progress.
Where I live, there is a lot of building work going on. I get the impression that a significant amount of that work is people who have now become home workers, and are extending because they want a space to work from.
I live in a residential area, and the main purpose of it is for people to relax after work. If somebody wants to use their house as an office, they have to put up with the fact people renovate their houses now and again. I am not going to pay the builder premium rates to work outside business hours, and I think the neighbours who want peace and quiet when they are not working have a more legitimate case.
Nobody has complained though; in fact most are interested in our progress.
Where I live, there is a lot of building work going on. I get the impression that a significant amount of that work is people who have now become home workers, and are extending because they want a space to work from.
It's just par for the course, people have to get stuff done, so it's either bother you now or bother you at the weekend or in the evening.
If it's a problem when you're working, go to the office, put on some ear-cancelling headphones and turn on background noise suppression in Teams.
If it's a problem when you're working, go to the office, put on some ear-cancelling headphones and turn on background noise suppression in Teams.
I've worked from home since pre-Covid and even though we live on a busy-ish road, it is still 100x quieter than the office. I used to sit next to a chap who talked incredibly loudly when on the phone and would often swivel his chair and end up facing me while doing so. My wife did the same when she started working in our home office, so she has swiftly been relegated to another room.
The only issue we have had is a neighbour who took exception to us having building work done on our garage, as her home office overlooked it. She didn't want the work done during the week when she was working, or at the weekend either. Our compromise was to get all the noisy work done in one day, so there was a lower level of noise the rest of the week the builder was here. She still complained about dust, his radio being too loud and anything else she could think of though.
The only issue we have had is a neighbour who took exception to us having building work done on our garage, as her home office overlooked it. She didn't want the work done during the week when she was working, or at the weekend either. Our compromise was to get all the noisy work done in one day, so there was a lower level of noise the rest of the week the builder was here. She still complained about dust, his radio being too loud and anything else she could think of though.
nuyorican said:
This is my number on annoyance in life I'm afraid. As you say, we live in a community and have to compromise and make sacrifices. But some people just take the piss. Fair enough, everyone needs to make some noise occasionally, whether it's mowing the lawn, fixing the car or just blowing off steam with some music, noisy children whatever. Sunday though, is sacred. Just give it a bloody rest. Yesterday a case in point, well pretty much every Sunday to be honest. Beautiful weather so go out and sit in the garden. But soon driven back indoors with the windows sealed shut because someone is running a chainsaw from about 8am to nearly half nine at night. When the chainsaw is turned off they're doing what sounds like smacking a loose fence with a massive hammer over and over again.
One weekend I had just had enough and walked round and asked in as light hearted way as I could muster wtf they thought they were doing and what justifies being so obnoxious? The reply I got was along the lines of: "sorry mate, but I work all week so this is the only day I get to do this."
Oh, well that's fine then. That explains everything. So because of your poor decisions/greed/don't want to spend a little money getting it done in the week by a tradesman then all your neighbours in a half-mile radius can just go and swivel. Right? Good to know. And I just know that if I decided to play some loud music late at night he'd have the law on me.
Living anywhere that isn't completely remote is bloody nightmare these day with home renovations, leaf-blowers/chainsaws/tools/ people adding another story to their house, a basement under the basement etc et ad nauseum....
Soz. Rant over.
I tend to agree. I mentioned in my post above that my neighbours have been getting a bit of renovation work done over the last year or so, and to be honest, it has been fine as is always on weekdays by tradesmen, and has now finished. But noise at all days/hours is almost intolerable IMO, especially anti-social noise.One weekend I had just had enough and walked round and asked in as light hearted way as I could muster wtf they thought they were doing and what justifies being so obnoxious? The reply I got was along the lines of: "sorry mate, but I work all week so this is the only day I get to do this."
Oh, well that's fine then. That explains everything. So because of your poor decisions/greed/don't want to spend a little money getting it done in the week by a tradesman then all your neighbours in a half-mile radius can just go and swivel. Right? Good to know. And I just know that if I decided to play some loud music late at night he'd have the law on me.
Living anywhere that isn't completely remote is bloody nightmare these day with home renovations, leaf-blowers/chainsaws/tools/ people adding another story to their house, a basement under the basement etc et ad nauseum....
Soz. Rant over.
Previously we lived in a densely populated urban area, and it was just constant noise all the time. Noisy cars being thrashed around the streets, scooters with loud exhausts, people shouting, dogs barking, music being played loudly in back gardens, people having parties, people arguing or fighting, horns beeping, regular police or ambulance sirens, people running streamers and lawn mowers, you name it. It really wears you down after a while.
We moved to a village about 4 years ago, and it was an absolute revelation. Just so peaceful all the time. Most of the neighbours get their gardens attended to by gardeners (including us), so that noise is contained to weekdays and is usually quite brief. There was a real penny drop moment for us the first year when we realised it was bonfire night, yet we hadn't heard a single firework in the weeks before. At our old house, it would be 2+ weeks of fireworks at all hours plus the sound of teenagers screaming and laughing, in the run up to November the 5th.
Having peaceful neighbours and a detached house is an indescribably different existence to living in an urban area and/or living in an attached house/apartment. It completely changes your life.
I greatly admire countries like Germany which have very strict, and strictly enforced, noise laws. No DIY or gardening outside of certain hours, no playing of musical instruments at certain times, strictly enforced 10pm noise curfews, no late or noisy parties if your neighbours might hear them, and Sundays to be a day of quiet. As someone who is a fairly quiet person, and just wants peace and quiet from those around them, I would love those kind of laws (and associated enforcement) in the UK, but I doubt we will ever see anything of the sort.
Mont Blanc said:
horns beeping, regular police or ambulance sirens,.
One of our project managers was from Mumbai. For the majority of the project he was based in london, his contract was extended at the last minute by a couple of weeks but by that stage he'd already moved back home, the cacophony of horns beeping in the background during calls was amazing and equally amusing at god knows what time it was there. Red9zero said:
I've worked from home since pre-Covid and even though we live on a busy-ish road, it is still 100x quieter than the office. I used to sit next to a chap who talked incredibly loudly when on the phone and would often swivel his chair and end up facing me while doing so. My wife did the same when she started working in our home office, so she has swiftly been relegated to another room.
The only issue we have had is a neighbour who took exception to us having building work done on our garage, as her home office overlooked it. She didn't want the work done during the week when she was working, or at the weekend either. Our compromise was to get all the noisy work done in one day, so there was a lower level of noise the rest of the week the builder was here. She still complained about dust, his radio being too loud and anything else she could think of though.
See this is what concerns me, the woman with the home office, as everyone is only interested in themselves nowadays she would fully expect you to abandon your project and let it sit half finished just so she has peace and quiet in the office all day, even though the norm is/was to go to work in the day time. My neighbour is a bit like this, although sh'e not complained about my building work yet she's had plenty to say to other neighbours about inconsiderate parking and dogs barking etc. And she is a demented scouser, not that I'd stop building it, it needs finishing one way or another, its just the hassle and confrontation I could do without.The only issue we have had is a neighbour who took exception to us having building work done on our garage, as her home office overlooked it. She didn't want the work done during the week when she was working, or at the weekend either. Our compromise was to get all the noisy work done in one day, so there was a lower level of noise the rest of the week the builder was here. She still complained about dust, his radio being too loud and anything else she could think of though.
GilletteFan said:
I guess it's not a problem if you live in a densely populated area. What I dislike are dogs yapping away. Everyone has a dog now.
Why is this, why does everyone have a dog, I think every house on our road has a dog and over the road has got 3. But more importantly, why do they all yap nowadays, when I had a dog years ago it barked, all you hear nowadays is YAP YAP YAP YAP YAP. Gassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff