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Noisy neighbors, what do you do?

post #1 of 22
2/4/02 at 8:44pm
Thread Starter 
I had a perfectly quiet neighbor for many months until one morning this horrible bass began its dull torture on my brain. I woke up.
It gets a bit louder so I wait to see if it will stop on its own. No such luck, so I begin the investigation (which takes all of 15 seconds).

I knock on my neighbor's door for 5 minutes, I hear a scream of a few syllables on the inside, I bang harder on the door a couple of times while waiting for another 5 minutes. No answer.

I call the apt. management company. They can't give me the number (apparently I'm the bad one), they can't reach her because *shock*, her music is up too loud. They tell me I should call the police, but I don't like that idea so I thank them for their help.

Just about every weekend morning after that I'm waking up to the bass, I'm not as picky as the girlfriend is about it. I don't want it to escalate into anything so I'm uncharacteristically patient.

So this morning I am woken up at 9 and tired of it. So I bang on the wall (once), didn't help. I go over and she finally answers the door, but she's ready to battle to the death or something.
The conversation is semi-cordial at first, she is sarcastic from square 1 but I'm trying (aren't I such the innocent protagonist in this story?).

"Thanks for the violation." says she. Now I don't drink so I know I've never screwed something that ugly, so I assume that the management company gave her a noise violation.
"It's rude to bang on the wall." says she. She is unable to answer my question as to why it's rude for me to make percussion noises against her wall once but morally justified for her to do the same repeatedly.

She gets tired of my arrogant attitude (not just calm in a tense situation, but that "I know I'm calm while you're weak and nervous." look and tone of voice) and caps it all off with, "**** you, asshole! Why don't you eat me!?" *door slams in groverat's face*

There is defiance bass currently going through my room, but I'll let it go for now. She just got schooled so she needs some pride, that's fine with me. But it better not wake me up anymore.

Regale me with your tales!

Moral of the Story: If you get a noise violation, take the hint and turn your music down.
proud resident of a failed state
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post #2 of 22
2/4/02 at 8:55pm
You're a better man than me. I would have smashed the inconsiderate slut. I once threw a rock through a dudes window because his little house party was keeping me from a much needed nights rest. By that point I had worked myself into such a rage that when him and his boys came out, all full of macho bravado, that they thought better of it and went back inside. Things were much more civil after that. I am a big sweetie, until you wake me up with foolishness

[ 02-05-2002: Message edited by: ThinkInsane ]</p>
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post #3 of 22
2/4/02 at 9:02pm
My downstairs neighbors are college kids. they used to like to have parties at 2 and 4 in the morning. We tried talking to them about it but they were so stoned they slammed the door in our face. I called the cops. It was quiet for about a month until I woke up around 2 am and called the cops again. I haven't heard anything past 9pm for the last 2 months.

You need to call the cops if only to have it on record.
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post #4 of 22
2/4/02 at 9:13pm
Call the cops, get it on record then brake the lease and move. Just move.
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post #5 of 22
2/4/02 at 9:28pm
In my younger days in SF i had downstairs neighbors who liked to play dance music in the morning, noon, afternoon and night. THE SAME BEAT over and over. bam bam bambambam, bam bam bambambam. I couldn't call the cops because its a big busy city and they have more important things to do, and besides, my roommates didn't want anything to do with them.

At the time, I liked listening to the Gyoto Tantric Buddhist Monks chanting their very dissonant chants. so I borrowed a friends VERY VERY LARGE bass guitar amplifier cabinet, hooked up the repeating tape of the monks chanting and lay the amp face down on the floor and CRANKED IT!!!! for a looong time. If they didn't mind the falling plaster then the sheer spiritual force told them to lay off the 'bam bam bambambam'

Another time, with other neighbors but with the same incessant beat (it was SF gay dance music, very ubiquitous and monotonous) after many floor poundings of a pretty loud sort to no avail, I actually flipped out and hammered and stomped as hard as I could and yelled over and over threats about bodily harm destruction . . . . that was the LAST that I heard of their music.
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"They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we."
--George W Bush

"Narrative is what starts to happen after eight minutes
--Franklin Miller.

"Nothing...

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post #6 of 22
2/4/02 at 9:45pm
Thread Starter 
Overwhelm them with spirituality. Perhaps I can borrow a couple of subs or amps and blast Victor Jara against the wall. Ah the soothing and inspirational tones of Chilean protest folk.

I don't like involving the police. I would much rather deal with it face-to-face first, through the management company second and the police as the absolute last resort.

And Scott, I like my apartment, I will not be the one to move if movement is required.
proud resident of a failed state
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post #7 of 22
2/4/02 at 9:53pm
In my experience, the usual efforts -- being patient, banging on the wall/floor/ceiling, playing retaliatory loud music -- doesn't work worth a damn. First, talk to the offender directly. If that doesn't work, next time proceed to the property manager or landlord (this will only work if your landlord/manager is a hard-ass, and most of them aren't). If that doesn't work, next time call the police, and call the police every subsequent time there is a problem.

Don't think for a second that it will help your case if you blast your music back at them, pound on their door and scream in their face, or anything like that. It will not help long-term -- might make you feel better, but will actually make your "opponent" feel more justified about annoying you.

Repeated calls to the police every time absolutely will take care of the problem (it doesn't hurt to let the landlord know, in case they didn't notice, that you've had to call the police on a tenant, since no landlord or property manager wants the cops showing up at their place over and over).

I can't count the number of times that complaints directly to the offender HAVEN'T worked. Same goes for complaints to the landlord (though that actually worked, at the last apartment I lived at, because the managers were such tight-asses -- my girlfriend and I complained once about these teen-agers who were partying and trashing their absent mom's apartment, and when the other neighbors complained again the next day, they gave those twits an eviction notice -- two strikes and you're out!) generally.

But the cops will intimidate most people into quieting down after one or maybe two visits, and if that doesn't work, the cops aren't likely to tolerate more offenses without issuing expensive citations or dragging people off in handcuffs.
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post #8 of 22
2/4/02 at 10:00pm
Stereo wars won't work all the time. You may annoy another neighbor in the process.

You met her face to face and that didn't work...

Call the cops. They will shut her up. I had my stereo up one night and the cops came. Believe me, I stopped. Got headphones instead.

Another idea, but it may not be feasible...if her fuse box or switches are located and accessible in the apartment building...shut her off. One friend of mine was able to do this.

Either these or just shoot the bitch.

[ 02-05-2002: Message edited by: Artman @_@ ]</p>
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post #9 of 22
2/4/02 at 10:41pm
Yeah. I used to have good neighbors upstairs. Recently a couple with a baby moved in. The guy has one of those huge screen TVs and about 10 speakers. I told him as he was moving in that the sound carries - I used to get occasionally "please turn down the music"'s from the old neighbor (which I graciously did) during the day.

Well, this a-hole is one one of those fake types who says, "sure", but never really turns anything down. Just about every night he'll have some racing video game playing really loud - nothing worse than hearing some damn tank crashing through buildings at 11 o'clock at night. I've mentioned it to the landlord, to not much avail.

But wait, it gets worse!

This past Sunday I noticed my most recent copy of Motor Trend (I have a subscription) was sitting on the steps leading to the door of their apartment. The plastic cover was off and it had a Mustang on the cover. Dipstick upstairs drives a Mustang and the mail doesn't come on Sunday's so I realized he must have taken my damn magazine out of our mailbox and read it! We have 'open' mailboxes on the front of the house, next to the shared front door.

About 20 minutes later I was out front with the dog (just got done walking him) when jerky comes out with one of his little punk friends. I ask, "so how was that Motor Trend magazine".

"Great" he beams (he didn't even deny it!).

"Look", I said, "you need to ask before you take my magazine. It's illegal for one thing and bad manners for another."

(I really wanted to give him a good "lesson" across the face).

"Yeah, Ok" he says before jumping in his friends car and driving off.

Dude needs a smack if anyone ever did - I just don't need the BS of having a neighbor I get in fistfights with. Besides, apparently this guy has "rich" parents and being Italian, not to mention from Staten Island, who knows what kind of grief I'd bring upon myself.

This jerk is one of those guys who has the "active duty firefighter" dash signs - to get good parking places. But he's not a firefighter.

So, we're gonna call the landlord. Sucks you can't even just "live" sometimes...
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post #10 of 22
2/4/02 at 11:00pm
My closest neighbors are over a mile away.
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post #11 of 22
2/4/02 at 11:01pm
Damm I'm glad I bought a house! You guys all have worse stories than I do.
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post #12 of 22
2/4/02 at 11:11pm
My Junior year in college I was frequently woken up in the middle of the night to the sound of the RA getting it on with his girlfriend. They were loud, very loud. He was the RA so there wasn't much I could do. So I usually put my stereo on with some light music that would at least drown out the humping/moaning sounds. I could at least get to sleep with that.

One saturday night at around 3am it was just too much. There were loud POUNDING sounds on the floor. Almost as if someone was dropping a medicine ball. I heard his girlfriends distinctive moans but that horrible pounding really sounded like she was being dropped from the ceiling to the floor. I thought for sure he was wrestling her or something!

So I went upstairs to finally complain. A different guy opens the door, with his shirt off, hanging off the side of the bed. I hear the RA behind him say "who is it??" I state my complaint and he says "ok, sorry". They shut the door and laugh...all uhh...3, 4, 5 of them. Not sure.

It started up again about 5 minutes later

To this day I wonder what 2 guys (apparently) and 1 girl were doing with a medicine ball that was (apparently) so pleasureable <img src="graemlins/surprised.gif" border="0" alt="[Surprised]" />
Be quiet, Brain, or I'll stab you with a Q-tip
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post #13 of 22
2/4/02 at 11:59pm
Thread Starter 
Ah dorms, how I don't miss them.
Some idiots on my hall a few semesters ago used to have screaming contests. They would just stand in front of each other and scream progressively louder.

"Guys, I could cut the sexual tension in this room with a spoon."

--

My roomate came up with a great idea: I should get a restraining order against this chick for sexual harrassment. 'Eat me' is definitely sexual in nature and her saying it to me has just made my 6'2", 235lb. self not feel safe anymore.
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post #14 of 22
2/5/02 at 12:02am
[quote]Originally posted by groverat:
<strong>I had a perfectly quiet neighbor for many months until one morning this horrible bass began its dull torture on my brain...</strong><hr></blockquote>


Whoa, that's strange. Exactly the same thing happened to me last week.

That is, nice and quiet for about two months, then terrible bass all the time, then tried knocking on the wall, then altercation with the belligerent occupant...
This is not 38, this is old 97!
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This is not 38, this is old 97!
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post #15 of 22
2/5/02 at 12:39am
Check with the city of Austin to see what the noise regulations are, how much noise is considered a nuisance, and at what time you can start making what noise. Don't do anything to harass her that could be used against you, and call, and keep calling the police as well as building management. You may "anonymously" print up the numbers of the police and building management for your neighbors (including next door, being sure to mention the name and apartment number of the woman) and pop then under some doors.

But do not contact this woman anymore. It would be very easy for her to get a restraining order against you for stalking.
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post #16 of 22
2/5/02 at 12:51am
Retaliation : the only answer.
Be sure that there is not any whitnesses. Buy silicon glue, and close her door with the glue.
She'll won't be able to get out.
Of course there will be not result, excepting have problem with the police. It will be great to see her face when she will realize that she is locked in her room.
OK just a bad and funny thinking. Of course you won't do that, only fools will do that, but sometimes it's good for nerves to think you may practice some little nasty retaliations.
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post #17 of 22
2/5/02 at 5:50am
[quote]My roomate came up with a great idea: I should get a restraining order against this chick for sexual harrassment. 'Eat me' is definitely sexual in nature and her saying it to me has just made my 6'2", 235lb. self not feel safe anymore.<hr></blockquote>That would be absolutely beautiful.
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FREEING ROBSTAHS!!!@@ RUN ROBSTAHS, GO, GO, ROBSTAHS, RUN FOR FREEDOM##@! DOMO-KUN SAVE ROBSTAHS;;
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post #18 of 22
2/5/02 at 8:41pm
I think you should sick the APD on her man. Those guys are nazis and will take the nightsticks to her if she doesn't turn down her music.
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post #19 of 22
2/5/02 at 10:55pm
I had a problem with the guy above me when I lived in an apartment a few years ago. A total drunk.

Complained to the landlord about it, and she was a REAL hardass. She got complaints from several tenants, and the prick was booted. I hadn't dealt with him myself - I can't be bothered trying to deal with someone so drunk they can't focus on your face - so he never really knew who called on him, probably just that a bunch of us did.

I did have fun with him one morning though, about a week before he moved out. I snuck upstairs to this door at about 2:30am during a good, loud party fest. I crazy glued his doorknob.

I could hear him swearing later that morning when he couldn't get out of his apartment. What an ass. Not sure how he ever did get out...

Just glad as hell that I no longer have neighbors.

[ 02-06-2002: Message edited by: murbot ]</p>
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post #20 of 22
2/5/02 at 11:52pm
another very effective method is to let the neighbor know that you are a proud, gun toting member of the NRA. you know, a few things in the wrong mailbox, that sort of thing.

how's that saying go again? "An armed society is a polite society"
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post #21 of 22
2/6/02 at 2:35am
Wow! It sure sucks to be some of you! As was posted earlier, I am glad I own my home.
NoahJ
"It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err." - Mahatma Gandhi
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NoahJ
"It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err." - Mahatma Gandhi
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post #22 of 22
2/6/02 at 3:58am
When she is out of the apt, pour crazy glue in the key hole. She won't be able to get back in which is better than not letting her out!....................
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