well there goes the shop

[nick brigg]

had a friendly visit from the police this afternoon basically saying im too noisy and that i cant really use my power tools for as long as i have been anymore. so i can now either, give it up, move to a rural area, sell my power tools and go all hand tools...

[Dave Westover]

Your tax dollars at work! Can you try to insulate? Cheaper than moving Id think.

[Brian Effinger]

That's BS! As long as you're not running the machines at midnight, you shouldn't have to shut things down. It sounds to me that one of your neighbors doesn't like you and used this as an excuse to cause problems.

[nick brigg]

That's BS! As long as you're not running the machines at midnight, you shouldn't have to shut things down. It sounds to me that one of your neighbors doesn't like you and used this as an excuse to cause problems.

that was exactly it. we've been having problems with our immediate neighbors for years. they call city inspectors to check with whenever someone in the area is doing some renovation. frankly im ready to move to a farm and rent out this house to tenants.

[John Keeton]

I'd look for a tenant with 8 kids, 6 dogs, 4 cats and a Vietnemese pig!! Make the neighbors beg you to come back!

[Jim Becker]

I think before you jump the gun, you should find out what the actual local ordinances are...if there are any...and see if your woodworking activities are either within them or can be adapted to them. It would usually be reasonable to expect someone to knock off such activities after a certain time at night and not be engaged in the noisy activity prior to a certain time in the morning, but I cannot imagine there is any kind of blanket prohibition on "noise" that is reasonable...your lawn would never get mowed if there was. Things may be touchier, however, if you are in an MDU...rather than a single home with physical separation from your neighbors.

[Sean Troy]

had a friendly visit from the police this afternoon basically saying im too noisy and that i cant really use my power tools for as long as i have been anymore. so i can now either, give it up, move to a rural area, sell my power tools and go all hand tools...

There are laws protecting you. Check out your local codes and throw a restraining order at your neighbors. Thats the problem in this country now a days, to many people bowing down to so few. Stand up for your rights !

[Eric Larsen]

If you live in an HOA, give the management company a call. I've heard of HOA managers showing up with decibelometers and measuring the noise. If it falls within X tolerance, you're good to go, and your neighbor can pound sand.

Also, if your shop is in the garage, head to the Big Box. You can buy garage door insulating panels for next to nothing. I installed them in my garage (I need them and an evaporative cooler in the desert). In addition to dropping my shop temperature by 30f in the summer, it made a big difference to what could be heard outside -- 1/2" of styrofoam is a good acoustic insulator.

Sorry you live next to the neighborhood sorehead, BTW.

[nick brigg]

they're old cranky retired italians, the police were very friendly and understanding of my situation, they explained that if i made noise here and there, then its no problem, but as i was doing it, it was borderline commercial. they said they could hear my dust collector clearly(garage door closed). i doubt there is anything i can do, if there was they would have told me. im pretty upset as you can imagine.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I think you need to get some clarification on what is too much noise, including decibels (is there a noise ordinance there?) How much on versus off time and between what hours? Check with the police department, selectman/city hall, and pehaps consult an attorney especially if you find a lack of details ordinances. If your neighbors want to play games then find out the rules and play.

[fRED mCnEILL]

My question is "what" is loud, or quiet for that matter. How would it be determined that your shop is too loud. Just because the police didn't give you any options doesn't mean there aren't any.

I would go to city hall and find out what the ACTUAL regulations are. Then find out how much noise you are making. That is a starting point to find out how much you have to reduce.

How does your noise level compare to an air conditioner and how would the police compare your dust collector with that of an airconditioner.They are unqualified to make that determination.

The police are simply responding to a complaint. Unless they KNOW what the noise level is and are able to measure your noise level it is all subjective.

It is possible to reduce the noise coming out of a building to zero. Surely you can reduce it to an acceptable level using foam insuation. Its realtively cheap.

And as far a the cops saying its borderline commercial thats a load of BS. They would have a hrad time proving hobby woodworking is commercial.

Don't let them tread on you.

On the other hand if you want to move to a farm I highly reccomend that.We have 10 acres and don't worry about noise, animals etc. Its GREAT.

Fred Mc

[John Shuk]

I would think that in the noise ordinance there would be something listing a decibel level. As far as I know the db level must be taken at the source of the complaint not at the source of the noise.
The police are not code enforcement officers. I doubt that they are trained in the zoning laws in your town. It is inappropriate for them to tell you that your usage violates commercial vs. residential zoning law.
I would not accept this as a reason to shut my shop down and I don't think you should either.

[Ron Dunn]

Keeping the neighbours happy is, to me, far more important than a hobby.

People are entitled to peace and quiet in their homes. You have the right to have a hobby, but with that right comes the obligation to ensure that your hobby doesn't interfere with your neighbours' peaceful enjoyment of their time at home.

When I set up my current workshop I consulted with each of my neighbours. We reached an agreement that I would only use noisy power tools (ie, table saw, jointer thicknesser, routers) between the hours of mid-day and 3pm on any day. Further, if they were planning an outdoor function, they'd let me know and I'd avoid machinery during that time.

In fact, since making that agreement, I probably only do 2-3 hours of machine work per week. Everyone is perfectly happy.

Don't be a neighbourhood pest. Or don't be surprised if the neighbours get ugly.

[Kim Dressler]

Around here the noise ordinance is midnight. Nothing loud after that time. I would just love to know how something you do as a hobby and is theraputic can be considered commercial. I hope you get it figured out.

[nick brigg]

Keeping the neighbours happy is, to me, far more important than a hobby.

People are entitled to peace and quiet in their homes. You have the right to have a hobby, but with that right comes the obligation to ensure that your hobby doesn't interfere with your neighbours' peaceful enjoyment of their time at home.

When I set up my current workshop I consulted with each of my neighbours. We reached an agreement that I would only use noisy power tools (ie, table saw, jointer thicknesser, routers) between the hours of mid-day and 3pm on any day. Further, if they were planning an outdoor function, they'd let me know and I'd avoid machinery during that time.

In fact, since making that agreement, I probably only do 2-3 hours of machine work per week. Everyone is perfectly happy.

Don't be a neighbourhood pest. Or don't be surprised if the neighbours get ugly.

theres no reasoning with these people, they had the city threaten us with fines because we placed a rubbermaid shed too close to our fence.