Neighbor's Harley Davidson And The Noise Complaint.

[Harlow]

How would you move forward with this?

I am having a huge problem with a family from the neighborhood. They are LOUD 24/7 . Their kids scream at all hours of the day and night. I've talked to the parents before, and they laughed in my face and said it was kids being kids. I know kids noise, and what they are creating is not kid noise.

Now, the husband has got a Harley Davidson Motorcycle.

When he enters the neighborhood from the highway, he is loud. Loud, loud, loud rumbling like he's reving the bike up.  So loud he's waken me up from my sleep, as well as my other neighbors. He drives the bike at all hours of the night some days, mostly the weekends.

I went to him with my concerns , and he said there was nothing he could do about it. Now I don't know much about motorcycles but someone told me he's intentionally doing it because hes reving the gas. 

I am investing in earplugs and  a white noise machine. White Machines are just really hard to find  and I think I might have to order one from a website.

I'm just wondering if there's anything else I can do .

[Kaymyth]

From an etiquette standpoint, not really.  You've made polite requests, and they've blown you off.  The next logical step is to register a noise complaint with the police.  The downside to this is that if they guess that it was you who made the complaint, they can and might start working to make your life miserable.

[Harlow]

From an etiquette standpoint, not really.  You've made polite requests, and they've blown you off.  The next logical step is to register a noise complaint with the police.  The downside to this is that if they guess that it was you who made the complaint, they can and might start working to make your life miserable.

I figured there wasn't anything else I can do. A number of neighbors have spoken to them about it, I was the first.

[Shannon]

White Machines are just really hard to find  and I think I might have to order one from a website.

If you have an iPhone or an iPod Touch, you can get a white noise app for free, and you can plug it into computer speakers if you need it to be louder to cover the noise.

[Harlow]

White Machines are just really hard to find  and I think I might have to order one from a website.

If you have an iPhone or an iPod Touch, you can get a white noise app for free, and you can plug it into computer speakers if you need it to be louder to cover the noise.

Seriously?! I have both!!

[Kaymyth]

From an etiquette standpoint, not really.  You've made polite requests, and they've blown you off.  The next logical step is to register a noise complaint with the police.  The downside to this is that if they guess that it was you who made the complaint, they can and might start working to make your life miserable.

I figured there wasn't anything else I can do. A number of neighbors have spoken to them about it, I was the first.

That actually gives you a bit more cover.  If other neighbors have spoken up, it could be any one of you to call the police, which keeps Loud Neighbors from having a specific target to focus upon.

For the record, I'd call the cops, and I'd do it every. single. time. they woke me up.  Beware the wrath of a sleep-deprived me.

[Darcy]

You *and* your neighbors should do noise complaints.  The more the better.  And do it every single time it gets unbearable.

[noexitwounds]

You have the option to call the non-emergency police line every time you're woken up or disturbed after your area's legal "quiet hours" cut off (usually 10PM weekdays and 12-1AM weekends). After a certain number of confirmed complaints the neighbors will be fined and that might finally get it through to them. I'd also encourage your other neighbors who are being woken up by this to file complaints as well. There's nothing rude in exercising this right.

[missmolly]

Is this the same jerk who's kids intruded on your backyard?

I agree with other posters, call the cops.

[Chinchillazilla]

My dad has a motorcycle (not a Harley, though), and while they are loud, he tries to be as considerate as possible. He only starts it when it's REALLY time to go, and leaves the neighborhood as quickly as possible without idling or anything.

[Clara Bow]

I hesitate at advising people to call the cops on their neighbors, but you meet my criteria for doing so. You have tried on more than one occasion to politely ask them to keep it down. Your requests were met with shoulder shrugs and derision. There is little more that you can do.

Call the police and let them handle it. And call them every time it happens subsequently.

[MovieLover]

This is an example of why I go directly to the police with noise complaints.  I am not going to give people the opportunity to laugh in my face or to know who made the complaint so they can target their hostilities towards me.  I would get a recorder and start recording tape after tape of the noise with time and date noted.  A noise activated recorder should be easy to maintain.  Lastly I would call the police each and every time the noise starts up.

Some people will say you should talk to your neighbor first, which would be appropriate if it was occasional music that was too loud.  But for 24/7 noise and disturbance talking will only make you a target for who knows what.  People that live like that couldn't care less who they bother.

[Lynnv]

I am a biker and, under the circumstances you describe, I would go to the police.  The neighbors have refused to do anything about the noise level.  At least in theory, the police will have the ability to determine if the bike is running within legal limits for noise.   (This is one of those cases where sometimes the theory doesn't hold up as the training for these things is spotty, at best).

Unfortunately, if the bike is within legal limits and the guy or gal riding it is just being a jerk and revving it up, there may not be a lot they can do other than ask, again, for some common courtesy.  It doesn't sound like these folks have much of that in stock.....

[cattlekid]

I'm with the rest of the posters who suggested that you are well within your rights to make a formal noise complaint with the local PD.  I've had to do the same with our neighbors multiple times.  They let their cars sit in the driveway with the stereo turned up at all hours of the day and night.  So we give them until about 11PM and after that, the police are called.    Because of the wall-shaking bass, even the white noise machine plus fan doesn't help.

**I'm psyched about the white noise app for the iTouch.  I need to check that out as our white noise machine is on its last leg and inexpensive computer speakers will be more cost-effective than a whole new machine!!

[Harlow]

This is an example of why I go directly to the police with noise complaints.  I am not going to give people the opportunity to laugh in my face or to know who made the complaint so they can target their hostilities towards me.  I would get a recorder and start recording tape after tape of the noise with time and date noted.  A noise activated recorder should be easy to maintain.  Lastly I would call the police each and every time the noise starts up.

Some people will say you should talk to your neighbor first, which would be appropriate if it was occasional music that was too loud.  But for 24/7 noise and disturbance talking will only make you a target for who knows what.  People that live like that couldn't care less who they bother.

I agree with you Movielover about going directly to the police. I can totally see why you would do it. In my own view, it seems OTT without at least speaking to the person. I don't think your approach is bad.

I did call the police last night because he was so loud, it was 4am in the morning and I was not a happy camper . Today when I got home from work, he called out something to me from his yard. I didn't hear it but I think it was something like" Thanks for the police report.' or something.

I just shrugged my shoulders and went into my house.

Not wasting my time on that.