301–310 of 316 posts
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...and now you know why nosy HOAs are so common even though people always talk about hating them.
It should be possible to have a simple rule requiring noise not to cross into a neighbor's residential property, without having a dedicated organization of busybodies collecting dues and micromanaging everything with a constantly changing set of restrictions.
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this is not very simple. sound doesn't just "stop" at a certain point; it dissipates until a specific sound can't be heard over the noise floor. the only realistic approach is to set a dB level that can't be exceeded for a sustained duration. this is how the law already works in most localities; it just isn't enforced unless you really nag the police.
You can litigate everything forever if you want to be sufficiently pedantic, but that's missing the point. It's not that you don't at some point have to make a decision about how loud is too loud. It's that you can have a noise ordinance without giving anyone the capacity to compel anyone else to use a specific landscaping company or style.
of course you can, this is how the law already works in most relatively dense places!
your original post seemed to imply that you weren't aware of noise ordinances outside of HOA bylaws, apologies if I misunderstood.
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I agree but unfortunately in my experience the opposite is true in Texas - newer construction usually has thinner walls with less dampening between dwellings. Windows are usually fine though.
Huh. that's an interesting point I hadn't thought of; I always attributed the difference in quality to just, you know, the stricter housing code and better building tech in general... but that's not the only factor at work in Silicon Valley. In Silicon Valley, sure, most of the housing stock was built rather a long time ago, yes, but it was also built to the expectations of people who didn't make a lot of money. The…
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This is just the "guns don't kill people, people kill people" argument, but with dogs. Of course if every dog owner was perfect then we wouldn't have problems with dogs, but you will never get everyone to be perfect, it's a losing battle, wether they be gun or dog owners. I'm willing to bet that 99% of dog owners around me are responsible, but whetever percentage of dog owners are not responsible are the cause of all…
we need to ban assault dogs, and close the dog-show loophole! :P
Unironically, yeah.
Many people either cannot hear very low frequency sound, and they cannot understand what it’s like for those of us who can. The sounds don’t necessarily get louder at night - there are just fewer competing sounds to mask them. Earplugs and other sound barriers make it worse by filtering out higher frequency sounds, making the remaining VLF sounds seem louder. VLFs also penetrate earth, stone, concrete, etc. And becau…
Do you have any citations to support this claim?..
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Do you have neighbors and/or are you in an area with lawns that need maintenance? Suburbs in the midwest are inundated with noise: lawnmowers, leaf blowers, trimmers, and cars.
One nice thing is that battery electric versions of all of those are now quite good and are becoming more popular. They still make some noise of course, but far, far less than gas powered versions. The lack of maintenance is great too. I could have a conversation at a normal speaking volume beside my lawnmower if I wanted. (Of course I would probably shut it off, since it's only a pull of a switch to start it again!)
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Were there it not that my perception of the sound was highly dependent upon my location (even within one room), I might be inclined to believe it was my problem. If you’ve ever played with a good subwoofer, you know that where you stand relative to the speaker and the frequency it is generating greatly impacts your ability to hear it. You can be in a dead zone and hear almost nothing, but a few steps back or forward…
Of course environment & context effects hearing. Ears perceive changing air pressure as sound. The body feels other frequencies (whatever that's called). FWIW, my SO's perceptions varied with location as well. At the very least, an audiologist (?) would help you rule out factors. Or in our case, becoming more aware of the current best available science. Think of it as a physical. I certainly wish I had my hearing per…
Fortunately it's rare that I'm in a location that's so bad for me that I can't handle it. The low-speed air purifier (fan) solution is usually good enough when necessary.
Many people either cannot hear very low frequency sound, and they cannot understand what it’s like for those of us who can. The sounds don’t necessarily get louder at night - there are just fewer competing sounds to mask them. Earplugs and other sound barriers make it worse by filtering out higher frequency sounds, making the remaining VLF sounds seem louder. VLFs also penetrate earth, stone, concrete, etc. And becau…
There is a difference between "being able to hear" very low frequencies and a situation where the inner ear has been sensitized - in many cases through a continuous LFN immission that's slightly below the average hearing threshold. If the exposure is constant, the dampening mechanism that is managing the adaption of the cochlea to sound of various intensities can "wear out" on a cellular level and the ear is basicall…
Whether it's accepted or not as "a thing", the book "The Highly Sensitive Person" did mostly describe me. I read the book only recently, so I didn't develop the sensitivities as a result of reading about them :).
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i’m not going to post the same reply twice, but if you would read my reply to a sibling post you’ll see what i’m talking about.
Thanks, and someone else posted [1] so now I could look for more info on it! I'm now extremely curious -- what do noise-cancelling headphones do for you? You can see here [2] that Bose's QC35's reduce the lowest frequencies (down to 20 Hz) by between 10 and 30 dB -- and the Wikipedia link suggests that the Hum is in the range of 32-80 Hz, so is certainly covered. If they make a difference, that could indicate that yo…
Also, when I tried the new big Sony noise canceling headphones (very highly rated), I found the sensation somewhat unsettling. They did indeed shut out practically every external sound (in a big store, not at home in bed), but I perceived some kind of constant subtle positive air pressure in my head similar to what you feel about half a meter under water.
My solution now in the rare case where I'm in a location that bothers me is to use some low speed fan to create lower frequency white noise. Also, either I've been luckier the last few years where I've lived or I'm becoming less sensitive to it, because I don't get bothered as often.
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I use Howard Leight’s Max every night during sleep to keep my sanity.
They’re great. But the sound of my own heart beat is annoying. And I’m worried about if I’d hear the smoke alarm.