GazTheHat

This is driving us to despair. The flat above us has laminate flooring fitted and we hear every knock, bang and foot step. It doesn't help having a toddler too. It's really getting to us because they are up at least 2 hours before our alarm and have elephants tap-dancing up there. I also work from home a lot and it's distracting all day hearing bangs/knocks. What's worse is that we are woke up every morning. We've complained twice now, but he just said "what can i do"?

We want to take this further now. They own the flat and we're in Scotland. Is there anything that can be done to get the flooring changed to carpet?

DCI Gene Hunt

You could try talking to them, once they've said "No" then it's...

GazTheHat

Yeah, we've talked to them, but he just said "what can i do?" Well we said not putting the washing machine on at 7:30am that shakes our bed is a start. It's just the constant banging, wooden toys dropped on wooden floor, her walking around in heels, it really does sound like they're gonna come through the ceiling.

I just wandered if they could be asked to remove the laminate if there's no enough underlay or something. I even thought we might be able to drop the ceiling and put insulation in, as they're very high. I dunno. We're at a loose end and would prefer not To Let. The more i'm reading, the more that seems like the only way.

It's not like we can pay-back with some Home Cinema action, as their bedroom is above again.

Ant

Rent the Place above them for 6 mOnths and stick laminate down and buy 10 washing machines. Bit drastic but they'll get the picture

fivetide

iTrader: (1)

Not much you can do really. You can't ask them to change their floor and kids make noise. They won't tip toe around their house. It is a big issue with laminate though, know a few places that have had issues in the past but it is a case of having to ignore it or move.....

slip em a tenner to go out when you are showing the place though!

5t.

scud8

iTrader: (1)

Assuming it's a leasehold, have you looked at the covenants accompanying the lease? I don't have the paperwork with me, but I seem to remember the lease on my son's flat in Swansea has a covenant prohibiting hard floors (IIRC it mandated carpet or soft lino).

Pjamie

I feel your pain. We lived in a Edinburgh tenement (4 floors, 2 flats per floor) and new neighbours moved in above us. They promptly removed all the carpets back to the bare wooden floors and the noise drove us crazy. They weren't being "noisy", it was just the everyday sounds of them walking, talking, the TV being on, kids running around, things being dropped, chairs scraping accross floors. The previous neighbours had the same things but the carpets muffled all the sounds. We loved the flat - it was huge - but moved out 4 months later as we needed our sleep and sanity.

Sorry, but I don't think there's much you can do. Unless they are being excessively noisy with party's and other such activities, I don't think everyday noises are enough. It's selfish and insensitive of them to put that kind of flooring down when people live below them, but it isn't illegal.

As you suggested, you could fit a false ceiling to insulate the sound, but it's not a cheap option and would make any resale difficult.

Luminous

iTrader: (3)

The covenants idea is a good one. Issues with laminate floors in flats is a common one, so hopefully you will have some sort of covenant that can help you out.

Coffin Dodger

As above, have heard about that before where hard floors are not allowed in flats under the terms of the lease. Besides which it's just not a friendly thing to do to your neighbours.

I do sympathise though, flat I had was great until new occupants moved in to the flat above. They weren't noisy intentionally (at least I hope not) but the bloke was really heavy on his feet and you hear it all. Think they had carpets too. His missus was quite noisy in the sack too Eventually moved into my now wife's house anyway but they moved out a week previous

You did say you had high ceilings, if it came to it you could batten out the ceiling, fit acoustic insulation and new plasterboard over. Costly though....

Luan Pra bang

Ask him to come and listen to how loud it is, it may give him a better perspective. It is may also be worth making a **** load of noise yourself just to make sure that if you are miserable he can be miserable as well.

GazTheHat

It's only Free-Hold apparently in Scotland.

I've thought about getting one of them down to hear the noise. But even then, he could still do nothing or i don't know what he can do, apart from the cost of changing back to carpets.

The guys is relatively quiet. He's up at 6 and i hear him twice a week. It's his wife. Her and the kiddo are the noisey ones, she wears heals prancing around most mornings at 7. So there's hardly any time to get back to sleep, before you're awoke again.

I think we're gonna change our sleeping pattern for now. Get up at 7 instead (our alarm is 9am as we work at 11am) Go the gym or something. Still doesn't get rid of the noise though.

scud8

iTrader: (1)

There may still be covenants attached to the deeds that all freeholders have to adhere to. If you own your flat you would have a copy of these from the purchase. If you're renting your landlord should have them (and he should be motivated to help if it makes his flat less attractive).

Wurzel

iTrader: (1)

Buy them some slippers and rugs! tell her not to walk round in heals and put the kid and its toys on a rug.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Wrong underlay.

1. Bet he used that naff foam, it shoud be green fibre board at the very least.

2. Washing machines should NOT be put on top of laminate....its a floating floor, a washing machine needs a fixed solid base. On laminate it'll vibrate.

3. You live in a ****ty flat with poor isolation and insulation between rooms, at a guess its probably a house thats been converted into flats. 90% these are done on a budget hence noise isolation suffers. A purpose built flat should have full isolation between flats.

You can have an elephant stampede in my Gran's flat and not hear anything in the flat below Thats a concrete structure, with screed sub floors. A flat converted from a house with wooden floor joists will transmit noise big style.

Wish

iTrader: (2)

Really really feel for you .... There is nothing worse than feeling stressed in your own home by an outside influence.

Cant help but hope you can get it sorted.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Some useless Scottish government info (links don't work ): http://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/web/f...bour_noise.pdf


Bit more informative: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/...ch/hardfloors/ (pdf link is highly relevent to the construction of your flat)

Info on typical flat noise charteristics: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/...36/0090925.pdf

Some scottish BS nonsense on how to deal with neighbours: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publicati...03/8527/File-1

Hysteria1983

Laminate flooring is noisy.

Ask my neighbour, he will tell you.

If its that bad, follow the above advice about finding out if they should have fitted it.

Leslie

Apart from appealing to their better nature to do something to make the floor surface quieter I can't think of much else you can do. I have no idea whether it is possible to get the council to make them do so if they refuse.

They are certainly being unfair with their normal habits in their apartment and it is a matter of trying to get them to think about someone else rather than just themselves. Pretty difficult these days I am afraid.

Les

Coffin Dodger

Milf? Get some pics up

I like a woman in heels

dpb

I guess ultimately youve got to move if theres nothing in the regs forcing them to relay floor , pity theres not something like expanding foam or similar you could squirt thro holes in the ceiling between the joists to dampen the sound

brownstain85

You kinda got to expect it when moving into a block of flats! My first flat was in a block, 3 floors n I was in the middle, to be fair the guy upstairs was a bit of a weirdo and a loner and made very little noise, the couple downstairs I got on with and as much as I tried to not make noise early in the morning and late in the night it is quite hard, what you want him to do ignore the kid when it wakes up at 7 in the morning for 2 hours and let it scream untill ur alarm goes off? The odd rattle dropping on the floor is bearable, a kid screaming cuz he's not allowed to have his toys is enough going to drive u crazy on a different level! Not really alot u can do unfortunately!

GazTheHat

It's a real old building, think it might've been a guest house before that is converted into 4x flats, as you mention Ali-B, not proper construction for flats.

We own and so do they, i'll look into this covenant business. I'm going to the CAB this week on a separate matter, so will ask them what can be done.

It is really frustrating, because not only are being awoken every morning, i'm now just thinking of nothing else, making it worse.

Thanks for the comments/links, having read most, it does look like we've got to move. Which is just ****. Our flat is dead nice, high ceilings, log burner, installed Home Cinema, garden front & rear with veggie beds etc and if we find one as nice, our monthly costs will go up for sure, which we can't afford. Agghh!!

Coffin Dodger

Moving is a bit drastic! You could sound proof the ceilings without too much outlay.

53

iTrader: (41)

We had this on holiday once, done my feckin nut in Nice country retreat in an old papermill, laminate flooring above = no holiday lay in. In my own home it would drive me mental !

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

Really feel for you mate.
We recently moved from a flat to our first house and will never look back.
Like someone has said, unless their is something in the covenant that specifically says that these floors cannot be fitted, there is nothing you can do.
It's ok saying that the neighbours might consider changing the flooring but why would they? They didn't even ask for your thoughts on them fitting it in the first place?

Worth having a good moan and explaining to them that the idea wasn't a very clever one considering they have to share the building. But then this will probably cause problems and make living there even worse. Got a big sub that you can face at the ceiling at 3am?

Joys of living in a flat I'm afraid.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

School of thought: Who manages the building?

I'm wondering if its possible to apply a covenant or resident's agreement on a retrospective basis?

Would obviously have to set up a resident's meeting and get a majority vote to get it actioned and the covenant created or ameded to address this. Which at least would prevent further rooms and other flats being laid with hard flooring, but I don't know if legally one could apply this to hard flooring that already exists.

StickyMicky

I feel your pain, the flat above mine has the cheap chav flooring.

It can be an utter nightmare, we have been lucky in that after i scared away the noisey partyboy ******* (documented on here) the next chap to move in was SPOT ON!

He wore slippers because in his words "it has that noisy flooring"

He only lived above us for 6 months while his divorce was being sorted out and the flat has been empty ever since (well over 1 year now)

We would not have stayed here if somebody moved in as it is a total PITA

I had to resort to wearing ear plugs for sleep.

FWIW we are actually planning on moving anyway asap, the missus has been to view this this afternoon, just waiting for her to get home, she sent me a text telling me she was looking at it at 4pm

http://www.vebra.com/property/10519/22132310

It is £95 per month more than we are paying for this 2 small bedroom shoebox (it does have a cracking view over the marina though)

Looks a worth upgrade for us at the moment, although i am desperate to get on the property ladder, nobody will touch us as i have only been in my job for 2 months.