Forum
« All Renovation Buying at Bed-Stuy »
August 21, 2008
Loud reno next door
So the house next to mine is being gutted and I've been told the resto will take 3-4 months. Even though there's nothing going on in front, I'm being woken up every morning with the floor of my bedrooms shaking to thumps and bangs.
I don't want to cause any drama, but it sucks.
Any precedent for getting projects like this to start a little later or maybe work on certain quieter things early in the morning? I was thinking what I would do if I was the owner next door...
Comments
How early is early?? Have you tried talking to them???
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at August 21, 2008 3:52 PM
I had a total gut reno next door to me. The worst was the pounding when they put the new beams in. That's 5 floors of beams, including the roof. I had soot and pieces of brick coming down my chimney and an entire section of plaster wall in my front room, ground floor, came loose and had to be replaced.
I don't think they are going to adjust their schedule for you, even if they are actually nice. They need to do the work in a certain order, especially in the beginning, and your beauty rest isn't a consideration, unfortunately. I think you are just going to have to suck it up, and wait it out. Hopefully you won't get my bunch, who didn't like to use the stinky Portapotty out front, and used my back bay window extension instead. That caused a confrontation that was probably heard all over Crown Heights.
Posted by: Montrose Morris at August 21, 2008 5:06 PM
Thanks Montrose. I was pretty much thinking along the same lines. So far they are using the bathroom inside the place, but I don't know what will happen when they rip that out.
They usually start after 8. That's fine for me most days. Not so much for my roomate who works late nights.
Posted by: spnder at August 21, 2008 5:43 PM
Earplugs, benadryl and patience... it can't last forever.
Posted by: vanburenproud at August 21, 2008 8:40 PM
sounds like you just have to deal...if you had renovations going on, you would want your neighbors to understand...
get noise cancelling headphones, maybe?
Posted by: Rusty S at August 22, 2008 8:34 AM
Just keep an eye on the things that can affect your house- like if they remove the rain gutter and the water pours onto your roof (and into the top floor bedroom). Or they decide to put up a new fence by knocking yours down (the common fence you're responsible for)and leaving it your yard. Or blocking access to the sidewalk for several hours by piling up the sheetrock delivery in front of your gate. Very often it's the contractor, not your neighbor, who creates the problem.
Other than that, you just have to wait it out. rusty s makes a good point about understanding on both sides. At least you know the renovation will end in a few months.
Posted by: lurker in the mist at August 22, 2008 9:34 AM
We are having our fireplaces restored and of the total three weeks worth of work, the actual "demo" takes less then two days. I have already received frantic calls from my neighbor that her house is falling apart, her husband who works at night cannot sleep during the day and there is dust in the front of the house.
Mind you we are on a bus block, house on the other side of this neighbor was totally renovated over 3 months and there is work across the street that starts around 8 and ends around 9 pm everyday.They have been nothing but rude and inconsiderate to me. They leave trash in front of my house on garbage days and I get a ticket that they refuse to pay. When there was a problem with the backyard fence, they said it was mine and we had it fixed. After that, it was theirs. They used my contractor to have their facade repainted but wouldnt let them into their house and told them they can go thru my house to get to the roof.
When a situation like this comes up, I am all up for just ignoring any concerns or issues this neighbor has. We have a major renovation coming up next year and it will take all summer. I expect this neighbor to call daily and my response will be to ignore any and all calls or concerns from her.
Posted by: onHalseySt at August 22, 2008 11:31 AM
This is a tangent, but onHalseySt, I think it's important to go above and beyond what's fair with neighbors for practical reasons. Your neighbor could get so pissed off that they call the DOB on you repeatedly, poison a pet, steak your mail...
...all unlikely, but possible. Even if nothing psycho ever happened between this neighbor and you, you are setting yourself up to do a lot more work ignoring...
Sometimes it's just easier to have civility between neighbors, even if that means that you have to be really big.
Have you tried a crap-cutting move like going over with a bottle of wine or some cookies, and asking in a concerned way about what the larger issue is? Maybe you did something that you don't realize that really stuck in their craw, and if you can apologize for it then maybe the war will be over?
Posted by: vanburenproud at August 22, 2008 1:02 PM
vanburenproud
I hear what you are saying. When we moved in, we tried to be good neighbors and even invited them for dinner and bbq, took care of their garden when they were away, etc. But it was never enough for them. Everytime there was a problem, they blame us - you sent your mosquitos from your yard, you are doing something to send the mice into my house, your weeds are annoying to look at. Everytime we are in our backyard, they come out and snoop and overhear and chime in... after a while it is annoying. All I want is to be left alone.
Posted by: onHalseySt at August 22, 2008 1:41 PM
sounds like you are a potential DOB Calling snitch... vanburenproud u said it right - Earplugs, benadryl and patience... it can't last forever. Dont be selfish, if it was your home being renovated you would expect everyone to deal with it...
Posted by: caseycrespo at August 24, 2008 4:28 PM
8 am really isn't that early. I believe the regulations allow them to start construction at 7:30. Count your blessings and hope they move onto a new phase soon.
Posted by: pmmtenement at August 24, 2008 7:23 PM
I have no problems with any work that goes on. It wouldn't be going on if it wasn't necessary and I am sure everyone wants to finish as soon as possible. I just think that some neighbors have nothing better to do and call and complain about every little thing.
Posted by: onHalseySt at August 25, 2008 10:54 AM
Post a comment
Please be patient while your comment is published. It may take a moment.