- This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 9 years, 5 months ago by .
-
Topic
-
I’ve had a water hammer noise for the past few 2.5 years which can wake me 3-4 times per night. The Strata manager claims everything is ok and they have done everything they can to maintain the system and it is not illegal to run a water pump which seems to trigger the noise, during the night. I am unfortunately the only owner affected by this as my unit is next to the pump room.
I have sent 28 emails including noise logs to strata and the building manager. I also appealed to the chair who said he did not think noise laws applied to common property and everyone has to put up with noise when they live in building, and I was welcome to get a noise assessment from the EPA (who do not do this).
I recently fronted up to an SC meeting thinking that I might be able to try and get this resolved and it was not an unreasonable request to get the problem fixed.
The Chair and Sec both insisted that “I pay for a noise assessment when they find nothing.” repeating this to me several times. I would not agree to this believing that the hot water system making the noise is common property. One member suggested I have super hearing and the building manager suggested I was hearing my fridge.
I contacted another SC member to try and resolve and she said she will try and help me to help myself and has negotiated with the Sec that if I can pay half the cost of a noise assessment as a gesture of goodwill. I have not agreed to this either.
Re the problem I am not an expert and would not know if a noise assessment can identify the problem or if an easier solution would be to sound proof the pump room. I’m not even at first base where they will agree there is an issue.
The meeting was 2 months ago and I have taken other steps via a lawyer, which are costly and I won’t go into now, as I need it fixed.
I found this intimidating, and distressing and am wondering if it is legal for 2 people on the SC to make up a rule such as this for another owner to pay?
-
Replies
-
This is one of those really fraught topics. I have run into this twice from the other side.
Once, I tried to help the unit owner. I went to her unit to listen to the noise she complained of. There was an audible noise from pipes which may or may not have had anything to do with adjacent units but it was so slight that I would not have noticed if it had not been very quiet and it was pointed out. I was young at the time, had excellent hearing and was much younger than the unit owner.
Another time more recently the complainant was bothered by his neighbour’s air-conditioner. I borrowed a sound db meter from labs where I worked. The levels, even close up, were barely above ambient noise levels in a quiet suburb. The EC said it would only do anything about it if the sound level at the boundary of his unit exceeded local government standards. The unit owner got some expert in to measure. The unit owner reported back that noise levels were far below the levels that would trigger grounds for a complaint according local government, yet he still thought we should impose a higher standard. We did not act on it and he instead installed double-glazing, which is always a good idea in any case for insulation in chilly ACT.
All this is not to say that SuzieQ might not have very reasonable grounds for complaint, unlike these neighbours of mine! I think ultimately though, the onus is on SQ to demonstrate that there is an unreasonable level of noise above some objective standard. If it is bad enough, it might be simply obvious to any visitor. Otherwise getting an objective measure or making one’s own modifications on the inside of the unit might be a way forward, I think. Whether there are modifications that would help, again requires some professional advice. The SC’s offer to share the cost of some professional advice seems quite reasonable to me, unless there is such an obviously gross problem that any visitor would agree.
My comment won’t add anything substantial to this discussion apart from information …. Unfortunately an acute sense of hearing can be a female ‘thing’. I have a far better sense of hearing (and smell) than my husband who is not bothered by many ‘ nuisances’ that bother me. The majority of the comments about ‘nuisance noise’ on this Forum come from our female contributors.
https://www.health.com/mind-body/5-surprising-ways-men-and-women-sense-things-differently
All that being said, perhaps this is a simple matter of having a plumber look at the pipes. Water hammer can be fixed. There may be issues with the pumps, flow valves, restrictions in the galvanised pipes etc. As buildings age so does their plumbing. This could be a better way of solving the problem.