Balcony spa parties won’t wash

The owner of a spa installed on a balcony is about to get himself in hot water – despite the fact that the chairman of his building is a regular visitor.

Strata rules are just the start of it – spa boy could soon have the council, the cops and the courts on his wrinkly backside if he doesn’t pull his head in.

A reader has complained to Flat Chat that the throbbing of the pump and the late-night yakking of hot tub carousers keep her awake.

But her neighbour has told her he is entitled to make as much noise as he likes up till midnight and can keep his spa pump (and decorative fountain) running for as long as he wants.

This is so wrong in so many ways.

First things first, there is probably a strata rule in place protecting an owners right to the peaceful enjoyment of their lot. If there isn’t, in Victoria (whence this complaint comes), if a building’s Owners Corp rules don’t cover a specific subject then the relevant model rule supplied by the government applies.

Also, under Victorian strata law the Committee must respond to a complaint, even if it’s just to explain why they’re doing nothing. They are supposed to have an internal dispute resolution system for dealing with issues like this.

If the committee (and it’s highly relaxed chairman) won’t do anything, the neighbour can take the case to Consumer Advice Victoria and then to the Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal.

In NSW, there is a strata law protecting owners from nuisance and most schemes have a “peaceful enjoyment” by-law anyway.  There you would take your complaint to Fair Trading and, if need be, to the CTTT.

The idea that the spa party can disturb their neighbours until midnight is so out-of-date it could have come from an episode of Number 96.

Under Victorian Environmental Protection Authority laws – which apply to all homes –  the spa pump should not be operating after 10pm and before 7am Mondays to Fridays (9am weekends and public holidays).

Also, your neighbours should not be making so much noise that they can be heard inside your home.  The Victoria EPA’s webpage specifically refers to “a group of people talking outdoors late at night, keeping neighbours awake.”

Also, the EPA Victoria’s leaflet Annoyed By Noise explains how you can involve your local council, police and the courts to deal with persistent problems.

In NSW the restrictions on spa pumps are from 8pm to 7am Mondays to Saturdays and 8pm to 8am Sundays and public holidays. You can read the whole list of noise restrictions at the NSW EPA’s website and download a leaflet on neighbour noise and how to deal with it HERE.

In Queensland, if the strata scheme’s managers won’t help, noise issues are dealt with mostly by local councils, and regulations vary from place to place.

And before anyone cranks up the tired old “that’s why I would never live in strata” argument, these regulations apply to free-standing homes as well as apartments and townhouses.

At least in strata, you have an executive committee and strata manager to back you up … unless, of course, the chairman is in the spa and part of the problem.

You’ll find the whole story, including a more detailed response, on the Flat Chat Forum HERE.

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