There’s nothing wrong with staying fit; even if your apartment block doesn’t have a gym there’s plenty of home gym equipment you can buy reasonably cheaply.
But while you’re doing the hard yards somebody’s peace of mind could be getting trampled underfoot.
QUESTION: The tenant above us has a treadmill in his unit and every time he uses it, the rumbling and vibration make us feel very uncomfortable and give us headaches, increasing our heartbeats, let alone his.
We talked to the resident three times and the strata manager sent two letters and now he only uses the machine during the daytime instead of at 2.30am or 11.30pm at night.
But the rumbling and vibrations still sound like a train over our heads whenever the treadmill is in use. And the tenant says he has a medical problem that means he needs to exercise every day.
We are concerned that our health will suffer because of the excessive noise and the worry that we might have to move – not so easy when we’ve bought the unit.
We sent a final letter to the body corporate but haven’t got any feedback yet. What we can do to stop him?
Over-run, Cronulla
ANSWER: There are three basic ways to approach this. The first would be to check your by-laws and see what they say about noise – a notice to comply could then be issued (by your EC or strata manager) with a potential fine for non-compliance.
If the EC won’t issue a notice to comply, you can take the matter to Fair Trading for mediation.
Alternatively, if you can prove this is a continuing and significant problem, you could get a solicitor to apply to your local magistrates court for a noise abatement order. If one is issued, any breaches would then be a police matter.
But another way would be to investigate the purchase a couple of heavy duty rubber mats – there are some specifically designed to reduce the noise from gym equipment – and maybe offer to split the cost with your upstairs neighbour.
Bear in mind, the first two options will make an enemy for the foreseeable future, the latter could result in a friend for life.