How do I stop a noisy neighbour??

[mr_a500]

I need help urgently. I'm living in an apartment and the neighbour above plays super-loud deep bass music and makes lots of other annoying loud hammering noises. It is driving me insane. Earplugs don't work. Loud fans don't work. Nothing blocks the noise. It has been going on for months.

I went upstairs and politely asked him to turn down the bass (not even the volume, just the bass) and told him it was shaking my apartment. He instantly became a total ass and I had to use all my effort to avoid pounding him and getting charged with assault. When I left, he even turned it up.

I called the police and they said my best option was for me to move out! They said they'd send an officer around to ask him to turn it down. I waited 6 hours and nobody came. He finally turned off the music at 3:00AM. Even if the police did come, he'd probably turn it back up when they left.

I need to find a way to stop the jerk. Unfortunately in Canada we have laws against murder, so that's out. I can't think of a way to stop him without me ending up in jail or fined in court. I have no mafia connections that could help. What can I do? What can I do???

HELP!

[X-ray]

You need to get a written complaint signed by all your other neighbours and take that down to the police. From there on out, every time he plays that bass so loud, just call the police. Each time a call is made, make sure it comes from a different person on the list. That way you don't become a nuisance to the police. The common factor/nuisance then becomes the dude with the bass. They will sort him out.
If that doesn't work you have to move I'm afraid.

[Karlos]

Or failing that, work out when he sleeps, which is probably during the day, by the sound of it and be sure to make plenty of noise and encourage any other disenfranchised neighbours to do the same. He'll soon get the hint...

Or you could mail him a 'free music CD' that contains a sequence of maximum intensity spikes in an attempt to blow his speakers...

[T_Bone]

Turn his power off.

Cut that little wimpy wire lock and just yank his meter out and set it on the ground. (Or hide it  :lol: )

[mr_a500]

@X-ray
The problem is that the other neigbours don't want to complain. They are all recent immigrants (GTA area is now filled with foreigners) and don't want to get involved.

Or you could mail him a 'free music CD' that contains a sequence of maximum intensity spikes in an attempt to blow his speakers...

Oooh...very creative. I doubt it would work though. I was considering other plans like squirting a foul-smelling liquid through his mail slot or thowing eggs through his open window, but the problem is that now he would instantly suspect me and retaliate somehow. I now wish I didn't complain so I could do things without being suspected, but I foolishly thought it would be better to reason with him. "Never attempt to reason with a fool."

I also considered getting into a "sound war" by buying a super sub-woofer setup, but I would end up disturbing other neighbours. I wish there was a way to have directional sound. I'd like to pump maximum volume directly at his head and make it explode!

[mr_a500]

Turn his power off.

That was my first plan. Unfortunately this is an apartment and there are no individual meters. The only way to shut off his power would be to open the power panel for the entire floor. It's locked and right out in the open. Even if I could get it open, that's the first place they'd check to turn it back on. (...and I'd be suspected and charged)

[Speelgoedmannetje]

Blow up the powerhouse next to your apartment :lol:

[Speelgoedmannetje]

 :bump:

[T_Bone]

Can you complain to the Landlord or Rental Office?

You could always file a private nuisance lawsuit against this guy, which seeks to gain reimbursement for the rent you paid for a property you have been prevented by him from using and enjoying.

You could get a copy of the lease and/or the local noise ordinance, and attach either/both to your written complaint, in prep for the above, and attach it to his door. (send a copy to the landlord)

Private nuisance lawsuits can be filed in small claims court, no lawyer required.

[mr_a500]

Can you complain to the Landlord or Rental Office?

We recently got a new superintendent and he plays super-loud deep bass too! I doubt he'd be sympathetic. I bet if I complain to the Landlord and threaten to move, he'd be only too happy. There's a rental shortage and they'd be able to increase the rent for the next tenant.

It looks like moving IS my only option. There should be more laws to protect people from extreme noise made by inconsiderate morons. Why should I have to move because somebody wants to blast a stereo?

What has happened to society? In the old days, the loudest noise somebody could make was their own drunken singing and you could block out the noise or threaten to fight them to stop it. Now in modern society, they can make noises louder than a jet engine and there's no way to stop them. A simple punch will send you to jail and give you a criminal record, ruining your life. Modern life sucks.

Blow up the powerhouse next to your apartment

I'd knock out the power to the whole city with an electromagnetic pulse if I could.

[mr_a500]

You could always file a private nuisance lawsuit against this guy, which seeks to gain reimbursement for the rent you paid for a property you have been prevented by him from using and enjoying.

I'll look into that. You're probably thinking of US laws and in Canada it'll be different. Here, it's expensive and painfully tedious to file lawsuits. The legal system seems set up to make money, not enforce justice. In the end, it'll probably turn out to be an extreme waste of time, effort and money. And how could I prove anything? I'd need some kind of decibel meter, witnesses and recorded audio with timestamps.

[T_Bone]

Make him hit you first, then beat the wheels off of him!  :-P

[odin]

I know I would get aggressive and become a danger to that person :/.

[iamaboringperson]

Are both appartments managed by the same landlord/real estate agent?

I complained about the noise etc of my neighbors, and the realestate agent investigated what was going on, and eventually (some of) the neighbors were kicked out. There is still the person living above me now (not to mention the poofters who are a couple of doors away...) however I've spoken to a person from the real estate, and they're going to be kicked out on the 31st!! :-D

If there is some common ownership or management between the appartments, then that's what I'd do.

Unfortunately in Canada we have laws against murder, so that's out.

Damn. Same in Australia. That's the very reason I don't kill my brother.

[T_Bone]

If he's directly above you...

Hmmm...

I wonder if you could rent a jackhammer, take off a ceiling fan or light fixture, or somehow temporarily expose one of his floor joists, hang the jackhammer from the joist and run it for a minute or so, just enough to shake all his dishes from his cupboards, the crap off his tables, and the pictures from his walls. Maybe do this while his bass is booming.

Unreasonable people are just begging for a Mel Gibson style response.  ;-)