How to Deal with Loud Walking Upstairs Neighbors: Useful Tips and Tricks
Do you have loud walking upstairs neighbors? You are not alone. Many people find that their apartment or house is located right above someone who likes to slam the door, stomp up the stairs, and make a ton of noise when they walk around. What can you do about this issue? There are many things that you can try to get your upstairs neighbor to be more respectful of how much noise they make when inside your home. This article will cover some easy ways for coping with noisy neighbors by giving practical tips and tricks on what you should say, do, or buy to get them to be quieter while inside your property.
What Can You Do About Loud Walking Upstairs Neighbors?
When you hear excessive noise coming from your upstairs neighbor, it can be very frustrating. While there are other options to deal with this problem such as calling the police or looking for a new place to live, these are not always practical solutions. Some people simply cannot afford another apartment or house and they cannot move out because of financial constraints either. The only thing that they can do is find ways on how to get their noisy neighbors to stop being so loud while inside the home above them. Here are 10 tips you should follow to make living under an extremely noisy person slightly more bearable.
Try to Find Out the Source of Noise
The first thing you should do is find out the source of the noise. Is it your upstairs neighbor walking around their apartment? Do they have loud children who are running around and screaming at all hours of the day or night? Are there certain days where you hear more stomping than usual?
If it’s just walking, then there may not be a problem at all and the person above you is simply going about their business normally. However, if they slam doors or stomp on purpose as part of some strange ritualistic behavior, this could be more problematic. Some people have been known to do strange things such as talking loudly to bother those living below them so that everyone has less quiet than before. In any case, finding out where the sound comes from can help you decide how best to deal with it later on down the road.
Check for Damage in the Ceiling to Reduce the Noise Level
Another thing you can do is to check for any damage to the ceiling. Sometimes, there are things such as drywall cracks or missing tiles that may be responsible for making noise travel between floors more easily than before. If it’s just a crack somewhere then this could also be what is causing your upstairs neighbor to stomp around so loudly because they hear it through the floor and it makes them want to stomp more to get back at you. In any case, checking for damage can be a great way of determining what is causing your upstairs neighbor’s loud walking so that you know how best to deal with it later on down the road.
That’s why it may be a good idea to hire an expert and have them do some repairs so that they can fix any issues with the drywall or tiles to reduce noise levels for both you and your neighbors above. A simple patch job on some drywall after checking out all of these problems might do wonders when trying to keep things quiet during late-night walks back and forth on the floor above you.
Ask Your Upstairs Neighbors To Stop Stomping
The simplest way to get your upstairs neighbor to stop being so loud is by asking them politely. Sometimes, people are completely unaware of the amount of noise they make when moving around and walking back and forth between rooms. If this seems like a reasonable explanation for what’s going on in their apartment above you, then it might be worth talking one-on-one with them about how much sound travels through the ceiling into your place. They may not even realize that you can smell whatever they cooked last night or hear every single thing that their kids do while running down hallways during the day because it all sounds muffled from up top. Be friendly and ask if there is anything that can be done to reducing or other activities which could be making noise. They may have a good idea of what the issue is and how best to resolve it without any input from you whatsoever.
Compromise With Your Neighbors
In some cases, you might try to be understanding and reach a compromise with your noisy upstairs neighbors. Get them something nice like their favorite type of beer or wine to show that there are no hard feelings about the noise they make when walking around during certain hours of the day or night. This can help build up some goodwill between both parties so later down the road things will be easier when it comes to dealing with loud walking upstairs neighbors.
In such an atmosphere you can discuss and set certain hours that would be the best time for doing things such as work-out, watching TV or listening to loud music. In return, you can ask your neighbor for some favor in return because compromise is all about giving something in return. This will help both of you to get noise-free hours to sleep properly or make your work done.
Make a Present to Your Neighbors. Buy a Thick Carpet or Rug
Another great idea is to present for walking in an apartment. You can make a present to the neighbors by making them some good, soft stuff or buy a nice thick rug or carpet on which they can walk more softly. This will help reduce noise levels between floors since all movement becomes softer when being done on top of such surfaces. If this option sounds appealing then go ahead and buy new comfortable flooring for the upcoming holiday season.
Complain To the Management
If none of these tips work or your upstairs neighbor is being completely unreasonable about noise levels, then you may want to consider complaining to the management. They are usually able either force your neighbors to quiet down by law if they have tenants living on their property that is not abiding by local laws. If it’s just a single-family house with no formal rules for this type of situation then the owner still has all authority over what happens under his roof so he can tell them whatever he wants to resolve things amicably between both parties involved. to
In such a way your neighbors might just agree with your complaint if it’s presented in a polite, friendly manner. Be sure not to blame or accuse anyone since this will only hurt your situation further down the road when trying to deal with loud walking upstairs neighbors. Just stick to describing what has been happening instead of taking sides while talking about how important it is for everyone involved that some sort of noise reduction solution can be found as quickly as possible to make life easier all around.
Get a White Noise Machine
One of the most practical solutions available to you is getting a white noise machine or sound machine. This type of device can help will help drown out any sounds coming from the floor above so that they become less noticeable and easier for you to ignore. It won’t remove every single sound but it will certainly reduce enough levels for you to be able to get some much-needed rest at night which should lead up to better performance throughout the day as well since there’s less chance of falling asleep due to fatigue during important meetings, classes, and lectures.
Also, they’re usually small enough and comes in different shapes for easy storage wherever you need them but powerful enough to drown out most sounds from above.
Use Noise-Canceling Earplugs
Another great thing to use is noise-canceling earplugs. They work by blocking out the majority of sounds with their high level of insulation which is usually over 32 decibels so that they’re able to protect your ears without being too noticeable at all. These types of devices have been around for decades now and can be bought in any drugstore, hardware store, or online retailer as well if you don’t want to go with a certain brand just yet.
The best part about these items is that they help insulate sound naturally so there’s no need for batteries or power sources needed since they create their little barrier between what has been deemed unsafe levels of volume and your sensitive eardrums which may otherwise suffer permanent damage due to high-intensity noise coming from a nearby source.
Soundproof Ceiling in Your working Place or Apartment
If you’re dealing with loud walking upstairs neighbors at your workplace then it may be a good idea to invest in soundproofing ceiling options. These work by creating an extra layer of protection between the floors above and below which absorbs some noise that’s not completely blocked out by all this insulation material on the walls, windows, doors, etc.
The first thing you can try is to decouple the ceiling from the floor to the floor joist. And the way of doing this is to get rid of the drywall and install some resilient channels. This is the only way that you’re going to get rid of impact noise because by just adding more mass without decoupling the vibration, I mean, yes, it will probably sound a little bit less. But you’d have to have a lot of drywall to eliminate that and you will you’ll have a hard time eliminating that vibration of a person walking right on top of you. So decoupling is the way to go.
Now, if you’re going to be getting rid of the drywall and installing a resilient channel, one thing that you should do is add some sound deadening insulation. sound deadening insulation is a little bit more expensive than just regular fiberglass insulation, but it works a lot better at soundproofing and sounds deadening.
Well, now probably on the ceiling, you already have five-eight-inch drywall. Now if you don’t want to do any construction, ripping out the ceiling, then what you just need to do is add a second layer of drywall. But make sure that it’s five-eight-inch drywall because the half-inch is just not as thick, and it’s just not as good for soundproofing. You can go a little bit further and buy sheetrock that is designed specifically for soundproofing. It has a separation of the two sheets and in the middle and they have some type of acoustical compound that helps deaden the noise from going through.
Move Forward To The Next Peaceful Place
If everything mentioned above fails, the only thing left is to move out altogether. This may be costly but it will give you peace of mind. You can either rent or buy another place that suits your budget and identify a new location for the same reasons as moving into your previous living space did (e.g., close school/work, live in a safe neighborhood, etc.).
But you must be forewarned and understand the fact that all apartments have some level of noise. So before you rush to move to a new place, try and do your due diligence to ensure there the management takes noise-making issues very seriously in your new apartment. Or maybe make some soundproofing beforehand to be sure that you make everything to reduce the noise that can come not only from your neighbors above.
This way, you know you can have some level of peace to enjoy your space just like everybody else.
