The owl addicted to video games

Wednesday, 27 May 2020

A professional couple without children lives in a condo and last July, they noticed the arrival of a new neighbor above them. So far, everything seems normal. However, this new neighbor has a particular way of life that will disturb the tranquility of the couple. What to do when we have a noisy neighbor above your heads? How can we solve a disturbing situation that prevents you from sleeping?

Patrick and Caroline have been living in their condo, an 8-unit building in downtown Sherbrook, for the last 2 years. After living 5 years in an apartment, they wanted to have their little "home", their first property. Condo living seemed to be the perfect choice for their busy and active lifestyle. After 2 years of co-ownership, they still enjoy their living environment.

Last July, they welcomed their new neighbor who bought the condo above them. Only a few days after he moved, during a beautiful summer evening, Caroline heard loud sounds from another unit. She suspects the new neighbor but does not talk to Patrick about it.

One night, when Patrick and Caroline slip under the covers for the night, they started to hear machine gun sounds and low frequency "boums boums" at a jerky pace. It's late and the noises continues until the wee hours of the morning. The source of this noise: the new neighbor who is a video game enthusiast and plays throughout the night.

Night after night, the noise from the gaming neighbour persists. Patrick and Caroline resort to earplugs to try and get some sleep.  However, this situation persists, and they will resort to a meeting with the president of the condo board to share this new issue. They file a formal complaint that will force the Condo Board to intervene to resolve the situation.

Following this noise complaint, the Condo Board goes to meet the new neighbor to expose the situation. The latter is very receptive to comments, apologizes and agrees to collaborate to reduce noise in an attempt to restore calm for the occupants of the building. For several weeks, he wears headphones to play his video games.

Silence is back! Patrick and Caroline are relieved.

And then, on an autumn evening ... "Pow" "Pow" "Pow". These noises, so familiar are heard again. After several evenings and nights reliving the same nightmare, Patrick and Caroline go back to the president of the Condo Board and make another noise complaint.

The Condo Board tries to visit the "owl" with no success. After several attempts, the Condo Board stopped visiting and even stopped communicating with him. The weeks passed and this file has quickly found itself below the pile of files to settle.

Patrick and Caroline are discouraged and want to regain the peace of their condo. What to do?

Patrick starts a research on the Internet and communicates with AcoustiTECH. One of the members of the AcoustiTECH team (Cathy) listens attentively to his story. She feels that Patrick and his spouse seem helpless in this situation. She asks Patrick questions to better understand what is happening and takes time to explain the basic principles of building acoustics.

AcoustiTECH then communicates with the Condo Board for further information regarding this situation. The Condo Board admits that: "The owner who lived in the condo before this new occupant, had made recent renovations. She had, among other things, ripped the carpet from the living room, bedrooms and dining room to replace it with a hardwood flooring. We do not have strict regulations for such changes in our condos. So, we did not approve the materials before the work, supervised during the works and not to check that everything was in conformity after the renovations. And the lady quickly sold her condo unit a few weeks later. "

AcoustiTECH made it clear to the Condo Board that it is important to have an acoustic regulation chart that is adapted to their building to avoid this kind of situation. In this case, the deficient regulations and the lack of supervision during the work of the former owner are the major responsible for the sounds heard by Patrick and Caroline. The acoustic solution installed under the hardwood flooring by the previous owner was inadequate and non-performing. AcoustiTECH has submitted a new customized acoustic chart based on the structure of their building.

From now on, when a co-owner wants to change the floors in his condo, he will have to comply with this new acoustic bylaw which will provide peace of mind to the occupants. An acoustic solution (subfloor) will be recommended accordingly on the type of flooring chosen and all this according to an optimal comfort according to the structure of their building.

Nevertheless, the "owl" is always entertained with his video games during evenings and nights.

Does this situation sound familiar? Do not hesitate to contact us now, our team of experts will guide you and find the best solution.