My new neighbor’s leaf blower is driving me crazy – what can I do?

A new family recently moved in next door and it seems they love leaf blowers.

Every other day, the man of the household puts on his safety glasses and hearing protectors and turns on the leaf blower.

This seems to last for hours and can start before 8am. He sometimes even tries when it is dark outside in the late afternoon.

We also have no rest on weekends.

The family are new neighbors, so we don’t want to cause a big stink, but the noise is becoming unbearable and disrupting our daily lives.

A lot of leaves also end up in our driveway, which is inconvenient and messy.

How can I get this resolved? Can anyone also tell me what leaf blowers actually do and whether they are effective? I don’t see the appeal and use a rake to clear my leaves.

Jane Denton of This is Money responds: Leaf blowers appear to have become extremely popular in recent years. I’m not sure why.

In my hometown, it’s not uncommon to see people straddling their leaf blowers, mindlessly buzzing without making any progress on the leaves in question. Like you, I’m a fan of a rake, shovel and trash bags for the job.

I understand why you want to be careful with your new neighbor. That’s a sensible idea and can help prevent problems later.

I asked a lawyer and an acoustician for their opinions on the problems you are facing.

Manjinder Kaur Atwal is director of property law at Duncan Lewis Solicitors

Manjinder Kaur Atwal, director of property law at Duncan Lewis Solicitors, says: Understandably, you’ll want to handle this situation carefully, especially when it comes to new neighbors, because you don’t want to start off on the wrong foot with them.

It is clear that the frequent use of the leaf blower must be addressed.

Leaf blowers can be useful tools for removing debris from driveways and lawns, especially if you have gravel areas and the like, but they are often criticized for being noisy and disruptive.

Many municipalities have regulations regarding noise levels and hours when noisy equipment can be used.

For residential areas, noise laws often limit such activities to between 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM on weekdays and from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM on Saturdays. Sunday use is usually discouraged or completely restricted.

It may simply be that your neighbor is unaware of the nuisance he or she is causing, and initiating a friendly conversation may alert him or her.

Calmly explain how using the leaf blower affects your family’s peace and daily routine. Perhaps suggest a compromise, such as agreeing on specific times or days for using the leaf blower.

If this approach does not resolve the issue, you can escalate the matter by contacting your local council.

Your local council’s environmental health team can investigate ongoing noise complaints to determine whether they breach the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and take appropriate action if necessary. In addition, many municipalities offer low-cost or free mediation services for resolving neighborhood disputes, which could be useful.

As for the leaves, politely ask your neighbor to adjust the fan to prevent dirt from spreading on your property.

Keep a detailed record of the noise, including dates, times and duration, to support any complaints you make to the authorities.

This issue falls under the private nuisance law, which concerns interference with the use and enjoyment of land, such as excessive noise. Councils often treat these cases as statutory nuisances under property and environmental law.

If the situation escalates or requires legal action, this may also involve neighbor disputes, an area of ​​law concerned with resolving conflicts between adjacent property owners.

If all this does not help, a lawyer specialized in environmental or property law can advise on private nuisance claims.

However, I hope that a friendly conversation will be enough to resolve the issue amicably. If further action is necessary, please do not hesitate to seek assistance from your local council or legal advice.

Acoustic expert Ed Clarke

Ed Clarke, director of Clarke Saunders Acoustics in Winchester, says: There seems to be quite a bit to unpack here, so let’s start with the leaf blower.

A range of devices are available, with different performance and noise levels, powered electrically or by petrol engines. Some wind players can also suck; shredding and collecting leaves into a large bag instead of just flicking them around. These are also called ‘garden vacuum cleaners’.

The noisiest blowers are the most powerful petrol models; the larger ones are worn as a backpack, making the driver feel like a ghostbuster. These are the professional models you see used by municipal contractors in parks, while domestic models resemble giant dust busters.

Developments in batteries and motors in the garden tool market mean that electric models have almost the same power as petrol models and are much quieter. That doesn’t make them completely silent, but they still push a lot of air around, which isn’t possible without making some noise.

We continue with your neighbor’s leaf blower use. Running a leaf blower for several hours several times a week may seem like overkill, but it may be helpful in keeping his pristine lawn free of leaves at all times. All kinds are needed.

I would think that the size of the property really requiring that level of leaf management would mean that at the end of a long drive it would be some distance from your house for much of the time. Or maybe his fan is actually underpowered, which is why it’s taking so long.

As a noise expert I have spent a lot of time providing witness statements in all kinds of legal proceedings, and my strong recommendation in neighbor disputes is the following; don’t have them. So disputes. Most of us are saddled with having neighbors.

Your neighbor may not be aware of the intrusion he is causing, or not care, but the crucial aspect here is how you communicate.

“Do you realize how annoying you are” and “the hell do you have to do that all the time” are good examples of approaches you shouldn’t take.

One Saturday morning I went around, rake in hand, and asked if the blower was really more effective – maybe even to borrow it. Discuss how it is better to remove the leaves from both disks rather than pushing them back and forth between the disks.

You can then move on to how you notice how much he’s blowing because it’s loud.

If he has an old noisy gas blower, you can even offer to buy him a shiny, new, quiet, battery-operated blower for Christmas.