House Air Vents - Noisy

D

djsim

Registered User
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Good Mornnig all AAM members,

As our house is a newish build (3 years old) it has vents in every room in the house. We have oil centeral heating.

My partner is a very light sleeper. The vent in the main bedroom is letting a lot of outside noise in. Our house is semi-detached, so when our neighbour has her TV on, we can hear it word for word. I heard most of the Rose of Tralee last night - god helpe me:) Our neighbour hasnt the TV that loud, it is just positioned near her vent, the TV must be wall mounted.

My question is, would it be safe to block the vent in the main bedroom? Or can anything be done to help reduce the noise?

Any suggestions would be welcomed, thanks.
James.
 
Re: House Air Vents - Noisey

I was told never block up a wall vent. Blocking is unhealthy and can dramatically increase condensation, leading to mould growth on walls...which can lead to serious respiratory problems, also you'd be at risk from carbon monoxide poisoning :(
You could have a L shaped box fitted on the outside of your vent..that would reduce noise levels (less direct) but still allow air to flow freely.
 
Re: House Air Vents - Noisey

i have the very same problem.... only the noise from the bedroom isnt a TV.. if you catch my drift...;)

the builders located the air vents either side of teh party wall, therefore theres only about 300mm between them and i can hear everything! from next door... and she likes to be very vocal...

an option is to close up the wall vent, and include a vent grill in the ceiling of the bedroom that exhausts through the attic to the external, this is referred to as 'passive stack ventilation'.
 
its your vent - close it. no risk. most people dont have vents and they dont die.
i doubt that your noise is down to the vents.
 
sfag said:
its your vent - close it. no risk. most people dont have vents and they dont die.
i doubt that your noise is down to the vents.
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That post is a bit irresponsible.. over 40 people a year die in Ireland due to carbon monoxide poisining.. Because they don't have enough ventilation, closed vents or block existing vents up.
 
sfag said:
its your vent - close it. no risk. most people dont have vents and they dont die.
The 'no risk' bit is totally inaccurate. Manyb older builds don't have them as there were no regulations in place at the time requiring them. Many of these houses suffer from condensation issues or worse.
Leo
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sfag said:
its your vent - close it. no risk. most people dont have vents and they dont die.
i doubt that your noise is down to the vents.
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......:rolleyes:......

when did the OP ask "if i close my vent, will i die?".....

your ability to display your ignorance on matters relating to building regulations is outstanding....
 
You could look at the option of coring through a new vent away from the party wall (unless your in a terrace) say, the other side of the window. This should give you a few metres breathing space from the neighbours vents.

Then you could close up the current vents.
 
Increase the soft furnishings in your room to help with the noise. E.g. if you have a wooden floor invest in a large rug or carpet the room. Heavy curtains will help as well.

Knock into your neighbour and explain the problems you are having and ask her to move the TV if possible - in a very nice way. Offer to bear the cost of this if need be.

Buy your neighbour a decent set of wireless headphones for use in bed.

Invest in a pair of earplugs.

Move to another bedroom in the house that is quieter.

Just watch the same rotten programmes as she does!
 
GreenQueen said:
Invest in a pair of earplugs...Move to another bedroom in the house that is quieter..
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Op shouldn't have to change her lifestyle to suit the neighbour.
She said the Tv next door wasn't up loud..
Suggesting remote receiver headphones is a good idea, but would it offend neighbour I wonder?
 
sfag said:
its your vent - close it. no risk. most people dont have vents and they dont die.
i doubt that your noise is down to the vents.
Click to expand...

Most older houses have plenty of ventilation because they are loads of nooks and crannies. Modern homes are a lot more air tight.

Unless there is a carbon based fuel burning appliance in the room, you should be safe from CO. Condensation is another thing. Why not relocate vent and block up exisiting one.
 
Before you start blocking and repositioning vents, ascertain if it actually the vents that is the problem. Next time there is a noise problem, put a cushion across the vent, for a few minutes , to see if it makes a difference. If it does, look at the reposition option.

sabre
 
you just have to get used to noise,either that or move to a wilderness.i live in the city centre,the noise at first was incredible,now i dont notice it,a bit like peeps who live under airport flight paths,you zone it out eventually.as for the bed room noises,just give a loud round of applause at the finale,soon sort it out.
 
Thanks for your help, I will put up a cushion tonight just to see if it makes a difference. The vents are positioned side by side, thus the sounds travels easily. Even if I stand out in the drive way, I can hear her TV, and mine to be fair – just one of those things. We are lucky though as she is a good neighbour, no parties, etc etc.

If the cushion works, I might consider blocking the one vent up in the main bedroom. That should be okay right?


At least the Rose of Tralee is over, if I was hearing the other noises, maybe I would be some action myself:D
 
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