If you like quiet, do NOT move to the NoVA suburbs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find this thread hilarious… well of course there will be noise, how else would anything get maintained?
On the moon might be a different matter.

Yea, how did anyone ever have a garden without gas powered mowers and blowers and trimmers and clippers for 2 hours twice a week

If you let your lawn become clover you don’t have to mow it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here.... I live in the McLean area. Most of the homes around here are new construction (i.e., infill development), expensive, and have extensive landscaping needs. I don't know why it takes a couple hours per house, but it does, and there are a lot of houses within earshot.

I had new double pane windows installed last year, but just standard double pane and not the sound ones where one pane is thicker than the other. Maybe a bad choice on my part.

I like the idea of electric leaf blowers, if the contractors abided by it. The gas ones are just awful.... anything with an unmuffled 2-cycle gasoline engine is just absurd in a high density area.

People have too much money in McLean. I live in central McLean with no HOA. The people living in tear downs do a bad job maintaining their land themself. The other half spend 10k a year on their yard so it’s spotless. The end result is there’s always a truck doing something outside someone’s house. Moving to great falls will fix the issue.

[Anonymous]

OP. You’re insane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here.... I live in the
area. Most of the homes around here are new construction (i.e., infill development), expensive, and have extensive landscaping needs. I don't know why it takes a couple hours per house, but it does, and there are a lot of houses within earshot.

I had new double pane windows installed last year, but just standard double pane and not the sound ones where one pane is thicker than the other. Maybe a bad choice on my part.

I like the idea of electric leaf blowers, if the contractors abided by it. The gas ones are just awful.... anything with an unmuffled 2-cycle gasoline engine is just absurd in a high density area.

McLean?! Sheesh! You wouldn't last 5 minutes in The city of alexandria or arlington, arlington is a little quieter though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've recently been at home consistently during the day for the first time in years. Had an unfortunate medical diagnosis and needed some extra time for treatments and rest.

Holy crap, the level of noise has been terrible. Every day, starting by 8, there are leaf blowers, lawn mowers, weed-eaters, pressure washers, air compressors, heavy trucks, and pretty much anything else that you can think of that is loud. There's no place to escape the noise -- it permeates the whole house with doors and windows buttoned up tight, and goes unceasingly on from dawn 'til dusk.

I'm all for small business, but these contractors and the homeowners who hire them seem out of control. Has there been any discussion of a better regulatory framework to limit use of outdoor tools to certain days or hours? How about outlawing gas-powered leaf blowers altogether?

I was previously planning to stay in place when I retire, but I just don't think the quality of life would be good in the suburbs based off the past couple weeks -- it's truly been soul sucking.

I live in Princeton NJ and they don't allow gas leaf blowers for certain months. March 15-May 15 and Oct 1-Dec 15 they are allowed. If it is after that period you are meant to use electric. Problem is I live on a lot with many mature trees and a very large mature oak that doesn't loose leaves until end of December. The electric I have used / my landscaper used do not work that good. We used an electric leaf blower and it took all day to move the leaves. It was ridiculous. I started raking but my spouse had hurt their back so could not rake that week. I talk to my neighbors and we try to coordinate when people do loud projects. But at some point maybe get noise cancelling headphones, or better windows and doors.

Another neighbor puts their dog in the backyard late at night (anytime from 7-11PM) usually for 60-90+ minutes and the dog is barking and crying the entire time. Asked the neighbor to bring the dog in as it seems cruel to the dog. They stopped for awhile, but it happened the other night. That to me is way worse than the gas powered equipment.

[Anonymous]

My neighbor mows and then leaf blows every other day at 7pm. It makes so much racket ! We have to close the windows and eat inside.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your neighbors didn’t do any of this you’d be here complaining that they don’t maintain their properties.

Raking doesn’t make a sound.

The way you complain, you would complaining about it too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've recently been at home consistently during the day for the first time in years. Had an unfortunate medical diagnosis and needed some extra time for treatments and rest.

Holy crap, the level of noise has been terrible. Every day, starting by 8, there are leaf blowers, lawn mowers, weed-eaters, pressure washers, air compressors, heavy trucks, and pretty much anything else that you can think of that is loud. There's no place to escape the noise -- it permeates the whole house with doors and windows buttoned up tight, and goes unceasingly on from dawn 'til dusk.

I'm all for small business, but these contractors and the homeowners who hire them seem out of control. Has there been any discussion of a better regulatory framework to limit use of outdoor tools to certain days or hours? How about outlawing gas-powered leaf blowers altogether?

I was previously planning to stay in place when I retire, but I just don't think the quality of life would be good in the suburbs based off the past couple weeks -- it's truly been soul sucking.

At least you aren’t complaining about the sound your neighbors are making when they breathe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My neighbor mows and then leaf blows every other day at 7pm. It makes so much racket ! We have to close the windows and eat inside.

OP. Stop with the trolling. We know this entire thread is just a game.

[Anonymous]

DC outlawed gas blowers 2 years ago.

https://www.quietcleandc.com/transition-guide

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in a townhouse community with an HOA that has a crew come once a week so it's fine.

The irony of the suburbs is that everyone wants their own plot of land with a lawn in front and in the back, surrounded by similar houses with front and back lawns (bc density is bad) but they also want no noise from maintaining the lawns and also to live close to everything and not have their kids be "bussed" to school lol

“I’m 13 and this is deep”

Ooh I struck a nerve

[Anonymous]

I can't wait to get out of here the quality of life on all fronts it horrible including massive noise issues. City of Alexandria and seven corners is the loudest in the area.

[Anonymous]

OP Here. Wow, did not realize that DC outlawed gas leaf blowers... thanks for that video. Will have to work on building support locally for a similar initiative. Much obliged!

DC outlawed gas blowers 2 years ago.

https://www.quietcleandc.com/transition-guide

[Anonymous]

As with most sweeping generalizations, there is some truth and some lies in the OP's broad assertion. It all depends on the definition of "suburbs" for this purpose. Close-in areas like Alexandria and Arlington have high population and traffic densities, older homes which aren't always well-soundproofed, proximity to National Airport and Metro, etc. Some areas in more distant suburbs also share those traits, but it certainly depends on exactly where you're speaking of. Clifton, Great Falls, and other areas with little commercial area, smaller roads, less traffic, etc. are generally very tranquil. Houses backing up to 95 or 395, or adjacent to fire stations, not so much. The specifics matter.

Bottom line, if you want a quiet area, they exist - just buy a house accordingly and don't complain later when you bought something in proximity to obvious sources of frequent noise pollution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your neighbors didn’t do any of this you’d be here complaining that they don’t maintain their properties.

Raking doesn’t make a sound.

Rakes are extremely noisy. Why can't the help just pick up the leaves with white cotton gloves?