Aeroplane noise

[Daniel84]

My partner and I have just moved house from Hackney to ED. My lord: the aeroplane noise is unbelievably loud. Can anybody recommend any forms of sound proofing? Thinking of getting solid shutters - though not sure if they will work. Thank you in advance. Daniel

[uncleglen]

Earplugs- that way you can have ventilation in the summer (although you won't be able to hear burglars)

[scotlander]

You get used to it....We lived in Copleston road for 3 years and were horrified during the first month by the time we moved out we hardly noticed it.

[Louisa]

It's London. We are on a flight path. What do you expect?

Louisa.

[KalamityKel]

Why would shutters help? Planes fly overhead no?

[Herne Hill Guest]

Daniel

There are many threads on this forum on this subject, have a look.

The subject brings out the vey worst in some people, ref Louisa above for starters, so be prepared for a bumpy ride in this thread.

Personally I have every sympathy for you and double glazing with ear plugs worked for me but if that's not possible I suggest a white noise machine with a snooze setting.

[Daniel84]

Thank you for all the helpful comments

[edcam]

You'll get used to it of you don't obsess about it like some on this forum. I've lived here since 1995 and I quite like it now, oddly.

[Mike Dodd]

I like Louisa

[Salsaboy]

I like Mike Dodd liking Louisa.

[ruffers]

You get used to it, and the less you focus on it the quicker it'll happen.

[Louisa]

I like planes. I also like noise. That's why I live in London (currently). I also like Mike Dodd liking me. I also like Salsa Boy liking Mike Dodd liking me. This isn't an Aldi advert parody I promise.

Louisa.

[JamesMS]

Daniel, I totally agree with you. The aircraft noise is terrible and seems to be getting worse in my opinion - no idea why though. I wake up at half four each morning when Heathrow re-opens. Shutters do not make any difference.

[ratty]

I miss it! Genuinely do now that I have moved away!

[i*Rate]

I've put a lot on the forum about this subject.

Get used to it - it will never go away. I hate the noise, it messes up my life a lot and it's the worst it's been ever since I moved here 33 years ago.

However, on the positive side, I did take up 'plane spotting a few years ago in the summer months and identified 98 airlines from 71 different countries - beat that! I also have a collection of around 200 extremely interesting photos of the aircraft and a smashing new anorak from St Christopher's charity shop.

I suppose Vallium or similar drug could help.

Cheers.

[picmicnic]

I agree the noise seems to be worse at the moment.

Have logged two complaints at following website recently (doubt it will do much good though)

http://www.heathrowairport.com/noise/help/make-an-enquiry

[hpsaucey]

Well - I'm now officially obsessed. Been desperately listening in vain all evening for a noiseless space between planes - but before one fades then next one's coming in. ARGHH! I remember rolling my eyes at my sister when she visited 5 years ago when, every time a plane came over she'd say 'Oooh, another one!' - currently remembering the relative peace and quiet of those halcyon days fondly.

Bloody Heathrow. Bloody planes. Do people get the same about birdsong and chickens in the countryside?????

H

[Penguin68]

I have lived in ED for the last 25 years, (under the old Concorde flight path) - throughout that time I have never been bothered by the noise of planes - on occasion I have noticed it - and I recall a South American friend being amazed in the summer that he never saw fewer than 2 planes in the sky throughout an afternoon in the garden.

Being bothered (I have perfectly good hearing, by the way) is to some extent a state of mind - the more you are annoyed by the sound, the more intrusive it becomes. If I listen out I can hear planes (I can now) - but I don't listen out for them or notice them, even though I am frequently awake in the early mornings,when they appear to annoy others. I hear sirens, I am annoyed when helicopters hover overhead, I am driven as nuts by foxes screaming as anyone, but I can blank planes. It may be that they are so prevalent that they have become part of an ignored sound scape (I also can blank traffic - having lived next to main roads).

For your own peace of mind, changing your response to planes, rather than trying to argue about flight paths, might be a more (cost) effective route. Maybe CBT (or meditation) could help.

[KidKruger]

"Do people get the same about birdsong and chickens in the countryside????? "

strangely yes, when I was living in Wiltshire a couple of years ago a mate was complainig badly about the Saturday morning bell-ringing at the local medieval church, he thoight it was outrageous and should be banned !

Regarding airplane noise - what Penguin said. Perhaps you need some bigger problems - to distract you from annoyance over plane noise.

[edcam]

Penguin68 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I have lived in ED for the last 25 years, (under

> the old Concorde flight path) - throughout that

> time I have never been bothered by the noise of

> planes - on occasion I have noticed it - and I

> recall a South American friend being amazed in the

> summer that he never saw fewer than 2 planes in

> the sky throughout an afternoon in the garden.

>

> Being bothered (I have perfectly good hearing, by

> the way) is to some extent a state of mind - the

> more you are annoyed by the sound, the more

> intrusive it becomes. If I listen out I can hear

> planes (I can now) - but I don't listen out for

> them or notice them, even though I am frequently

> awake in the early mornings,when they appear to

> annoy others. I hear sirens, I am annoyed when

> helicopters hover overhead, I am driven as nuts by

> foxes screaming as anyone, but I can blank planes.

> It may be that they are so prevalent that they

> have become part of an ignored sound scape (I also

> can blank traffic - having lived next to main

> roads).

>

> For your own peace of mind, changing your response

> to planes, rather than trying to argue about

> flight paths, might be a more (cost) effective

> route. Maybe CBT (or meditation) could help.

Good post. Agree completely.

[Nigello]

I have to agree with the people who say "grin and bear it", not because they are being insensitive but because what they say makes sense. The more you agonise over it, the more it will bother you. Try to acknowledge its presence, say you yourself "this is not pleasant" but then don't go to the next step: getting hot under the collar. Use earplugs at night, perhaps try white-noise machines etc. Resistance is futile - and self-destructive in this case. Ommmm!

[Daniel84]

Totally agree with you all. Have bought some earplugs (and it seems to do the trick) but will try to wean myself off them soon and embrace the noise.

[Lowlander]

The point is that London is one (the only?) major city in the developed world where aeroplane noise is such an issue.

There is a volume of documented evidence that this is harmful to health. There is also a volume of criticism of this evidence, fuelling a healthy debate. It is not clear cut and it's infantile to dismiss the argument based on the fact that you're immune to the noise.

Whilst there's a small minority who enjoy it (see smoking crack and drinking meths), there's also a large number of people who find it a nuisance.

BTW, I must blank the noise of foxes, to me they are seen and not heard.

[Jeremy]

To say it's never bothered me would be an understatement! I hardly ever notice it (and until recently I lived right next to Copleston Rd). Maybe after living in South London for 15 years I've learned to filter out background noise.

[El Pibe]

Clearly it'll be harmful to those it causes stress to and harmless to those it doesn't.

We're all wired differently.

Penguin's post is spot on.

For those who find it problematic there are three choices.

1) get some help to learn to cope with it, CBT seems sensible.

2) leave East Dulwich for somewhere not under a flight path.

3) pop yourself in a cryogenic freeze with instructions not to be thawed until sea levels have risen enough that Heathrow is no longer viable, or we have passed peak oil and plane travel has priced out joe public and we now take boats and zeppelins to get about (although we might have run out of helium too) or anti gravity or transporters have been discovered making for noise free travel.

Anything else is howling at the moon really, traffic to Heathrow is only going up from hereonin.