# Can my neighbors hear me hammering? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 15, 2014, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125 "2014-07-15T01:06:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/1 "2014-07-15T01:06:35Z")
I’m a “night” person, and usually do my work throughout the night. Tonight I need to do some hammering of nails into wood for about 1/2 hour, and I’m concerned about annoying my neighbors. Our houses are both brick, a driveway apart, and have double-paned windows. The room where I need to hammer is right across from them. If I wait until tomorrow, there’s really nothing I have to do instead, so my work will be several hours behind. So should I hammer tonight? ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/2 "2014-07-15T01:12:41Z")
could you put yourself under a mattress to help deaden the sound? drill the nail holes slightly shallow with a slightly smaller diameter drill bit. it will still give enough friction and tightness for the nail to hold without the nail needing to do the fiber cutting (which makes the noise). ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/3 "2014-07-15T01:15:21Z")
I would have a bit more respect for my neighbors. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/4 "2014-07-15T01:52:50Z")
I would hammer in our basement and have my son go outside next to the neighbors’ house and tell me if he can hear it, but I’ve got an ancient cat in my lap and he doesn’t want to get up. Unless the windows are open, I wouldn’t expect them to hear it unless they’re being driven by a sledge hammer. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/5 "2014-07-15T02:08:02Z")
Do you have a neighbor named Tom? He may have written a song wondering What you are building in there… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/6 "2014-07-15T02:36:14Z")
Are those storms in NE Ohio headed your way? Rain or storms would make a good cover. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/7 "2014-07-15T02:42:50Z")
Just do it before midnight. How about now! ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/8 "2014-07-15T03:03:05Z")
If you didn’t have a neighbour, you’d hammer in the morning; you’d hammer in the evening–all over this land. You’d hammer out danger, you’d hammer out a warning, you’d hammer out love between, your brothers and your sisters, all over your hood. But you do have neighbours. So unfortunately, you’ll have to stop your hammertime. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/9 "2014-07-15T03:09:40Z")
> [@DingoelGringo](#): > > I would have a bit more respect for my neighbors. “More respect” than what? Trying to avoid disturbing them? ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/10 "2014-07-15T03:33:49Z")
With the amount of isolation you have you are probably going to be OK. Obviously it depends a bit on what level of hammering you are doing. 6" nails into solid wood is going to be a lot different to brads into softwood. The noise is going to leak out of the window, and curtains will help. A mattress against the window even better. Indeed any dampening in the room will help too, as the vast majority of the sound will be reverberant, bouncing off the walls a few times before it exits. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/11 "2014-07-15T03:53:16Z")
Since the only people who can answer this factually are the neighbors, let’s move this to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/12 "2014-07-15T03:55:21Z")
I used to have a neighbor in a next-door house who frequently hammered. It helps a LOT if the windows are shut. That said, if you’ll only be hammering for half an hour, you should be fine. It’s only after an hour or so that things go from being merely sorta disturbing, to being aggravating. Your neighbor is probably just hella glad you don’t have a windchime. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/13 "2014-07-15T03:57:02Z")
While you may be far enough from your neighbors that they won’t hear you, you can’t be sure. Personally, I would be very annoyed at a neighbor who was so inconsiderate as to hammer after about 8 or 9 PM. If you’re really concerned about possibly annoying the neighbors, then wait until the morning. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/14 "2014-07-15T04:47:48Z")
I did once, in a similar housing situation to you (brick houses, closed windows, about a driveway in between), annoy a neighbour by making lemon cheesecake (which for our recipe involves battering a packet of cookies to death with a Big Heavy Thing to make the crust) at about 11pm. I imagine if she could hear that, your neighbours can probably hear real hammering. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/15 "2014-07-15T04:57:59Z")
Some people go to bed by 9 pm. Others work nights and sleep until 11 am. If you want to avoid being an asshole, save your hammering for AFTER 11 am, and stop by 9 pm. Of course, there’s no reason you HAVE to abide by those deadlines, but if you don’t you risk pissing someone off. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/16 "2014-07-15T14:39:35Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > could you put yourself under a mattress to help deaden the sound? > > drill the nail holes slightly shallow with a slightly smaller diameter drill bit. it will still give enough friction and tightness for the nail to hold without the nail needing to do the fiber cutting (which makes the noise). Oddly enough, I always thought it was the “metal forcefully hitting metal” part that made the noise. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/17 "2014-07-15T14:48:24Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > If you didn’t have a neighbour, you’d hammer in the morning; you’d hammer in the evening–all over this land. You’d hammer out danger, you’d hammer out a warning, you’d hammer out love between, your brothers and your sisters, all over your hood. > But you do have neighbours. > > So unfortunately, you’ll have to stop your hammertime. But can he still collaborate and listen? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/18 "2014-07-15T15:01:55Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > So should I hammer tonight? Did you wind up hammering last night? If so, wander across to the neighbors sometime today, and ask if it disturbed them. Then you’ll know for next time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2014, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-my-neighbors-hear-me-hammering/693125/19 "2014-07-15T15:28:28Z")
I’d go ahead and hammer, but I would take some breaks to bury bloody sheets in the yard.