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Most people who suffer from noise pollution must have had this question. Let's take a look at a story to see what everyone is thinking.
Upstairs neighbor:
Xiaomei has two boys in her family, one is 6 years old and the other is 8 years old.
In August of this year, the family of four moved into their new home. But they kept encountering strange things after moving in.
In mid-September, the intercom on the downstairs unit door of Xiaomei's apartment building would start ringing, usually at 7:00 AM sharp, later changed to 6:30 AM. However, each time they checked, no one was home; it seemed like a malicious prank. Xiaomei hadn't moved in and hadn't offended anyone, so this strange occurrence greatly troubled her family.
In the end, Xiaomei contacted the property management company to find the culprit, but they did nothing. One day, after hearing the doorbell ring, Xiaomei immediately went downstairs to check, only to find her downstairs neighbor's wife returning home. However, the security camera footage showed that no outsiders had entered or left at that time.
Multiple pieces of evidence suggest that the prankster is most likely the downstairs neighbor, but Xiaomei doesn't entirely believe it. If the downstairs neighbor finds it noisy, they would at least come up and have a simple conversation. Why would they ring the doorbell without saying anything? What benefit would that bring her?
Unable to find any evidence, Xiaomei had no choice but to take her child back to her hometown for a while. However, to her surprise, when she returned, she found that the annoying doorbell was gone, but a sound resembling a vibration device was coming from the floor.
Downstairs neighbor:
Aunt Chen and Aunt Li are best friends and live in the same building. Aunt Li happens to live next door to Xiao Mei, while Aunt Chen lives downstairs from Xiao Mei.
Aunt Li: What's wrong with you lately? You don't look well, and you have dark circles under your eyes.
Aunt Chen: I'm so annoyed lately, sigh!
Aunt Li: What happened? I didn't hear that you had any health problems.
Aunt Chen: I'm fine now, but if this keeps up, I'll probably have to go to the hospital. I was thinking of settling down and enjoying my retirement, but then a family of four moved in upstairs. Before they moved in, it was very quiet, but the two kids upstairs run around constantly, jumping and dropping things. My heart can't take the sudden noises! At first, I thought it was just during the day, you know how it is. My husband and I go to bed around 9 pm, but these past few days, just as we're about to fall asleep, someone jumps upstairs, waking me and my husband right away. It takes me a long time to calm down. It's really so painful.
Aunt Li: Did you go upstairs and talk to them?
Aunt Chen: Not yet, I don't know how to say it.
Aunt Li: You'd better not say anything yet. Didn't you see the argument in our residents' group about this last time? It's about someone upstairs with a child. The downstairs neighbor told them to keep their child under control, but the upstairs neighbor didn't think they had any problem and was even aggressive in the group. Later I heard that the upstairs neighbor deliberately made noise at home to retaliate against the downstairs neighbor. The downstairs neighbor had no choice but to call the police and report them, but it was all useless. Parents all think their own child is the best. If you go upstairs and say their child is noisy, aren't you just accusing them of not knowing how to raise their child? What if they're a sensitive person? They'll definitely be unhappy if you say that. So, it's best not to communicate now; it's useless and will only make the situation worse.
Aunt Chen: What can we do? We can't be bothered every day.
Aunt Li: Let's go ring her doorbell together in the morning, so they can experience what it's like to be suddenly disturbed. That way, she can empathize with you, and then she'll understand when you talk to her.
Aunt Chen: Is your idea reliable? What if they call the police?
Aunt Li: If you don't believe me, I'll try it on you first. Call the police if you want, let's all speak out about the problem together. With the police there, someone will uphold justice.
...N days passed, and then the story of Xiaomei's family unfolded...
The two companies began communication:
Xiao Mei couldn't stand the noise of the vibration device any longer, so she started retaliating by deliberately stomping her feet and walking loudly. Not long after, Aunt Chen and Aunt Li came to Xiao Mei's family and began to communicate with them.
Xiaomei: Auntie, have you finally thought of coming to communicate?
Aunt Chen: Your house is too noisy, you can't control your child, and you still have the nerve to complain?
Xiaomei: Auntie, please don't get agitated. I think we're both at fault in this matter. But you started ringing the doorbell and installing the noise-generating device without communicating with us first. Ultimately, you're the one at fault.
Aunt Chen: Do you think I don't want to say it? It's because I can't afford to gamble.
Xiaomei: Auntie, what do you mean by that?
Aunt Chen: I can't afford to gamble on what kind of people you are. What if I say something that upsets you, and then you let the child deliberately jump around the house day and night? How am I supposed to live then...?
Xiaomei: If you can't talk to me directly, you can talk to the property management staff first.
Aunt Chen: I told you, but it's no use. Your family was still making noise at 11 pm. I immediately called the property management, but the noise didn't stop. Do you think I'd dare go to your house to talk to you?
Xiaomei: How could this happen? The property management calls my house first thing in the morning, and I immediately told the child to stop playing.
Aunt Chen: In our family, we all go to bed early and get up early, so there are usually no problems in the morning.
Aunt Li: Okay, okay, now you all understand where the problem lies. From now on, let's all give way a little. Upstairs, try to get your children to bed earlier after 10 pm, and don't let them jump around. Or put some mats on the floor at home and walk more quietly. If there are any problems downstairs, communicate with upstairs first, and don't take any measures to retaliate in private.
Xiaomei: I think it's okay. I'm not the kind of person who likes to cause trouble.
Aunt Chen: Hmm, okay.
*The above content is entirely fictional and intended for hypothetical analysis only.
From the above story, the fundamental reason why the downstairs neighbor doesn't take the initiative to communicate with the upstairs neighbor is:
1. I sought help from a third party, but it was ineffective.
2. I dare not assume the quality of my upstairs neighbors.
3. Fear of retaliation
At this point, many people with children at home might be wondering: Does having children in the family necessarily mean the party at fault?
The root of this problem lies in the fact that we cannot understand two aspects:
1. Is it really acceptable for upstairs neighbors to attribute their noise problems to downstairs neighbors being overly sensitive?
2. Can the upstairs neighbors blame the children's running and jumping problems on the floor being poorly soundproofed?
Actually, there's always a balance to be struck here. If the upstairs and downstairs neighbors can maintain this balance, the problem isn't difficult to solve. The reason why it's hard for them to maintain this balance is because everyone's perception of noise is not within the same standard range; and the same sound upstairs can be much louder downstairs.
What constitutes loud noise? The "Environmental Noise Quality Standard" stipulates that a steady-state sound environment outdoors at night with windows open is considered quiet if the sound level remains below 40 decibels. This is a unified national standard. However, this refers to a steady-state sound environment, which is the equivalent average sound pressure level over a long period. Noise that affects people at night doesn't distinguish between steady-state and transient noise. So, how many decibels can sudden noise from downstairs reach? I measured it at home once, and this kind of transient noise is generally between 40-50 decibels.
These noises may not be loud under normal circumstances, but their volume becomes quite noticeable when people need rest. Moreover, they are unpredictable and non-steady-state noises; after the first sound, a second one could happen at any time. If someone downstairs is sleeping, their ears have to be constantly on high alert, afraid of hearing sounds but forced to be vigilant, day after day, thus causing noise sensitivity. In the long run, this can lead to insomnia, anxiety, and negatively impact physical health.
If the upstairs neighbors could understand the noise pollution from downstairs and reach a compromise, the problem is not insurmountable. Finally, as the upstairs neighbor, you have control over your floor, so why not take some measures to address it?