What time can construction workers start making noise? Advice for good, neighborly behavior

No one wants to be woken up by next door's drilling on a Saturday morning – or to be subjected to hours of loud building work while working remotely. Similarly, anyone currently renovating a house and concerned about disrupting the peace will benefit from knowing the local rules and restrictions.

There are many reasons that construction work tends to start early, from avoiding hot weather and dodging rush hour to working with enough natural light.

If you are wondering when workmen can commence in residential areas, we have all the details.

What time can construction workers start making noise?

It will depend on your location, with rules varying between states, but generally, the earliest workmen can start is 7am.

Weekdays

Will Copp is a contractor with over 20 years of experience and the owner of Knox Concrete Contractors, in Knoxville, Tennessee. He is often asked about the regulations surrounding construction work during the week and on weekends.

'In residential areas, work can typically begin no earlier than 7 or 8am to avoid disturbing residents,' Will says. 'This can vary depending on the type of project and location, though.

'While an early start time may be inconvenient for nearby residents or workers who prefer a later schedule, it is often necessary for contractors to take advantage of optimal working conditions before temperatures rise or other issues arise later in the day.'

Weekends

Regulations are more stringent on weekends to ensure residents have some time to rest and relax without being disturbed. Sundays often have much more limited work hours, if any, and in many areas work is not permitted at all on Sundays and holidays. There may be exceptions, such as emergency work or work with a special permit.

Typically, construction workers cannot start their job in residential areas before 9am on weekends, says handyman Shlomo Cherniak. Usually, the construction work needs to be wrapped up by 7pm, but it may be significantly earlier, depending on where you live, so check with your local authority to make sure you (and your neighbors) are following the appropriate rules when completing significant home renovations.

By location

From planning a kitchen addition to building a house from scratch, knowing the rules in your area is key.

'Construction work is allowed to begin as early as 6am in some locations like Maryland and New Jersey due to factors such as traffic congestion during peak hours that make it more efficient to start early when there are fewer cars on the road,' Will Copp says.

The professional contractor explains that in some cities such as Portland, Oregon and New York City, there are specific noise ordinances that outline maximum decibel levels for construction noise throughout the day and night. For example, in Portland,   the maximum noise level is 85 dBA at a distance of 50 feet.

In Denver, Colorado, the noise ordinance is from 7am to 10pm. Niki O'Brien, from local roofing, windows and siding company Custom Exteriors, says that when completing a roofing project, which may be the noisiest project there is, her teams do start at 7am.

'Our crews like to get started as early as possible as the weather in Colorado in the afternoon, during the summer months, can be quite warm. We find that by making the customer aware of the timeline, we generally don’t have any issues. We attempt to keep music and extremely loud jobs for later in the day. We typically try not to start the compressor or nail gun until after 8 am,' she says.

In Minneapolis area, the noise ordinance requires that workmen only make construction sounds from 7am to 6pm Monday through Friday. Rick Berres of Honey-Doers says, 'If we have to make a racket on a Saturday, we check with the neighbors to make sure there won’t be any problems prior to starting.'

FAQs

Why does construction start so early?

'Most contractors start at 7 or 8 but we would start earlier if the sun were up earlier,' says Rick Berres, remodeling and roofing professional. 'The reason being that when we are working in summer, we want to get the hardest work done in the cool morning. Would you want to carry lumber for two hours when it's 90+ degrees and sunny outside? This is why construction starts early. Except in winter when there is no light at 7am.'

'Construction workers know that the noise accompanying their job can be inconvenient for people around,' says Shlomo Cherniak, 'so rest assured that they are doing everything they can to keep it as quiet as possible!' In the meantime, some noise-cancelling ear plugs, at Amazon, will help.