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Sound proofing / noise

Hahns0hmy

Walking the driveway
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new york ny
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Adam
Hello all, being most of you have giant macaws.. I’m going to be moving to a different state soon. Im in a regular house now where if the birds yell it doesn't really bother anyone… but I’m looking at whats best to move into and perhaps sound proof the room if I have a house close by. Does anyone have the bird area sound proofed/quieted down in anyway? I’m assuming the large macaws can be heard from a distance. Whats the experience with neighbors?
 

April

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Nikomania

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Well...where do I start...
When I got my 2 macaws, I hadn't any idea that my neighbor would come to absolutely HATE their vocalizations, to the point where she'd slam windows and doors shut and threaten to issue a formal complaint to the city.
I tried everything to mute their sounds: acoustic panels, curtains, and even moved them as far away from their property line that I could but nothing truly made a difference. I had built a beautiful outdoor aviary that I couldn't even use on account of her misophonia. It was an absolutely nightmare for us and so stressful having to keep on top of closing windows and doors whenever they'd let out a peep.

I'm sorry to say nothing helped. Macaw vocalizations travel up to a mile away, so you have that working against you.

We eventually moved to a rural location where our neighbors have donkeys, roosters, horses, and more. We're so much happier now and our macaws are, too!
 
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Hahns0hmy

Walking the driveway
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Joined
6/1/19
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271
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new york ny
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Adam
Well...where do I start...
When I got my 2 macaws, I hadn't any idea that my neighbor would come to absolutely HATE their vocalizations, to the point where she'd slam windows and doors shut and threaten to issue a formal complaint to the city.
I tried everything to mute their sounds: acoustic panels, curtains, and even moved them as far away from their property line that I could but nothing truly made a difference. I had built a beautiful outdoor aviary that I couldn't even use on account of her misophonia. It was an absolutely nightmare for us and so stressful having to keep on top of closing windows and doors whenever they'd let out a peep.

I'm sorry to say nothing helped. Macaw vocalizations travel up to a mile away, so you have that working against you.

We eventually moved to a rural location where our neighbors have donkeys, roosters, horses, and more. We're so much happier now and our macaws are, too!
Thank you for that experience.. exactly what I’m afraid of.
 

BrianB

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You can try acoustic panels inside. Double-pane windows and heavy fabric or drapery can help prevent it from traveling outside. If you have the birds outside, acoustic panels, bamboo fencing, and vegetation along the cage can break up the sound. One thing to keep in mind is that noise is subjective. What bothers one neighbor might not bother another. Your best bet is to talk to your neighbors immediately and ask if it bothers them, then work together to mitigate the noise if it's an issue for them. We had a neighbor who was an absolute nightmare over our green wing macaws. We realized it wasn't just our birds; we were just her current target. There was a long history of bullying people over noise, and she expected absolute silence in the neighborhood. After deciding to enclose our patio and make a space for the birds, she messaged me every day, asking when it was going to be done. The fact that we needed permits, inspections, the actual construction, and inspections along the way wasn't good enough. It didn't matter that this was all during covid, she wanted it done immediately. She even filed noise complaints with the city, which they closed because they never heard the noise. None of the other neighbors had an issue with it; the macaws only made noise at sunrise and sunset. During the day, they were mostly quiet unless something disturbed them. It only took one person to make it a problem because she had an issue with the noise. It wasn't misophonia; she was just a sour person. Do what you can, and expect someone to have a problem, but work with them, and hopefully, you can meet in the middle. Maybe you'll get lucky and move next to a crazy bird person and it won't be an issue at all.
 

Hahns0hmy

Walking the driveway
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new york ny
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Adam
You can try acoustic panels inside. Double-pane windows and heavy fabric or drapery can help prevent it from traveling outside. If you have the birds outside, acoustic panels, bamboo fencing, and vegetation along the cage can break up the sound. One thing to keep in mind is that noise is subjective. What bothers one neighbor might not bother another. Your best bet is to talk to your neighbors immediately and ask if it bothers them, then work together to mitigate the noise if it's an issue for them. We had a neighbor who was an absolute nightmare over our green wing macaws. We realized it wasn't just our birds; we were just her current target. There was a long history of bullying people over noise, and she expected absolute silence in the neighborhood. After deciding to enclose our patio and make a space for the birds, she messaged me every day, asking when it was going to be done. The fact that we needed permits, inspections, the actual construction, and inspections along the way wasn't good enough. It didn't matter that this was all during covid, she wanted it done immediately. She even filed noise complaints with the city, which they closed because they never heard the noise. None of the other neighbors had an issue with it; the macaws only made noise at sunrise and sunset. During the day, they were mostly quiet unless something disturbed them. It only took one person to make it a problem because she had an issue with the noise. It wasn't misophonia; she was just a sour person. Do what you can, and expect someone to have a problem, but work with them, and hopefully, you can meet in the middle. Maybe you'll get lucky and move next to a crazy bird person and it won't be an issue at all.
Thank you
 

Nikomania

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For us, double paned windows, acoustic drapes and panels did very little for our plight. When you have a neighbor hell bent upon making every single sound my macaws made become an issue, only getting rid of our macaws would have appeased her. My flock are family, so we moved in order to keep our family together.
@BrianB I remember all your posts regarding your neighbor situation and am so happy to hear you were able to find a resolution!
 

Shezbug

ASK ME FOR PICTURES OF MY MACAW!
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I had insulation that is apparently sound proofing put into the walls of my macs room but in all honesty he sounds just as loud from outside when he’s in his room as he does while he’s in the lounge room.
I think the biggest issue for all of us with large birds on built up areas is who the neighbours are tbh as they’re the ones who are going to cause problems if the bird sounds are not ok with them.
 

Hahns0hmy

Walking the driveway
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new york ny
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Definitely makes it a challenge house hunting with all that in mind. It seems the best way is to move as far as possible from people into a rural area. Last thing i need is to move again. Never walked by a house and heard a macaw or anything else squawking my entire life. You pass by my house you hear every parrot yelling from outside and people staring at my windows. Makes me wonder where everyone of you is lol

Thank you all for the input
 
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