NYC Apartment Carpet Rule & Sound Proofing Underlayment

[deeken]

Threads like this make me so glad and relieved that I did not purchase that co-op in Brooklyn and opted to buy a private house on Long Island.

[Henna]

There are always two sides to every story. As I mentioned above, I had a serious complainer underneath me. SHE made my life miserable with her harassment. All I was doing was living a very quiet life above her, with 80% carpeting, massive rug pads, walking only in my socks, no loud children, no pets. She was the problem, not me. One time she even slipped a note under my door informing me of my 'bedtime' (I guess that was her bedtime) so that when she goes to bed trying to sleep, she would be in no danger of having to hear my soft footsteps on the carpeted floor, interrupting her delicate moments drifting off to sleep.

Luckily after a few years, she moved out and a guy moved in below me. A year or so after he was living there, I ran into him in the elevator and he asked me if he was loud. I reminded him I'm the one above him, not the other way around. He said he never heard anything from my apartment AT ALL.

So there you go, crazy woman complainer below me was the real problem. It's not always the complainer who is in the right.

[kapikap]

Did you have the floors installed by a pro?

A floating floor keeps things soundproof. A thin rubber underlayment won't cut it.

Padding and carpeting keeps it quiet, not engineered so, walking in heels, or those cute quick zig zag by a 7 years old,would only sound like a bowling alley to the folks downstairs.

Check the bylaws,if you comply,person downstairs can kick rocks.

[rausa]

This thread is going in another direction. We are the upstairs neighbor and very mindful of noise in our apartment. Our kid does not run around, is any way out sometimes till 7Pm & sometimes till 4PM. With soundproofing layer under our new thicker wood and 60% carpeting, shouldn't we be compliant?
Planning to get some additional carpeting. But unfortunately - we are convinced the lady downstairs would still complain.
Also - anybody knows if the board can also have objections on the thickness of carpets.

[Henna]

Originally Posted by rausa

This thread is going in another direction. We are the upstairs neighbor and very mindful of noise in our apartment. Our kid does not run around, is any way out sometimes till 7Pm & sometimes till 4PM. With soundproofing layer under our new thicker wood and 60% carpeting, shouldn't we be compliant?
Planning to get some additional carpeting. But unfortunately - we are convinced the lady downstairs would still complain.
Also - anybody knows if the board can also have objections on the thickness of carpets.

Do you have a copy of the coop's house rules? What does it say in there?

[jnyc212]

Originally Posted by rausa

This thread is going in another direction. We are the upstairs neighbor and very mindful of noise in our apartment. Our kid does not run around, is any way out sometimes till 7Pm & sometimes till 4PM. With soundproofing layer under our new thicker wood and 60% carpeting, shouldn't we be compliant?
Planning to get some additional carpeting. But unfortunately - we are convinced the lady downstairs would still complain.
Also - anybody knows if the board can also have objections on the thickness of carpets.

You keep stating you have 60% carpeting while also stating the rules are 80%. Your refusal to comply and put down another 20% is breaking your co-ops rules - so you are NOT being mindful enough. You don't get to make up your own rules.

[LizfromtheBronx]

Originally Posted by jnyc212

You keep stating you have 60% carpeting while also stating the rules are 80%. Your refusal to comply and put down another 20% is breaking your co-ops rules - so you are NOT being mindful enough. You don't get to make up your own rules.

Pretty much this. No matter how much you think your solution should solve the problem, the co-op's rules are what they are.

I'm in the process of buying, and since it's not a first floor unit, the rules are 100% carpet, except kitchen and bathroom. I'd prefer hardwood, but I chose to buy where I did and I knew that going in, so I'll live with carpet. I'm replacing the carpet and I'm going to be sure to ask what thickness the padding needs to be, so I can be in compliance. That way if anyone ever complains about noise in my apartment, I'll very simply tell the board they're welcome to come inspect, see that I'm in compliance and then everyone involved can kick rocks lol.

I understand your frustration with a policy you see as archaic - and it could be an opportunity to petition the board for a change. Unfortunately, you shouldn't have spent the dough before getting the change enacted, to avoid the very situation in which you find yourself - you feel like you've spent enough money on this floor for a solution you feel should suffice - but it's not what the board has approved, and so it really doesn't matter how much money you've already spent, you need to pony up more to get yourself compliant.

[Kefir King]

rausa,


Do you have concrete between the two apartments?