Please please please help!

morningstar

morningstar

Cathlete
Guys, I seriously need help fast. I mentioned that I just got a new treadmill. It sits on carpet over concrete. Well, my downstairs neighbour is freaking out big time, starting to hammer on the ceiling and calling me over and over, yelling about the noise. I stopped running on the treadmill as soon as I realized what was happening, but I wear headphones when I run and didn't hear it at first. Has anyone been in this situation? Can you recommend something that will seriously muffle the noise by the machine and my feet on it? I'm desperate - I've waited so long to get this treadmill and I've wanted it my whole life - I can't not use it!
 
Some things you might try:
Can you move it to another location (perhaps it's especially the location--like over a bedroom--that is annoying your neighbor.

Can you find a time to workout that works both for you and for your neighbor's schedule? (the other annoyance could be time: if you workout, say, at 6 a.m., and your neighbor is not wanting to be subjected to noise at that hour).

You could try a layer (or even two?) of puzzle mats to see if that helps, but I would think that if you are running on the treadmill, it would cause more noise than walking.

Are you generally on good terms with your neighbor? Then (or even if not, as long as its not a contentious relationship in general), you might approach the neighbor, apologize (to start things out right), then try to come to some understanding as to when/where treadmill workouts would be less annoying. Let him/her know you are aware of the problem, and that you're looking for a solution that will work for both of you. I think you'll both have to compromise somewhat, and there may be some trial and error involved as you try out different options.

Hope you can find some way to get in the workouts you want! It must be frustrating to have waited so long to get a treadmill, only to be shot down like this! I just hope your neighbor isn't one of those crotchety folks who refuses to compromise, and for whom the only option is that you don't ever use the treadmill.:(
 
I had this issue too and we found a time that would work for both of us when I would use the treadmill. I also made a "sandwich" of insulation--I used a rubber mat on the floor with plywood in the middle, then another rubber mat on top of that. Seemed to help a lot with noise and vibration.
 
I think if you put some padding on it, that would help. But really.... the dude needs to relax. How long are you running? An hour a day?
 
ImFiddY said:
This one does: http://www.soundaway.com/Neoprene_Cork_Pad_p/16103.htm
Click to expand...

I contacted the company that you first gave me, and they will ship to Canada! And it looks like they have exactly what I need! I can't thank you enough! Thank you so so so much for helping me. I was heartbroken at the thought that I might not be able to run on my treadmill. The downstairs neighbour didn't even want me using it at all until I have the sound proofing straightened out- not even in the afternoon or early evening.
 
Yay! Finally, since my first post more than a month ago, I am back running on Zola (my treadmill). My soundproofing mat and pads finally arrived from the States and I got back on her today. I still won't be able to run when I want to, at 4:30 am, but maybe the constant harrassment will stop. You know, I stopped using Zola entirely for the past month, but my downstairs neighbour still called and emailed me about noise? Once he called at 2:30 am when I was dead asleep. Other times he calls and emails about noise when I'm at work. Everytime he hears any noise whatsoever, he blames it on Zola, when I'm not even in my apartment, let alone on Zola!
 
I think he secretly has a case of Zola Envy...that an an awful lot of free time on his hands.

Enjoy every run on it!!
 
I've been on both sides of this problem. I don't use a treadmill, but at my last apartment, any time I worked out, my downstairs neighbor would pound on the ceiling. I tried to talk to her about times when my workouts wouldn't bother her (and I tried extra mats, etc), but she wasn't interested in working with me AT ALL. Happily, I moved and now live in a ground-floor unit, so I can pound away on the floor to my heart's content.

Unfortunately, my upstairs neighbor has a treadmill.

Unless you've been in an apartment with someone directly above you on a treadmill, you cannot IMAGINE how disruptive it is. The whole room shakes, plaster dust shakes out from the light fixtures, the fan has started to break loose from its screws! The walls vibrate. We've had books shake free from their shelves. The dogs go berserk. Since their treadmill is right over our bedroom, we can't sleep while our neighbor is running. It sounds like we're being bombed, and he's not a big guy or anything - it's just LOUD and the whole room vibrates with every footfall. I guess I should add that we don't live in a tenement - it's a decent building and is well-maintained, so it's not like the noise is related to shoddy architecture or something.

We asked him if he could please stop running after our usual weekday bedtime, and he agreed. Sometimes, it still disrupts naps or work, if one of us is working at home (our office desk is in the bedroom), and it's definitely noticeable from other rooms, but since he was nice about changing the timing of his workouts, we tolerate it. But seriously, now that I've experienced it, I have sympathy for my former downstairs neighbor (I thought she was completely nuts). "Tolerance" is the best you can hope for.

My suggestion is to be as kind and accommodating as possible, since many apartment complexes and condo associations have actually forbidden treadmills because of the number of complaints about them.
 
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