help! structure/landscape to minimize the noise?

[fiddlebanshee]

Single lines of trees and wooden fences do little to block noise, according to my research into how to stop noise created by one of my neighbors. It takes something like a large earthen brim or solid wall. Although I am a good distance from my neighbors, because I have filed noise complaints against them, I now find I am skating on thin egg shells with my accidental roo and BAWKing hens. I cannot be a source of nuisance noise myself.

This! We have fought many battles over neighbor noise in the last two places we lived and never could get a good solution with landscaping alone. We opted to move and finally live on 14 acres with the house in the very middle of it, as far away as we can get from neighbors. In my view only distance helps (a little).​

 

[Hawkeye95]

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Yeah, I figured I would have to get rid of him, even though he's Polish, I've heard they are a little more quiet, but I know every roo and every hen is different. I have a leghorn and she is so talkative and loud compared to the rest, I don't know what gets her going but she'll start that loud growl or what ever you want to call it "brrrrrraaaaaaaaaa" - they all do that but she does it the most lol, might have to get rid of her too

My dad always had white crested black polish, and his roosters were much quieter than the other breeds of roosters. In fact, they were really docile and laid back and didn't make much noise at all. Guess you'll just have to wait and see what kind of personality you have and maybe he'll be fine?? It's good that you talked to your neighbors. People are less likely to get angry when they feel like they've been involved and have been talked to about what is going on. Sometimes all it takes is for them to see your point of view, understand your enthusiasm and they'll leave you alone and maybe even tolerate a lot more than they would have other wise.

 

[Gen9]

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Thanks! On one hand, I want to keep him and see if he's quiet, and on the other hand; I just don't want to wait to find him a home while he's making all this noise. I do have a dog kennel I could isolate him in the garage until late morning though hmmmm I just might try that. He's very skittish, he and the other polish are about 3 months old now have their own separate run under the coop. Every time I open the door to it he turns to me and starts walking up (almost like he's about to challenging me) but then runs the other way lol. He's the most scared out of all of them I have... I'm hoping he grows out of it, I don't understand because as chicks they would hop up on our arms and climb all over us.

 

[Gen9]

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How many chickens do you have? This morning I did close up the coop while she was doing the egg song, but for now it's just one, when all 7 or 8 of them start going at it, I'm afraid what that will sound like!

 

[Gen9]

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I don't mind checking throughout the day! Right now it makes my day when they lay me eggs, but I'm sure in the near future I'll have so many coming out of my ears LOL which I would LOVE because then I could give them to my neighbors

 

[fiddlebanshee]

How many chickens do you have? This morning I did close up the coop while she was doing the egg song, but for now it's just one, when all 7 or 8 of them start going at it, I'm afraid what that will sound like!

i don't have chickens yet, I was referring only to your question about how to bar noise in general, and imho only distance works, or super insulating. We did both, when we built our new place -- insulated our house for noise and kept the distance to neighbors as far as we could.

I would think if you keep the chickens in the coop until after they lay and you insulate the coop for noise (this is a major undertaking, though) that that might work. I'm talking building a coop over your existing coop making sure that the inner coop doesn't touch the outer coop and putting tons of insulation in between, and then double up the windows as well with a couple of inches between each window.​

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Chickens only SEEM to lay in the morning. When laying well, the eggs come every 26 hours or so but almost never at night.
That means most of the eggs come in the morning then later and later in the day until dusk and then they take a day off and they start coming in the morning again.
It's impossible to predict the time of day. When I think mine are done for the day I put them in the tractor to go grazing and one will start going nuts trying to get out and back to the coop to lay. I haven't been able to get them to use a nest in the tractor.

The problem with sound insulating the building is - How then do you get adequate ventilation. IMHO along with nutrition and water, adequate ventilation is the biggest health concern for chickens.

 

[Gen9]

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Oh wow, then I'd have to make the run bigger

and I don't think my husband will want to build anything else for them so this will take some major persuasion lol

 

[Gen9]

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that makes sense. What I wanted to do is keep the ventilation at the top of the coop (all 4 sides) like it is now, but be able to shut "windows" until later in the morning, then open it up during the day, and maybe close them back up around 5pm (when everyone gets off work) then open it back up when it starts to get dark.

About the eggs; on the 20th I had 2 eggs, then the 21st I had 1 egg (I was sure she wouldn't lay the next day), then the 22nd no eggs, and today she laid 1 egg. I interfered with her laying though, I tried to put her in a dog kennel in a cozy nest in the garage and she didn't want to lay there. I was hoping I could just isolate them when they're ready to lay that way (at least in the morning) so she doesn't make as much noise and the others don't chime in. I don't blame her for not wanting to though, I'm sure she'd love to have her sisters cheer her on lol

 

[MareeZoCool]

Some inner-city people can be germophobic about chickens since that chicken flu disease a few years ago.

You could take a few eggs in a cute little basket to your nearest or most worrisome neighbors, once the eggs start arriving.