Noise protection in the garden

2_iStock_runna10_1180919345 — If you prevent noise pollution, you can reduce health risks such as an accelerated pulse and rapid breathing.

Time in the garden should be spent enjoying nature and relaxing. Environmental noise is extremely disruptive to this. With these tips you can ensure noise protection in your garden and reliably attain your peace.

Why is noise protection important in the garden?

Noise is extremely annoying. It is a major issue in city areas in particular. Traffic noise, lawnmowers and other sources of noise surround us every day. Noises often stress us to such an extent that we know longer realise the reason for the tension.

You cannot close your ears, not even at night. Even if you believe you have got used to the noise, the background noise comes with dangers: if the noise level is over 70 decibels it can have health consequences: blood vessels contract, you breath more quickly and your heart also speeds up.

3_MSG_PatrickHahn_IMG_8665_blpid1158092 — One way of keeping noise out of your garden is by using filled gabion walls.

What can be done about noise in the garden?

The garden should really provide you with an opportunity to relax. So noise really needs to stay out of it. You can achieve this by either reflecting the noise or absorbing it. The principle of noise reflection is familiar in houses. Here, noise protection windows, for example, ensure more peace in the house.

You can take similar measures for noise protection in the garden. If you have ever stood in an walled garden, you know that there is less noise than in a purely green oasis. High walls are a good method to combat unwanted noise from outside.

The higher and thicker a noise protection wall is, the better it keeps out the noises. If the house is on a noisy street, for example, it is best to protect your property directly against this. The lower the distance to the source of noise, the more effective the noise protection.

Noise can be easily swallowed by gabion walls. For this, the core should be filled with insulating material. This absorbs the noise particularly well. All that can be seen from the outside are decorative stones.

4_iStock_runna10_1263299084 — Sound absorbing materials such as wood are ideal for noise protection.

Which material is best for swallowing noise?

You can buy noise protection walls made from different materials. Noise protection is available as wood, concrete, textiles, glass or bricks. Depending on the material, these either swallow or reflect the noise.

It was found in various attempts that smooth surfaces, such as glass, concrete or masonry reflect the noise differently. Porous materials tend to absorb it, they swallow it. You can use this to your benefit. For example, if you build a visual protection element and fill it with noise absorbing coconut fibre or cover it with wooden planks, you will strengthen the effect. The visual protection in our Tutorial can also be filled with sound absorbing material. Planted earth walls as noise protection are often present in new building areas in particular. Hedges, on the other hand, are more suitable for visual protection. However, a visual screen can also be calming. This can have a very peaceful effect and also provides a living space for beneficial animals. You can read about what you need to look out for in the Hedge Care Guide, and find out how to prune it properly in our Tutorial.

If other people are living opposite, it makes more sense to absorb the noise. If you reflect it, you may increase the noise level there by up to three decibels. It is important to know here that people realise an increase in the noise of 10 decibels as double the volume.

Therefore, elements for noise protection made from porous materials with rough surfaces are more suitable for residential areas.

When concreting walls for noise protection, wooden planks laid in the concrete formwork ensure an increased noise protection effect. The concrete wall will then no longer have a smooth surface. The noise is therefore reflected more poorly. Moreover, plants can also use uneven surfaces as a trellis when adding greenery. You can also build a trellis from old garden equipment or a special trellis for raspberries to add greenery.

A noise protection wall must always be built around the entire property. If a gap needs to be left, for example for an entrance way, it helps to draw the walls around the corners.

5_iStock_ZbynekPospisil-936813420 — You can distract from disruptive noises with pleasant sounds such as a wind chime with the help of ‘soundscaping’.

Distraction from noise sources

If you do not want to absorb or reflect the noise, you can distract yourself from it. Cover it with feel-good sounds. This is also called ‘soundscaping’. This is already used successfully in populated areas such as public squares or shopping centres. A pleasant atmosphere is created using calming music or bird song from a recording.

In the garden, you can bring this about completely naturally: in addition to leaf noises or the rustling of different heights of grasses, wind chimes and water fountains provide pleasant noises. If leaves have dropped in the fall, you can collect them with a low noise leaf vacuum or leaf blower. The UniversalGardenTidy 2300 can blow, vacuum, and also directly chop up leaves.

6_MSG_SusannHayn_P1010067_blpid492430 — A property enclosure made from prefabricated elements does keep noise at bay, however if in doubt, you should obtain permission.

Structural and plant noise protection in the garden

You can achieve good noise protection results in the garden with an enclosure. For example, completely enclosing your garden with prefabricated elements. It is important here that the structural elements which create the enclosure for a property correspond to the building ordinance regulations of the respective county in terms of their height and design. So before construction, you should not only speak with your neighbours, but also the responsible building authority. You can find out there if you need building approval for the noise protection.

It’s best to find out at the same time which regulations exist for planting hedges and trees. Building authorities can also tell you which border limits to neighbours must be observed.

If you want to know more about when you should do what kind of work in the garden, you can find out the best times for all the important tasks in our Gardening Calendar.

7_Bosch_o339990v15 hbgardentidy016 — Special quiet times for neighborhood noise control need to be observed when using loud garden equipment such as leaf blowers. You can work relatively quietly with the UniversalGardenTidy.

Quite periods for more noise protection in the garden

Gently rustling autumn foliage is a wonderful noise. But it is somewhat louder when it needs to be removed. This task is quickly accomplished with a garden vacuum or leaf blower. However, as a courtesy to your neighbours, you should only use these devices on work days between 9 am and 1 pm and 3 pm and 5 pm.

Equipment with an environmental label according to the ordinance 1980/2000 can also be used at other times, as this older equipment is considerably quieter.

Incidentally, the garden vacuum UniversalGardenTidy from Bosch is surprisingly quiet. They vacuum up garden waste or blow leaves together at just 99 decibels.

8_Bosch_o357242v15 hbindego_122_-m700_m700-3200x1800 — There are also different noise levels when mowing the lawn. Robot mowers cause less noise - the Indego is just 63 decibels, but still works rapidly.

Petrol lawnmower or robotic lawnmower?

Petrol lawnmowers are a classic cause of disputes among neighbour. They work quickly and reliably, but they are comparatively loud. Electric lawnmowers are considerably quieter.

A robotic lawnmower makes even less noise, but it takes longer to do its work. Unless it is an Indego. Because an Indego mows via Logicut and is therefore highly efficient. Different solutions may be better depending on the individual situation in your neighbourhood. If in doubt, talk to your neighbours before buying. You can often find a solution that keeps everybody happy.