How do I be a bad neighbor, without actually being a bad neighbor??

[Bilsch]

Same with the previous posters, I get really nervous when my neighbors start spraying 2,4-D around since I grow hops and they, as most hop growers probably already know, don't care for even tiny wind drift amounts of that stuff.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

It sounds like a problem for sure, with pseudo-greenies.
I do have to say that I was unhappy with my old neighbors who sprayed pesticides and weedkillers right up to our garden fence in a brisk wind blowing our way. We don't use pesticides or weedkillers, and never on our garden. They had an absolutely manicured lawn. That's not our neighborhood, which has gardens, huge lots and some with native wildflower plantings. It was irritating to me when we would stand in our yard and have to go inside when they were liberally spraying every square inch of their property and a bit of ours.

Maybe that has them being so unfriendly(?). People with asthma (me) really have issues, and when the wind is brisk it can really be bad. Nice lawns are important to some people, especially in suburbia, but I don't want overspray on the food I'm eating. So maybe there can be a compromise. We like all of our neighbors now. We keep to ourselves and our own yards and leave everything alone. But if someone needs help, they jump in to help.

Wasn't it Robert Frost who said "Good fences make good neighbors"?

I can appreciate that. While having manicured lawns isn't my neighborhood either, my block takes a lot of pride in our property. I'm never one to judge someone for not spending the time, energy or money on their grass as I do. Especially since it's how I make a living and I honestly enjoy it. For all I care they can plant a yard full of clover or dandelions, I just ask that they respect my property that I spend hours a week on, not to mention play in with my dog and host events in. We shouldn't have to watch out for someone elses dog waste. THATS my (main) complaint.

Not to knock asthma by any means, but the two of them sit outside and vape/smoke weed the majority of the day so I don't think they have breathing issues. I really do think they are just entitled, selfish people. (another) Example: their house sat vacant for a year before they bought it, some volunteer trees came up in their garden and he tried telling me I need to cut down MY tree because the seedlings will eventually grow into his foundation and ruin HIS house. Seriously, WTF!

Anyway, this was posted mostly as an outlet so I didn't blowup at them today, but also to see if I could come up with sneaky, legal (even borderline) ways to get back at them. I blew off some steam and enjoyed hearing some responses ranging from 'bury the hatchet' to 'brick up all their doors over night'. I'm going to settle on something in the middle. If he corrects his behavior, I'll absolutely start bringing him some of my beers. If not, I'm coming at him like the 4 Horsemen with a lawyer in tow. But ultimately, he will have the decision which way this plays out.

 

[Dland]

Cold hardy bamboo for a shady area? Not shady like the OP neighborhood. Shady like under a tree.

If I knew general location of OP, I'd have an opinion on that, but P bissetti will do just fine in shade down to USDA temp zone 6.

 

[SouthBounds]

How about being a great neighbor/brewer and give him some spent grains? You know, save the earth!

Tell him to lay them out on cookie sheets in the house to air dry for a few days.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

How about being a great neighbor/brewer and give him some spent grains? You know, save the earth!

Tell him to lay them out on cookie sheets in the house to air dry for a few days.

I'm not even joking you, the neighbors across the street from us have chickens so I offered them the grains and was denied because they aren't organic. I think we're just going to move lol...

 

[Zuljin]

If I knew general location of OP, I'd have an opinion on that, but P bissetti will do just fine in shade down to USDA temp zone 6.

Wasn't sure if bamboo or a hit man referral. Am I goig to be the subject of one of these threads if I plant along a chain link fence line with my neighbor?

ABS. Not just fro brakes. American Bamboo Society | Bamboo is Thriving

 

[Snark_Wolf_Brewing]

I give you....the great equalizer...

Liquid ASS is an overwhelming, stinky, funny prank product.

This stuff will literally gag a buzzard off a gutwagon. What you do with it, I leave to you.

 

[Pkrd]

If they rent then have a brief word with the landlord at 3am after each incident.

 

[ITV]

It were me I would get an old lawnboy 2 cycle lawn mower for my yard, they burn a fair amout of oil and are fairly loud. Tell the hipster neighbor that you wanted a lawn mower that was green (refering to the color of the lawn mower) to appeas his green nature.
Next get a propane type fogger and use it when the hipster is outside. Explain to the hipster that your wife is allergic to wasps and you want to keep them under control.
Third - check if your town has requirements tor dog owners to have a dog license. Our town does but no-one bothers to get one. You can report him for a lack of a dog license or possibly a lack of rabies vaccinuation which usually are a state requirement.

Don't get mad - get even!

 

[Dland]

Wasn't sure if bamboo or a hit man referral. Am I goig to be the subject of one of these threads if I plant along a chain link fence line with my neighbor?

ABS. Not just fro brakes. American Bamboo Society | Bamboo is Thriving

If you are worried about that, install a 60 mil, 30 inch plastic root barrier. Below are two installations we did; first one was construction site where we had to install the soil as well. A bit extreme, but what the customer wanted. The second was a more conventional installaton where there was pretty good soil in place, installed with chain trencher (check for utilities). On this one, the two neigbors were sworn enimeies, and had already spend a fortune on lawyers against each other. customer also wanted to be sure the neighbor would not have any compllaints. This one we still maintain the yard, and has been in around twelve years, and roots have not crossed property line, and they can not see each other at all any more.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

Don't get mad - get even!

This is the plan, although I haven't succeeded very well at keeping my cool. The dog is like 19 years old so I'll leave him out of it, after all it isn't the dogs fault the owner is an ass. I'm going to take the advice of some and tell (not ask) him to start picking up after his dog. Regardless of his reaction, I will remind him that the eve of his garage and downspout are 18" over my property line and draining directly onto my property (both of which are code violations, and if I choose to I can force him to reconstruct his garage) so he knows how hard I can legally play. If the dog waste problem persists, I'll ramp up my antics as one final shot across the bow before I call my surveyor and Lawyer.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

@Dland I'm in zone 5b, Eastern Nebraska. We've been talking about installing some Columnar Oaks/tall native grasses along our fence to block them out but bamboo might be interesting, though installing a root barrier seems like more work than I want to take on at this time of year. Cheers!

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

how do the hipsters mow their grass? If they are outside smoking weed, well there you go, that might cause any number of people to phone the police.
when I had a dog I didn’t let it crap anywhere but my yard and our town has a clean it up code. Ring cameras.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

how do the hipsters mow their grass?

Ring cameras.

They use an electric mower and shave it damn near to the roots. Nothing quite like watching someone ruin an expensive 3 year lawn restoration in 2 months!

I like the Ring idea, I want to get get video to be able to use against him if need be, but also for security reasons.

As for the smoking, plenty of our other friends/neighbors smoke and it doesn't bother us or most of our other neighbors so I definitely don't want to get the reputation of a narc.

 

[Dland]

@Dland I'm in zone 5b, Eastern Nebraska. We've been talking about installing some Columnar Oaks/tall native grasses along our fence to block them out but bamboo might be interesting, though installing a root barrier seems like more work than I want to take on at this time of year. Cheers!

I agree, bamboo won't do much for you in that cold. I'd go with some evergreen along fence line. I guess the conventional choice would be one of the arborvites that slows way down after it gets 15-20 feet, if you don't have a lot of room and don't want to eventually block too much light.

I went with UniFi hard wired security cameras, running on an old PC. I like the fact it is true closed circuit and not relient on interwebs at all, but program can be set up to be able to be accessed remotely.

There are parts of the country where someone with snow removal equipment might be able to considerably inconvenience someone who did not have any, without breaking any laws, if one did not feel like being neighborly....

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

They use an electric mower and shave it damn near to the roots. Nothing quite like watching someone ruin an expensive 3 year lawn restoration in 2 months!

I like the Ring idea, I want to get get video to be able to use against him if need be, but also for security reasons.

As for the smoking, plenty of our other friends/neighbors smoke and it doesn't bother us or most of our other neighbors so I definitely don't want to get the reputation of a narc.

Yeah, I hear that. I really don’t understand people with such low EQ that they would start bitching to a neighbor right off the bat. Sounds like they didn’t research the community or perhaps just feel entitled and didn’t care to. They might fit in better in Iowa.

 

[ITV]

They use an electric mower and shave it damn near to the roots. Nothing quite like watching someone ruin an expensive 3 year lawn restoration in 2 months!

I work in the coal fired power plant industry, we love people with electric powered cars, lawn mowers, etc., because it uses electricity instead of gasoline. It's entertaining listening to the people who think that they are saving the environment by using electricity to power their cars & lawn mowers. As for the windmill farms, when the wind isn't blowing the nearby coal/oil fired power plant is making up the difference to sustain the megawatt output to the grid.

 

[burntchef]

I would go the code route if the problem persists. Just had a issue with a new neighbor. I went the code route, he was pissed beyond words. The hearing judge reminded him and his lawyer that the law was for everyone equally. Lawyer pissed beyond words.
That action was taken after friendly words and a copy of the code book provided by me failed.
Eric

 

[Bilsch]

It's entertaining listening to the people who think that they are saving the environment by using electricity to power their cars & lawn mowers. As for the windmill farms, when the wind isn't blowing the nearby coal/oil fired power plant is making up the difference to sustain the megawatt output to the grid.

Even if the grid was powered 100% by coal (which it isn’t) an electric vehicle still has a greater ‘well to wheel‘ energy efficiency then gas or diesel cars. In addition the cost of the power is much lower, in my case, 1/5th price of gas. Those with solar are driving essentially free. Anyway.. I thank you for what you do, together with EV drivers, to make the environment just a little better.

 

[mongoose33]

I know mostly this was a rant, and sometimes we need to get it out of our system in lieu of doing something stupid.

The new yahoos will soon turn off everyone else in the neighborhood and they'll be isolated. I've known people like that--if you don't interpret reality their way, you're just wrong.

IMO, your best bet is to just put them on "ignore." Being a "bad" neighbor back at them isn't going to do much except allow for things to escalate, and as a businessperson, you cannot get that reputation.

If the dog craps on the sidewalk again and you have either a hose or pressure washer, wash it back into their yard. Sidewalks aren't toilets; they're for walking. But for the most part, if I were you, I'd just ignore them. People like that don't tend to change, and if interacting with them makes your blood pressure rise, then the answer is don't.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

Even if the grid was powered 100% by coal (which it isn’t) an electric vehicle still has a greater ‘well to wheel‘ energy efficiency then gas or diesel cars. In addition the cost of the power is much lower, in my case, 1/5th price of gas. Those with solar are driving essentially free. Anyway.. I thank you for what you do, together with EV drivers, to make the environment just a little better.

I couldn't agree more. As soon as the technology is good enough for me to mow my ~120 acres a week with a reasonable amount of batteries I'm 100% on board. Until then, I'll keep spending ~$4,000 a season on Diesel and Premium..

 

[Dland]

I'm with you there, I just went with a Sthil electric tool array for my garden-small lawn crew. If there was a viable electric alternative to the 23 HP Kawis on my main mowing machines, I'd get them as soon as economically feasible.

We use our electric chain saws & pole saws now for most trimming, but alas, they are not up to any serious tree work, chipping operations. Quick, and light is nice, and quite is great. Also goes down well with customers, not to mention not attracting nosy neighbors.

 

[Pkrd]

You guys know the EM radiation from your 'lectric tools travels all the way through walls unless they're tinfoil lined like my hat?

 

[Dland]

Of course it does, LOL, but cell phones gotta be worse, let alone WIFI, computers and 4/5G. {;

Seriously though, I have an EM meter ( I do yard maint at radio/cell complex, the new local main power transmissions lines along the main road are much worse than the antenna arrays, at least on the ground), electric motors aren't that bad.

 

[ehall]

send them this: Spring Loaded Glitter Bomb

 

[myelo]

How close are you to south Chicago? I can put you in touch with my cousin, No Lips Joey. One visit from Joey ... problem solved. And his rates are very reasonable.

 

[govner1]

A pair of strange panties in his car could be interesting!

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

A pair of strange panties in his car could be interesting!

a hemp thong sprayed with pachouli oil could certainly add some excitement to a day off for me!

 

[madscientist451]

I had a PITA Psycho neighbor that caused all kinds of problems and her dog used to poop in my back yard where my small kids (at the time) used to play. I mostly ignored her, but I would make daily rounds early in the morning before work and any poop was scooped up with a spade shovel and flung over the bushes into her backyard. The activity somewhat therapeutic, there was no confrontation and the problem was solved.
Life's too short to worry about d-bags.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

send them this: Spring Loaded Glitter Bomb

my god that down right evil..and only $20!