Work Hours In Buildings In Capital

Girino

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We are doing some renovation works and we've been receiving complains from our neighbors since day 1. Every single day we hav someone buzzing at our door to express how pissed they are with the noise.
There is a guy who asked to start after 10AM because he plays in nightclubs and comes home very late. He also would like a recess to be able to rehearse with his jazz band in the afternoon.
The lady next to him already threatened to file a claim with the police. She says she works the night shift in a bar and that we shouldn't start early in the morning because she wants to sleep. She also says that we have to make a pause around lunch because she hasn't been able to eat because of the noise (!). She hasn't been able to tell me when the pause should be, she said at 12, at 13, at 13:30 for at least 1 hour. I told her to tell me the exact hours as every neighbors left their requests and I needed to know what the building rules state, but she said there are no building rules and that we should have checked with the City of Buenos Aires before starting the works to know what law/regulation we should abide to. I told her she was basically asking me to respect her rights that she doesn't even know.

We have another neighbor who is sending texts that read "how long you have left? I can't bear it anymore" / "I can't stand it anymore, especially on Saturday!" / "You are busting my balls!" (Me estoy hinchando las pelotas) / "You've started at 7:30Am!" To which we've replied that at 7:30 we were not even there yet and that we were working during the permitted hours, and that we know he did works until 11PM but the neighbors had to bear with it anyway because they know it wouldn't last forever. He replied "This is a lie! It's false!" Like a 5 years old (he is a young lawyer... doh!)

We've been also left anonymous notes with scheduling requests and when asked "when noise will be over" we've always been honest and said the foreseen date. Of corse, once a worker didn't show up, then we had unexpected things to fix, so the same neighbor came to protest and call us "liars" many times over. We explained her that it is in our best interest to get over with it as soon as possible and that things came up. Besides, I also told her that I am not obliged to inform her of every single step of the works and that I too have a right to make improvements to my apartment. She said she doesn't care because it is not her problem (thanks, I am the one getting a formal complaint) as long as I do my things during the allowed times (which she ignores but she is sure we didn't respect). She also said they've called the the building administration many times, though we have never been contacted by the admin. The admin also told her it's not his business as he deals with the buildings business management and doesn't provide arbitration between neighbors.

She called the building manager and complained when we left temporarily some bags with broken tiles (the public collection services only takes 15 bags per time), that there is dust and that the corridor is dirtier than usual.

So I found an article on La Nación that said there is no clear rule, and then some hours to which we abode.

El Código de Edificación de la ciudad no especifica restricciones horarias para el trabajo en las obras, aunque la Agencia Gubernamental de Control (AGC) porteña indicó que éstas no pueden generar ruidos molestos fuera de estos días y horarios: de lunes a viernes, de 7 a 13, y de 16 a 20, y los sábados, de 8 a 13.

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/1268107-los-ruidos-por-obras-sin-controles


Isn't there a law or regulation I can print and attacch to my door for my neighbors to read?
It feels like a kindergarten!
 
In the buildings I've lived in the past years construction has been a real pain. But as a former condo owner I realize that everybody does it at some point so I take that into consideration. Generally I was told in my last building here that 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday was acceptable.

As long as they stay within those hours, I bite my tongue. Also, I realize that some owners do their own renovations outside of their work hours so as long as they don't go past 10 p.m. at night or spend all weekend working on it I also tolerate it. Someone is always going to complain. Just wait until they want to renovate. See how they listen to you about the noise and the hours!
 
Check the reglas del consorcio. The manual should dictate the hours that you are allowed to work in. In our building, the hours were between 9 and noon, and 1 and 5 pm or something like that. In the US, in our neighborhood, we are not allowed to work on Sundays, nor before 7 am. When we were remodeling, we did work on a Sunday and a neighbor called to complain, and he was right. I stopped. A few days later, I saw him walking his four dogs, and so I checked the rules and they said you cannot have more than three dogs. So I called him. He asked if I was retaliating? Of course I am, I replied! He got rid of the fourth dog and I never worked on a Sunday again. The joys of remodeling!!!
 
I think different buildings may have different rules. The several buildings I have lived here have. Currently mine is 9am to 1pm, then rest for three hours and resume 4pm to 9pm. While many buldings will differ, they will probably all be in that ball park give or take an hour each way.
 
Do you have something like a CGP in your area to ask about that?
Next to my building in Caballito there is a two story house being demolished to be replaced by new buildings and I hear a lot of drilling going on since before 9 am but this is a very noisy area to start with. I also have a neighbour who likes hammering the wall between 10 - 11 pm, which I find quite odd.
 
I think different buildings may have different rules. The several buildings I have lived here have. Currently mine is 9am to 1pm, then rest for three hours and resume 4pm to 9pm. While many buldings will differ, they will probably all be in that ball park give or take an hour each way.

I am still baffled by the three hour rest. What kind of worker could work a full day (8 hours) if there are three useless hours in the middle of it? My workers come from Tigre and beyond and it takes them one hour or more just to get to Palermo.


Anyway, there is no rules afaik and as far as the protesters have inquired. They simply whine regardlessly.

The complain of the day was that we started making noise at 7:30, but we weren't even at the apartment at that time. Putting our neighbor's complains together we understood that at 7:30 the painter rang our buzzer three times and this woke up our neighbor (we weren't there yet, hence the three rings).

Honestly, I am starting to wonder how I will be able to live next to such pricks given my times strongly differ from the average argentine schedule (I get up very early and by the time they're having dinner I am already in bed).
 
Complaint of the day: you can't vacuum clean on saturday afternoon
 
http://www.elciudada...uidos-molestos/
http://www.girabsas....on-tus-derechos
http://www.conclusio...n-construccion/

here's some stuff from googling "horario permitido para obras en construccion buenos aires"
you can look up some of the ordinances mentioned on the links but overall it seems like you shouldn't start any loud stuff before 8 AM. but if you buy your neighbors that are complaining some of those ear muff things or some really high quality ear plugs that might get you some goodwill.
 


[font=PT Sans']La normativa señala que trabajos de construcción “que contemplen cargas en las medianeras y/o muros linderos existentes que impliquen roturas y/o anclajes, como así también cualquier otro trabajo que genere ruidos molestos y vibraciones” que generen las obras en construcción, “deben realizarse de lunes a viernes de 8 a 13 y de 15 a 19 horas y sábados de 8 a 13, quedando expresamente prohibido realizar estas actividades los días domingos y feriados”.[/font]
[font=PT Sans']Además, establece que los responsables de las obras deben “comunicar en forma fehaciente a los vecinos linderos”, en un plazo menor a los 30 días corridos, haber obtenido el permiso de edificación, “características del proyecto, plazos, modalidades de trabajo y destino de la obra”.[/font]
[font=PT Sans']
http://www.girabsas.com/nota/2015-2-20--sufris-de-ruidos-molestos-conoce-cuales-son-tus-derechos
[/font]
[font=PT Sans']It doesn't says what are the working hours, just that it shouldn't prevent others to rest. It adds:[/font]
[font=PT Sans']Es importante señalar que en la normativa existen diferencias para valorar los sonidos de acuerdo a si se producen un día hábil o un feriado laboral, así como también, las horas en que se producen: el horario diurno es el comprendido entre las 7.01 y las 22 horas, y el nocturno, entre las 22.01 y las 7 horas.[/font]


This article is for Rosario.
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I can't seem to find an unique answer. Anyway, the article from GiraBas As also reads "Aunque algunos sonidos puedan ser intolerables, no todos los ruidos que incomodan la vida diaria infringen el Código Contravencional. Como establece el artículo 82, “no constituye una contravención el ensayo o la práctica de música fuera de los horarios de descanso, siempre que se utilicen dispositivos de amortiguación del sonido de los instrumentos o equipos, cuando ello fuera necesario."

I have a jazz band rehearsing every day in the apartment below mine. Unfortunately my neighbor is the one playing the piano, so they're bound to rehearse at his place. They are good! Should I start selling tickets?

I am really upset by this situation - from the lady below-next who complain even for the vacuum cleaner to the other boludo writing polite texts...

Maybe I should throw a house party and invite ya all over.
 
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