Home Garden

How to Live With Loud City Noise

Big cities are loud and lively, with the nonstop sounds of taxi cabs, music, subway trains, street vendors and pedestrians on the street. Although the occasional urban chaos can be charming and exciting, it also can be frustrating to those living inside of it, 24 hours, seven days a week. It is possible to cope with the endless sounds of city life, however, while keeping your sanity intact.

Instructions

    • 1

      Install soundproof windows for a permanent solution. If you're serious about blocking out unwanted noise from the outdoors, control the situation with soundproof windows. These windows work directly alongside standard windows and operate as noise barriers. Removal of the first window layer is 100 percent unnecessary. Apart from solely preventing annoying noise from entering into your home, the windows also heighten insulation.

    • 2

      Wear earplugs. For an inexpensive and fast solution to the cacophony of city life, ear plugs are available in packs at most drugstores and musical supply shops. If you're surrounded by perpetual city noise, from the sounds of construction to traffic, ear plugs can assist your concentration while simultaneously providing hearing protection.

    • 3

      Play music. If you're distracted by outdoor sounds that just won't stop, drown them out by listening to music that is calming and tranquil. Music might help make the repetitive noise pollution outside not seem quite as overwhelming and heavy.

    • 4

      Leave town for the weekend. If the sounds of urbanity are really getting to you, go on a temporary escape to a much quieter locale, such as the countryside. When you get a day or two off, kiss the city noise goodbye with a retreat in a mountain log cabin, a day on the beach or a hike in the forest. A short break away from loudness may be all that you need to recharge your mind and body.

    • 5

      Grow trees or hedges. If you are lucky enough to have a yard in the city, reduce the noise level with landscaping and towering trees or hedges. Not only can plants serve as walls between the noise of the city and your home, they can also increase your privacy level.