ACROSS AMERICA — The enterprising, do-it-yourself neighbors are making the most of spring weather and working every hour of daylight on the weekends on a home improvement project. The grinding, vibrating and buzzing of their power tools starts at the crack of dawn and doesn’t quiet down until after sunset.

All you wanted was to sleep in after a busy week at work, lay in a hammock and enjoy the weather, or entertain family and friends on your deck without the racket of power tools in the background.

What’s too early to start using noisy power tools on the weekend? How late should DIYers expect their neighbors to accept the noise without complaint? Is it fair to start loud power tools without considering whether it will interrupt what close neighbors have planned?

On the other hand, is it fair for neighbors to expect that someone working to improve their property do so only when it’s convenient for them? Shouldn’t they respect that you’ve had a busy week at work, too, and weekends are the only time you can work on projects?

Is there a middle ground? And how do you find it? We’re asking for Block Talk, Patch’s exclusive neighborhood etiquette column. Just fill out the quick survey below. And rest assured, we don’t collect email addresses.

Block Talk is an exclusive Patch series on neighborhood etiquette — and readers provide the answers. If you have a topic you'd like for us to consider, email [email protected] with “Block Talk” as the subject line.

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