Sound travel over 1/4 of a mile?

[Lijap]

I have recently acquired some land, and I want to shoot there instead of at the range. I really don't want to be an annoyance to some neighbors about a quarter mile away. I have a few acres of woods that I could fire in if that could help dampen the sound. Surrounding my land is flat cornfields. I know I could shoot .22s, but I want to know how loud it will be for them once I tried some larger calibers. We will have some dirt from the basement, which could make a nice barrier for sound also. Any input?

 

[Lammchop93]

To be honest, I would be more worried about where your bullet will travel rather than the sound. I know you said there are some woods, but you need to make sure you have a solid backdrop that you know your bullet will stop at. If you shoot out into those flat cornfields, who knows where the bullets will end up.

 

[Lijap]

I will haul some dirt from excavating the basement into a big shooting mound. I think that should stop anything I can shoot at it pretty much.

 

[42769vette]

I have recently acquired some land, and I want to shoot there instead of at the range. I really don't want to be an annoyance to some neighbors about a quarter mile away. I have a few acres of woods that I could fire in if that could help dampen the sound. Surrounding my land is flat cornfields. I know I could shoot .22s, but I want to know how loud it will be for them once I tried some larger calibers. We will have some dirt from the basement, which could make a nice barrier for sound also. Any input?

Is the property in the country?

If so and its a safe place to shoot I would not worry about hte neighbors. Part of living in the country is certain times of year you are going to get stuck behind tractors, combines, etc. When the power goes out it may be out for a few days. When it snows your road may not be top priority, And from time to time you are going to hear gun fire. Thats just the unspoken rules for country living.

by the way suppressors are your friend

 

[! twitty]

Is the property in the country?

if so and its a safe place to shoot i would not worry about hte neighbors. Part of living in the country is certain times of year you are going to get stuck behind tractors, combines, etc. When the power goes out it may be out for a few days. When it snows your road may not be top priority, And from time to time you are going to hear gun fire. Thats just the unspoken rules for country living.

by the way suppressors are your friend

 

[Lijap]

It technically is in the country, though it's only 3-4 miles out of Columbus. The closest residence is no closer than a quarter of a mile away.

 

[sloughfoot]

How do you know that your new neighbors don't like to have a family range day every now and again? Heck they could be used to using your property as the backdrop. You won't know until you talk to them..

My suggestion is face to face communications with those neighbors. I wish you well and that you have good relations with your neighbors.

You are the new guy, try to make some friends so they know what is going on with you. They probably won't mind if they are asssured they won't see a bullet hole in the calfing sheltor or the hen house, or the Z71 in the driveway....

It ain't New York City where you try to not to get to know your neigbors....... Is it?

 

[42769vette]

How do you know that your new neighbors don't like to have a family range day every now and again? Heck they could be used to using your property as the backdrop. You won't know until you talk to them..

My suggestion is face to face communications with those neighbors. I wish you well and that you have good relations with your neighbors.

You are the new guy, try to make some friends so they know what is going on with you. They probably won't mind if they are asssured they won't see a bullet hole in the calfing sheltor or the hen house, or the Z71 in the driveway....

It ain't New York City where you try to not to get to know your neigbors....... Is it?

good point, i have 1 neibghbor that constantly complains about me shooting due to the noise. he is about 1/2 mile away with nothing but open field between 1 of my firing positions and him. to him i say thats part of living in the country. Of the neibghors on the other 3 sides 2 of them routinly will pull out in the field im shooting in and start unloading their guns and we have a spur of the moment range day.

 

[Lijap]

Thanks for the feedback, I will be building a house there so it will be a while, but I just wanted to be prepared. I'm pretty excited though, all the rules at the range sort of take the fun out of it, even if it just for safety.

 

[24Carat]

Thanks for the feedback, I will be building a house there so it will be a while, but I just wanted to be prepared. I'm pretty excited though, all the rules at the range sort of take the fun out of it, even if it just for safety.

8 or 10 shots of Tequila always steadies my hand. They frown on that on most all ranges....go figure ?

 

[SSGSAD]

I have recently acquired some land, and I want to shoot there instead of at the range. I really don't want to be an annoyance to some neighbors about a quarter mile away. I have a few acres of woods that I could fire in if that could help dampen the sound. Surrounding my land is flat cornfields. I know I could shoot .22s, but I want to know how loud it will be for them once I tried some larger calibers. We will have some dirt from the basement, which could make a nice barrier for sound also. Any input?

When I was still living at home, with mom and dad, we went to my Grandmothers house, up near Attica, In. She had 95 acres of farmland, and we would shoot there. When we fired the first shot, her phone would start ringing, and she would tell them that her grandkids, from the city, were visiting.... Just let your neighbors know that you will be shooting, on your land, and be aware of the time you start and stop shooting...

 

[churchmouse]

good point, i have 1 neibghbor that constantly complains about me shooting due to the noise. he is about 1/2 mile away with nothing but open field between 1 of my firing positions and him. to him i say thats part of living in the country. Of the neibghors on the other 3 sides 2 of them routinly will pull out in the field im shooting in and start unloading their guns and we have a spur of the moment range day.

Sounds like the complainer is outnumbered.

 

[Lijap]

When I was still living at home, with mom and dad, we went to my Grandmothers house, up near Attica, In. She had 95 acres of farmland, and we would shoot there. When we fired the first shot, her phone would start ringing, and she would tell them that her grandkids, from the city, were visiting.... Just let your neighbors know that you will be shooting, on your land, and be aware of the time you start and stop shooting...

Will do that for larger calibers, thanks for the tip. I think the woods will block the little AR-7's sound pretty well though.

 

[Fullmag]

Huntington Range used to have these concrete pipes with plywood on one end and a square cut cut out to shoot through. It made the strangest sound, a guy could stand next to it and not need ear protection. Even then still could that hear weird sound for miles.

 

[42769vette]

Sounds like the complainer is outnumbered.

By far, the complainer, my father 2 other neighbors were at a auction and he was complaining not long ago. He ask the other 2 neighbors "didnt the shooting drive you nuts last saturday" Earl (the closest neighbor) said "it didnt bother me, but since i was shooting with him i had muffs on".

Then the complainer ask's me if i can do anything about the coyotes in the area. I said "I kill all I can, but I do much better when using a gun vs a quite bow"

There is 1 in every croud

 

[KLB]

Be sure to check with the local PD to see if there are any laws that would prohibit you from shooting.

My complaining neighbor doesn't even live next to me. He only farms the land. I got a visit from the Porter County Sheriff's dept. because of him. Of course it was all legal, so they went on their way with a smile.

 

[melensdad]

I have recently acquired some land, and I want to shoot there instead of at the range. I really don't want to be an annoyance to some neighbors about a quarter mile away. I have a few acres of woods that I could fire in if that could help dampen the sound. Surrounding my land is flat cornfields. I know I could shoot .22s, but I want to know how loud it will be for them once I tried some larger calibers. We will have some dirt from the basement, which could make a nice barrier for sound also. Any input?

I also live in the country. Sound travels a very long way. The farm & hunt club across the river from me is about 1 mile away from me and its pretty loud when the wind is blowing from that direction. When the wind is not blowing from that way its still easily audible, inside our home, with the windows closed. I don't know how many acres they have, but it must be nearly 1000.

If you want to dampen sound the best thing I can think of is to have a somewhat confined shooting range. Build a big berm for you backstop. Plant lots of SPRUCE and PINE trees at the end of your range and up the sides of your range. At least 3 rows of trees. The thick trees will help deaden the sound and break up the sound waves. The closer the trees are to your range the better. If you have a 20' wide berm on the end then have a 20' wide shooting alley between your rows of trees. The closer the trees are to your shooting the quieter your range will be.

Open spaces allow the sound to travel.

BTW, my yard is about a 1/4 deep. If I shoot a rifle in the back my wife thinks it sounds like a cannon going off. On the other hand when we shoot shotguns it is far less bothersome. The rifles tend to make a loud 'crack' while the shotguns tend to make a lower 'boom' type sound. Pistols are similar to rifles in how they sound, but not as loud.

 

[CitiusFortius]

And from time to time you are going to hear gun fire. Thats just the unspoken rules for country living.

And when you live in the burbs you hear people mowing their grass and snow-blowing driveways.

As long as you try to be considerate (don't bump fire .223 at 2:30 AM ect) then you should be good to go.

This is a very stereotypical statement, but my guess is most country folk would rather come over to use your backstop and have some fun over filing a noise complaint.

 

[melensdad]

And when you live in the burbs you hear people mowing their grass and snow-blowing driveways.

As long as you try to be considerate (don't bump fire .223 at 2:30 AM ect) then you should be good to go.

This is a very stereotypical statement, but my guess is most country folk would rather come over to use your backstop and have some fun over filing a noise complaint.

Most rural areas have a 'noise ordinance' that covers all types of loud noises. In my county (Lake) the noise ordinance does NOT take affect until 10:00pm and then runs until 8am the next morning. During the day you can blow up tannerite, bump fire your semi-autos, rev up your big rig diesel truck, schedule a "heavy metal" band practice in your front lawn, etc.

At 10:01 you neighbors can call the sheriff and they will respond. Other counties may have different times/rules. Helps to know your county ordinance.