Sleeping through barking dogs, taxis and the neighbour's generator

Most advice about noise and sleep is written for people who live next to a highway. A highway is loud, but it is steady, and the brain gets used to steady. What wakes people up in a typical South African suburb is different: a dog that starts barking at 01:40, a taxi hooting at the corner before five, a car alarm, a security patrol, a generator that coughs to life the moment the power goes.

These are bursts. Sleep researchers would say the problem isn't the volume so much as the change in volume. A sudden jump above the background is what pulls you out of deep sleep, even when the sound itself isn't very loud. So the goal is less about silence and more about two things: lowering the peaks, and raising the floor so the peaks stand out less.

Lower the peaks

Earplugs, chosen properly

Earplugs are the cheapest thing that works, and most people who say they hate them have only tried one kind.

Foam plugs block the most sound. Roll them thin, pull the top of your ear up and back, and hold the plug in while it expands. If it isn't going in at least halfway, it isn't doing much.
Silicone putty plugs sit over the ear canal rather than in it. They suit people who find foam uncomfortable or who sleep on their side, though they block a bit less.
Reusable flanged plugs last longer but are usually tuned for concerts, so they let more through than you'd want at night.

Replace foam plugs often. Once they stop springing back slowly they stop sealing. And if you rely on plugs, make sure a smoke alarm or a phone alarm will still reach you.

Find where the sound gets in

Sound travels through the weakest point in a wall, and that is almost never the brick. It's the gap under the door, the window that doesn't quite close, the burglar bars rattling in their frame, the air brick. A few evenings with draught strip and a door sweep can make a bedroom noticeably quieter for very little money. Heavy curtains help a little with sound too, mostly with higher frequencies like voices and hooting.

Raise the floor

A steady background sound makes a sudden one less of a jump. That's why a fan helps some people more than they expect. A fan, an air purifier or a sound machine set to a soft, even sound all do the same job. We cover the colours of noise in another piece, but the short version is this: pick something you'd be happy to hear all night, keep it at a volume you could talk over, and don't put the speaker right beside your head.

When it's the neighbours

There is a polite way through most noise problems, and it usually starts with the person not knowing.

Talk to them in daylight, not at 02:00 when you're angry. Many people with a barking dog have no idea it barks once they've left or gone to sleep.
Be specific. "Your dog barks from about one to three most nights" is easier to act on than "your dog is always barking."
Give it a couple of weeks, then follow up in writing if nothing changes.
If you're in an estate or complex, the body corporate or HOA rules usually cover noise and pets.

Most metros and towns have noise bylaws, and many cover persistent barking and generators. Your municipality's website or customer line can tell you what applies where you live and how to lodge a complaint. It is slower than a conversation, so treat it as a last step.

A generator note

If load shedding is back where you live, generators are the hardest noise to fix because the timing is out of everyone's hands. Two things help. Knowing your area's schedule lets you put plugs in before a slot starts rather than after you've woken up. And if it's your own generator, a proper enclosure and placing it away from bedroom walls, yours and the neighbours', goes a long way. Never run one in a closed garage or anywhere near a window.