Pickleball is a Community Noise Problem
The increasing popularity of pickleball has generated an increasing demand for pickleball courts to be constructed near residential communities. This has caused concern among nearby residents who have described the loud pinging and popping generated by the pickleball striking the paddle as “ping pong on steroids”. The excessive noise has been attributed to numerous health and wellness issues, including loss of sleep, poor concentration, increased fatigue, hypertension, and impaired cognitive performance. Other residents claim that the excessive noise and traffic has caused a reduction in property values, as few buyers are willing to purchase homes in high noise areas.
The pickleball noise problem is real and significant, pitting pickleball players against residents, and potentially impacting pickleball businesses and community planning. In some communities, the push-back from residents has been extreme, resulting in fewer pickleball courts, limited playing hours, or requirements to use modified equipment. In recent years, there has been an increased interest in materials or equipment that promise to reduce pickleball noise, however, it is questionable as to whether these are truly effective. The pickleball noise problem must be addressed through a cooperative effort between pickleball players, residents, communities, pickleball equipment manufacturers, and pickleball governing organizations.
Community Noise Standards
Noise standards in community and in workplace environments are loosely based on studies of hearing impairment, where the goal was to minimize human exposure to high noise levels over a certain amount of time. The so-called permissible exposure level (PEL) in a workplace environment (as defined by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is 85 dB averaged over an 8-hour period. Workplace noise surveys are therefore conducted by measuring the ambient noise to which a worker is exposed and identifying the amount of time when the average noise levels exceed 85 dB. Exceedances to the maximum PEL require use of ear protection or modification of the workplace machinery to reduce ambient noise levels.
Workplace noise standards and measurement techniques do not necessarily apply to the establishment of community noise standards. These may vary according to how the areas within the community are zoned. Commercial zones that have high ambient noise levels, such as those that are close to major highways, railroad tracks, factories, airports, etc. may have higher allowable noise levels than quieter residential zones in suburban or rural areas. Noisy urban areas may have ambient noise levels on the order of 60-70 dB, whereas suburban residential areas may have ambient noise levels on the order of 40-50 dB. Figure 1 shows a comparison of average acoustic levels in various scenarios.
Typical community noise standards will allow for activities that exceed “normal” ambient noise levels by 5-10 dB depending on the zone in which the activity takes place. A 10 dB increase in sound levels is significant, as it is perceived as a doubling of the perceived loudness level. Communities use these guidelines to allow for the operation of certain businesses (such as factories, restaurants, or nightclubs), equipment (such as trucks, machinery, or air conditioners), or activities, such as pickleball. Community noise standards may allow a restaurant owner to install an outdoor patio if it increases the noise level at the property line by less than 5 dB; however, he may not be allowed to play amplified music on the patio if it increases the noise levels by over 10 dB.
The Problem with Impulse Noise
The pickleball impact sound may have a peak amplitude that exceeds 120 dB at a distance of one meter over a very short duration. Measurements by acoustical engineers at pickleball courts have found that the pickleball activity increases the overall average noise levels by a miniscule amount over ambient levels (1-2 dB). Why is this so? The answer lies in the fact that typical noise surveys are structured to measure steady-state noise levels that do not change significantly over time, such as continuously operating machinery or fans from air conditioning units. The noise from a pickleball impact is a short-duration impulse, that cannot be accounted for with the steady-state measurement equipment and techniques.
As an illustration, a sound level meter might be used to obtain the average ambient noise over a sixty second period. Within this sixty second period, the ball might be hit loudly only a few times. Since the duration of the impact noise is on the order of milliseconds, the total time that the acoustic levels exceed the ambient levels might be less than one second! Consequently, the cumulative short duration impact noise of the paddle striking the ball will be “lost” in the longer time average of the background (ambient) noise. We will address the noise measurement problem in a future article, “Pickleball Noise Fundamentals“.
Where Do We Go From Here?
Current community noise standards are not equipped to handle the random short-duration high-amplitude noise from pickleball because the noise criteria are based on steady-state long duration noise. We are all aware how we can tolerate high noise levels if these levels are steady-state, like sound from a white-noise generator, fan, or waterfall. However, we become disturbed if the steady-state background noise is interrupted periodically with high-amplitude sound, like the slamming of doors or the striking of a pickleball. To account for these impulsive noises, some researchers have proposed use of an annoyance penalty for impulsive sounds, however this methodology is not yet widely accepted.
Clearly, traditional community noise standards and acoustic measurement techniques cannot be used to assess and regulate noise from pickleball courts. New standards and measurement techniques must therefore be developed to address the short duration impulse pickleball noise. In recent years, researchers have studied the effects of impulsive noise to determine ideal ways to minimize its effect on hearing loss. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has developed a high impulse noise measurement system that was used to assess noise exposure from firearms on law enforcement and military personnel. These and similar studies should be used to develop improved community noise standards and measurement techniques for pickleball.
In our next article, Pickleball Noise Fundamentals, we discuss characteristics of pickleball noise and how it is currently measured. In future articles we will examine how noise propagates in the atmosphere and discuss the effectiveness of noise barriers and absorbers that may be installed around pickleball courts.
