10 rules for unincorporated Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
Verified from official government sources
Delaware County has no countywide quiet-hours law. Each of the 49 municipalities sets its own. Middletown Township, for example, bars unnecessary noise that disturbs neighbors at any hour and restricts loud activity overnight.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-1
It is hereby declared to be a nuisance and it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to make or cause... upon any premises owned, occupied or controlled by him or it... any unnecessary noises or sounds by means of the human voice or by any other means or methods which are physically annoying to the comfort of any person.
Delaware County sets no construction-hours rule; each municipality does. Middletown Township bars construction noise beyond the property line between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. and all day on Sundays and legal holidays.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-2.D(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person... performing construction work... to operate or permit to be operated any type of machinery, appliance, equipment or hand or power tool for construction purposes which emits noise beyond the premises upon which said machinery... is being operated or used between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., current time or on any Sunday or legal holiday.
Delaware County has no countywide barking-dog ordinance. Persistent barking is handled as a municipal noise nuisance, and Pennsylvania's Dog Law requires owners to confine and control dogs statewide.
Delaware County sets no leaf-blower rule. Municipalities do. Middletown Township bars power blowers and other domestic yard tools outdoors from one hour after sunset until 8 a.m. the next morning.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-2.F
No person, firm or corporation shall operate or permit to be operated any power saw, sander, drill, grinder, mower, blower, garden equipment or tools of like nature, used primarily for domestic purposes, outdoors between one hour after sunset and 8:00 a.m. the following day.
No countywide rule; each Delco municipality governs amplified sound. Middletown Township bars radios, stereos, amplifiers, and loudspeakers from being audible more than 100 feet from the property.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-2.A
No person, firm or corporation shall play, use or operate or knowingly permit to be played, used or operated any radio receiving set, musical instrument, phonograph, sound amplifier, loudspeaker or other machine or device for the reproduction of sound... so that the sound coming from such machine can be audibly heard at a distance greater than 100 feet from the property or premises wherein such...
Neither Delaware County nor its municipalities can regulate aircraft noise. The FAA controls aircraft operations and noise under federal law. Complaints go to the airport operator or the FAA, not the county.
Delaware County does not regulate industrial noise. Each municipality controls it through zoning performance standards and noise ordinances. Middletown, for example, restricts parking-lot sweepers and commercial equipment overnight.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-2.E
Operating or permitting the operation of any motor vehicle or motor-driven equipment which is designed to collect refuse by rotating broom, vacuum, blower or other method requiring mechanical operation... is prohibited between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. the following day.
Delaware County sets no decibel ordinance. Pennsylvania fixes motor-vehicle decibel limits statewide (67 Pa. Code § 157.11), while general property-line decibel limits, where they exist, are set by each municipality.
67 Pa. Code § 157.11
No person shall operate either a motor vehicle or combination of vehicles of a type subject to registration at any time or under any condition of grade, load, acceleration or deceleration in such a manner as to exceed the following noise limit for the category of motor vehicle within the speed limits specified in Table 1.
Delaware County has no outdoor-music ordinance. Live and amplified outdoor music is governed by each municipality. Middletown Township uses a 100-foot audibility limit but exempts bona fide concerts in parks and public venues.
Middletown Township, Delaware County PA Code § 155-2.A
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit the otherwise lawful playing of a band or orchestra in any concert hall, auditorium, club room or public park or other public location for a bona fide purpose.
Vehicle noise is set by Pennsylvania statute, not Delaware County. 75 Pa.C.S. § 4523 requires every vehicle on a highway to stay within the sound level the state prescribes; loud exhaust and muffler defects are enforced statewide.
75 Pa.C.S. § 4523(a)
Every motor vehicle operated on a highway shall be constructed, equipped, maintained and operated so as not to exceed the sound level for the vehicle as prescribed in regulations promulgated by the department.
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