Lower Merion, PA Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)
Construction hours in Lower Merion, PA, sometimes called construction noise rules or contractor work-hour ordinances, set when contractors can run power tools, hammers, and heavy equipment.
Key Facts
- Weekday construction hours
- 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
- Weekend/holiday construction hours
- 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
- Evening landscaping allowance
- one machine, 6-8 p.m. weekdays only
- Fine range
- $100-$1,000 per offense
- Extension authority
- Director of Building and Planning, appeal via Chapter 5
Summary
Lower Merion Township exempts construction, repair, and landscaping noise from its decibel limits only from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. weekdays and 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekends and federal holidays, under Township Code Section 105-6.A(4); noise outside those windows must meet the numeric caps in Section 105-3.
Noises created by construction work and the repair and maintenance of any building, structure, or property, including landscaping, shall be exempt during the times as provided below: ... During the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, and during the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, and federal holidays: ... Monday through Friday between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., a maximum of one piece of landscaping equipment exceeding the decibel limits in §105-3 may operate. If there is more than one piece of landscaping equipment operating during these hours and the decibel limit exceeds the decibel limits established in §105-3, the use of this equipment is in violation of this exception.
Full Breakdown
Section 105-6.A(4) of the Lower Merion Township Code carves construction, repair, maintenance, and landscaping noise out of the general decibel limits, but only during set hours: 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday, and federal holidays. A narrow evening allowance lets a single piece of landscaping equipment run between 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on weekdays even if it exceeds the Section 105-3 chart; running more than one piece of equipment in that window, or exceeding the limit with it, voids the exception and becomes a violation.
Outside the exempt hours, construction noise is judged against the same ceiling that governs every other source: 65 dBA continuous by day and 50 dBA at night in residential districts, 70 dBA day and 55 dBA night in nonresidential districts. The Director of Building and Planning can extend the construction exemption on application for a specifically limited duration if reasonably necessary and subject to conditions protecting public welfare, per Section 105-6.A(4)(b); that decision is appealable through the procedures in Chapter 5 of the Township Code. Section 105-6.B further provides that where any other Township Code provision imposes a stricter noise standard, the more restrictive rule controls.
Violations & Fines
Construction noise outside the exempt hours, or landscaping noise that breaks the single-machine evening allowance, is treated as excessive noise under Section 105-2 and punished under Section 105-7.B: a fine of $100 to $1,000 per offense, with each day the violation continues after notice from the Director counted as a separate offense. Two or more confirmed complaint calls to a site within 60 days also add a $75 reinspection fee under Section 105-7.A.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a contractor run a jackhammer on Sunday morning in Lower Merion?
Can I run my leaf blower at 7 p.m. on a Tuesday?
Can a construction noise exemption be extended for a big project?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lower Merion
How Lower Merion compares: Cities with the Strictest Construction Hours·Compare Lower Merion to another location·View the Pennsylvania noise ordinances overview
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