Buffalo, NY Noise Ordinances: Leaf Blower Rules (2026)

§ 293-4(L) of the Buffalo City Code is a nighttime rule with several parts, and all of them must be present before a violation exists.

Equipment. The section covers the use and operation of any lawn maintenance device, including mowers, edgers, trimmers and power-driven hedge shears. Leaf blowers are not named in that list. The list is introduced by the word including, though, and the rule reaches any lawn maintenance device, so the named tools are examples.

Hours. The restricted period runs between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. During daytime hours, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., lawn maintenance equipment is generally permitted. Mowing a Buffalo lawn at 8 p.m. falls inside the permitted period.

Sound. Running the equipment at night is not enough by itself. The use must cause sound that annoys or disturbs a reasonable person of normal sensitivities. The measure in § 293-4(L) is that reasonable person, not an unusually sensitive listener. The provision is a nighttime ban triggered by disturbing sound, so the use must both occur during the prohibited hours and produce that sound.

Location. The sound must annoy or disturb in a residential real property zone. The restriction covers residential real property zones only. Commercial zones in Buffalo are governed by the general unreasonable-noise standard instead.

Exemption. The provision does not apply to the operation of such equipment on golf courses.

The text speaks of use and operation without regard to who runs the machine. A commercial landscaping crew working in a Buffalo residential zone is subject to the same 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. restriction as a homeowner.