Quiet hours in Charleston County, SC — also called the noise ordinance, nighttime noise rules, or residential quiet time — define the hours during which excessive noise is prohibited.
In unincorporated Charleston County, excessive, unnecessary or unreasonable sound plainly audible within 500 feet of a residential property line, or above 70 dBA, is prohibited under the county's Livability chapter. Enforcement is heaviest overnight (roughly 10 p.m.-7 a.m.).
Charleston County's noise rules live in Chapter 3, Livability (amended by Ordinance 2231, Sept. 20, 2022), not a separate acoustic zoning code. Section 3-43 bans any excessive, unnecessary or unreasonable sound plainly audible within 500 feet of a residentially developed parcel's property line, or measuring above 70 dBA. There is no separate daytime/nighttime dB table, but overnight noise draws the strongest enforcement. Inside the cities of Charleston, North Charleston or Mount Pleasant, the municipal ordinance applies instead of the county's.
Violation of the Livability noise provisions is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500.00; penalties escalate for repeat offenses.
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