Quiet hours in Washoe County, NV — also called the noise ordinance, nighttime noise rules, or residential quiet time — define the hours during which excessive noise is prohibited.
Unincorporated Washoe County has no clock-based quiet-hours rule. Instead its Development Code caps day-night average sound (Ldn) at the property line and adds a 10 dB penalty to noise made between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., effectively tightening nighttime limits.
Washoe County Development Code Article 414 (Noise and Lighting Standards) sets Ldn (day-night average sound level) limits at the property line rather than a fixed "quiet time." Measurement adds a 10 dB weighting to any sound occurring during nighttime hours, defined as 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., to compute the Ldn. So loud nighttime noise counts far more heavily toward a violation than the same daytime noise. Barking-dog and party-noise complaints in unincorporated areas are handled under WCC 55.125 (animals) and this Ldn standard; inside Reno or Sparks the city noise ordinance applies instead. Contact Washoe311 (775-328-2003) to report noise.
Enforced by code enforcement as a Development Code violation; abatement and civil penalties may follow. Animal noise is cited separately under WCC 55.125 with a civil penalty.
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