Dunwoody, GA Noise Ordinances: Quiet Hours (2026)
Quiet hours in Dunwoody, GA, also called the noise ordinance, nighttime noise rules, or residential quiet time, define the hours during which excessive noise is prohibited.
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code § 18-19(b)(2)
- Weekday quiet hours
- 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
- Weekend/holiday quiet hours
- 12:00 a.m. (midnight) to 7:00 a.m.
- Measurement point
- Adjacent property line or public right-of-way
- Legal effect
- Audibility there is prima facie evidence of violation
Summary
Dunwoody treats loud radios, phonographs and similar sound devices between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weekdays, and between midnight and 7:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays, as prima facie evidence of a noise violation when heard from the property line, under City Code § 18-19(b)(2).
(2)Radios, phonographs and similar devices. The playing, using or operating, or permitting to be played, used, or operated, of any radio receiving set, musical instrument, phonograph, or other machine or device for the producing or reproducing of sound in a manner as to disturb the peace, quiet, and comfort of the neighboring inhabitants or at any time with a volume louder than necessary for the convenient hearing of the person who is in the room, vehicle, or chamber in which the machine or device is operated and who is a voluntary listener thereto. The operation of any set, instrument, phonograph, machine, or device between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays when the audibility of the prohibited noise is measured from property line of adjacent properties or the public right-of-way of the property shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 49).
Full Breakdown
The general nighttime quiet-hours rule sits in § 18-19(b)(2), part of Dunwoody's 17-item list of per se noise violations. It covers any radio receiving set, musical instrument, phonograph or similar device used to produce or reproduce sound in a manner that disturbs the peace, quiet and comfort of neighboring inhabitants, or operated at any time with a volume louder than necessary for the convenient hearing of a voluntary listener inside the same room, vehicle or chamber. on weekends and holidays, and is audible measured from the property line of an adjacent property or from the public right-of-way, that audibility alone is prima facie evidence of a violation of the section, meaning the city does not have to separately prove the sound disturbed anyone's peace once it clears that property-line threshold during those hours.
This nighttime standard is distinct from the daytime-capable animal noise clause in § 18-19(b)(5), the advertising-loudspeaker clause in § 18-19(b)(3), and the construction-hours clause in § 18-19(b)(10), all of which sit in the same enumerated list but set their own separate rules and hours.
Violations & Fines
Running a radio, stereo or similar device audibly from the property line during the 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. weekday window, or the midnight to 7:00 a.m. weekend/holiday window, is prima facie evidence of a § 18-19(b)(2) violation, so Dunwoody police do not need a separate showing of neighbor disturbance to cite it. Each day of a continuing violation is a separate offense subject to a Code fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as quiet hours in Dunwoody?
Do I need a decibel meter to file a noise complaint at night?
Is a loud stereo illegal in Dunwoody during the daytime?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dunwoody
How Dunwoody compares: Cities with the Strictest Noise Ordinances·Compare Dunwoody to another location·View the Georgia noise ordinances overview
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