Don’t Be That Neighbor—Must-Know Leaf Blower Etiquette Tips for Keeping the Peace

Published on July 5, 2025

When it comes to leaf blowers, emotions run high. While members of #TeamBlow love their leaf blowers, among members of #TeamRake, the noise and the emissions from these lawn tools produce reactions that range from annoyance to rage. There are countless threads on social media of people venting about leaf blowers, debating how and when they should be used in the first place, instead of a rake. People also get upset when their neighbors are too lazy to dispose of the leaves and just blow them out of their yard.

These etiquette tips for using a leaf blower in a considerate way will help you avoid annoying or even enraging your neighbors.

The Noise Level of a Leaf Blower

Gas-powered leaf blowers generate 80 to 100 decibels of noise for the person running it and 65 to 80 decibels of noise at 50 feet, where the next-door neighbors usually are. Some commercial leaf blowers are even louder, generating 115 decibels of noise up close and 100 decibels at 50 feet.

To give you an idea of how loud that is, city traffic is 85 decibels, and a siren is 120 decibels. Electric leaf blowers are quieter, generating 60 to 65 decibels, about the noise level as a washing machine, so they are more neighborhood-friendly.

Know the Laws

Before you fire up your leaf blower, know your local ordinances. Many cities and homeowners’ associations have regulations regarding the specific hours you can legally run a leaf blower and how to use a leaf blower. These rules may include:

• Time-of-day restrictions that prohibit running a leaf blower before a certain time in the morning and after a certain time in the evening.
• Day-of-week limits that restrict the use of leaf blowers on weekends and holidays.
• Noise level limits that specify a maximum decibel level for lawn equipment.
• Gas-powered leaf blower bans are being enacted in some communities. The District of Columbia prohibited the use of gas-powered leaf blowers in 2022, and California banned the sale of new gas-powered leaf blowers statewide in 2024. Seattle is phasing out gas-powered leaf blowers, too.

Timing Is Everything

Even if local laws are lenient about when you are allowed to operate a leaf blower, timing is key to good leaf blower etiquette. On weekdays, don’t run your leaf blower before 8 a.m. and after 8 p.m. On weekends, start leaf blowing later and stop earlier, so people can sleep in or relax on their patio or deck in the cool of the evening, all without being disturbed by the roar of a leaf blower.

Consider your neighbors’ schedules. If you live next to someone who works nights, works from home, or has small children who nap in the afternoon, run your leaf blower when it will not disturb them. As one Redditor put it in a thread about leaf-blowing etiquette, “Do you want to be treated by a sleep-deprived ER doctor who works the late shift and needs to sleep during the day, but you disturbed them (with a leaf blower)?”

Mind the Debris

One of the biggest complaints about leaf blower use is where grass clippings, leaves, sticks, and other landscape debris land. Here are some general rules for leaf blowing:

• Do not blow leaves and grass clippings out into the street. This is a public space, and dumping leaves and clippings into the street is not only inconsiderate and messy but also dangerous, as it can lead to flooding. Some municipalities and the state of Arizona have banned blowing landscape debris into public roadways.
• Do not blow grass clippings or leaves onto sidewalks. Sidewalks are also public spaces, and they exist for people to walk, not as a place to blow your leaves or grass clippings. The leaves should be blown back onto your yard, nowhere else.
• Do not blow them into your neighbor’s yard. Your lawn debris does not belong on your neighbor’s property.

What to Do with Leaves and Clippings

There are four acceptable options for the leaves and grass clippings you move around with a leaf blower:

• Compost them. Pick up your piles of clippings and leaves and haul them to a compost pile or bin. This organic soil amendment makes your lawn or garden healthier. A tarp works great to collect the clippings or leaves and drag them to the compost pile.
• Bag them up for the trash. If you don't have a compost pile or bin, the second-best option is to blow the clippings and leaves into a pile, then bag up the pile so it can be hauled away on yard waste pickup day.
• Leave the leaves. Use the leaves instead of mulch that you buy at a garden center, and rake the leaves into your flower beds or around trees at a depth of 3 to 5 inches. As they decompose, the leaves release nutrients to the soil, improve soil structure, and provide an important habitat for numerous wildlife species.
• Leave grass clippings on the lawn. Try grasscycling the clippings into natural fertilizer for your lawn. They break down very quickly, especially if you use a mulching mower blade and the grass is not too long when you cut it.