Noise ordinances › Irving, TX

Irving noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints

Last updated: October 5, 2026

Documenting this? A dated log of when the noise started, when it stopped and how loud it got is what Irving acts on. Log noise levels for a complaint — free, runs in your browser, records no audio.

Quiet hours in Irving

Table 22-1 (§ 22-2): day is 7:00 a.m. to 9:59 p.m. and night is 10:00 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. "unless otherwise specified." For properties fronting the 100-500 blocks of W. Irving Blvd., W. Second St. and Rock Island Rd., the 100-300 blocks of E. Irving Blvd. and E. Second St., the 100 blocks of N. and S. Britain Rd. and O'Connor Rd. and the cross streets in those blocks, and for all high-intensity mixed use properties, day runs to 10:59 p.m. and night starts at 11:00 p.m. on Friday and/or Saturday (10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday). Outdoor amplification at public entertainment facilities may not occur before 7:00 a.m., after 10:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday or after 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Per se violations in § 22-3: loudspeakers, amplifiers and public address systems within or adjacent to a residential area (or within a public space where the sound is plainly audible across its property line) from 10:00 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. on weekdays and from 9:00 p.m. to 9:59 a.m. on weekends and holidays ((a)(6)); yelling, shouting, whistling or singing in residential areas or public places from 10:00 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. ((a)(7)); loading or unloading at a business adjacent to residential areas or at a residence from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Monday through Friday and 9:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. Saturday and Sunday ((a)(8)); construction, demolition, alteration or repair of any building, or excavation of streets and highways, in or adjacent to a residential district is a per se violation outside 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays and 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekends, unless the noise results from an emergency ((a)(9)); construction, landscaping and lawn-care noise in residential areas is barred from 9:00 p.m. to 6:59 a.m. ((a)(10)); standby generators may not be tested or operated for maintenance from 7:00 p.m. to 7:59 a.m. ((a)(14)); emergency signaling devices may be tested only from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., for no more than five minutes and no more than once a calendar month ((a)(4)a). Exemption clocks in § 22-4: repairs or excavations of bridges, streets or highways by or on behalf of the city, the state or the federal government from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., when public welfare and convenience make it impractical to do the work between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.; permitted fireworks from 8:00 a.m. to 9:59 p.m., or from 8:00 a.m. December 31 to 12:15 a.m. January 1; restaurants that do not use amplified sound after 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday or after 11:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday (and stay at or under 70 dBA at the property perimeter).

Decibel limits

Yes. § 22-2(1) makes it unlawful to make or continue any noise in violation of Table 22-1, "Maximum Specific Noise Levels," which is organized by the NOISE-GENERATING property: Residential 65 dB day / 55 dB night; Commercial/low-intensity mixed use 70 / 60; High-intensity mixed use 75 / 60; Industrial 75 dB or 10 dB above background by day / 60 night; each of those cells reads "or 5 dB above the background noise level, whichever is lower" (except the industrial daytime cell, which uses 10 dB). Public entertainment facility: 85 dB by day (no background alternative) and 65 dB or 5 dB above background at night. Table notes: where the background exceeds the figure, the background becomes the maximum; 5 dB is subtracted where the level includes impulsive noise; "Noise shall be measured where the noise is audible at the property line of the noise generating property." The table says "dB"; the chapter defines the "A" level as the sound level measured with the A weighting network, in dB(A). Method (§ 22-7(b)): a decibel meter, outside the property line of the sound-generating property, at a point on adjacent public or private property or either side of an adjacent right-of-way at or near the boundary of the generating property; "Smart-phone applications do not meet the requirements of this chapter." Source-specific figures: residential heating, refrigeration, ventilation, air conditioning, pool filters and motors may not exceed 85 dBA at any time of day or night (§ 22-3(a)(11)), but devices legally installed before the chapter was adopted are not subject to its standards (§ 22-5); food service and restaurant deliveries lose their exemption only when the delivery occurs between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. and lasts more than one hour, is for supplies other than food, nonalcoholic beverages, food service supplies or ice, and exceeds 65 dBA measured from the closest residential property (§ 22-4(9)); restaurants keep theirs only while amplified sound stays at or under 70 dBA at the property perimeter and stops by the set times (§ 22-4(10)). Audibility rules: radios, televisions, musical instruments and similar devices violate § 22-3(a)(5) when plainly audible to others "at a distance of fifty (50) feet from any person in a commercial, industrial area, or public space," or when plainly audible and over the chapter's decibel limits; § 22-3(a)(1) separately bans "any unreasonably loud, disturbing noise, disturbance, commotion, or vibration" beyond the ordinary sounds of a place run in the usual way.

What the ordinance actually says

§ 22-2(1): "Any noise in violation of the standards set forth in Table 22-1 below, unless more specific standards are enumerated in section 22-3 or unless otherwise exempted in section 22-4 of this chapter."

§ 22-2, Table 22-1, Residential row, Day and Night columns: "65 dB or 5 dB above the background noise level, whichever is lower." / "55 dB or 5 dB above the background noise level, whichever is lower."

§ 22-2, note to Table 22-1: "Noise shall be measured where the noise is audible at the property line of the noise generating property."

§ 22-7(b)(1): "Whenever portions of this chapter prohibit noise over a certain decibel limit, measurement of said noise shall be made with a decibel meter, outside the property line of the sound-generating property. Smart-phone applications do not meet the requirements of this chapter for sound collection and measurement."

§ 22-3(a)(7): "Yelling, shouting, whistling, or singing in residential areas or in public places, between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:59 a.m.;"

§ 22-3(a)(10): "In residential areas, between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 6:59 a.m., the creation of noise produced by construction, landscaping, or lawn care-related activities;"

§ 22-8(a): "A person who violates a provision of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor which is punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00)."

§ 6-1: "Animal noise disturbance means a minimum of two (2) separate recorded noise events within a period of twenty-four (24) hours where the animal can be heard continuously for a twenty-minute period of time, at least one hundred (100) yards away or behind the wall of a structure used for human habitation."

Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (City of Irving Code of Civil and Criminal Ordinances, Chapter 22 "Noise": § 22-1 Definitions, § 22-2 General prohibition (Table 22-1, "Maximum Specific Noise Levels"), § 22-3 Noises prohibited, § 22-4 Exemptions, § 22-5 Nonconforming mechanical devices, § 22-6 Presumption, § 22-7 Enforcement, § 22-8 Penalties (Ordinance 2009-9120, § 2, adopted 9/24/2009; amended by Ordinance 2024-11013 adopted 10/3/2024, which is the only source shown for § 22-5; §§ 22-1 and 22-4 further amended by Ordinance 2025-11143 adopted 8/28/2025). Animal noise: Chapter 6 "Animal Services," § 6-1 (definition of "animal noise disturbance") and § 6-80(d). eCode360: "Includes legislation through Ord. No. 2026-11315 adopted August 27, 2026." Text read on 2026-10-05.). Verified against the live code on 2026-10-05. Ordinances get amended — before acting on a specific provision, check the linked official code. This page is a plain-language summary, not legal advice.

How to file a noise complaint in Irving

Per the Irving Police Department page: "Non-Emergency Dispatch (972) 273-1010"; emergencies, call 911. The City's Irving Report A Concern portal (irvingtx.qscend.com/311) has no knowledge-base article on noise (a search for "noise" returned none on 2026-10-05); its one "Nonemergency Police Concern" article, which is about illegal dumping, also points to "our non-emergency line at 972-273-1010." Under § 22-7(a) the chief of police or a designee, which for this chapter includes any sworn peace officer and code enforcement officer, has primary responsibility for enforcing the noise rules; decibel violations are measured with a decibel meter outside the property line of the sound-generating property, and smartphone apps do not count (§ 22-7(b)(1)). Barking or other animal noise is a Chapter 6 offense (§ 6-80(d)); Animal Services is listed as a division on the police page. Sources: https://www.irvingtx.gov/police and https://irvingtx.qscend.com/311/knowledgebase/article/628.

Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Irving. For the general playbook — documenting the problem, talking to a landlord or HOA, when 311 beats 911 — see the noise complaints guide.

Worth knowing

(1) The limits follow the SOURCE, not the listener: Table 22-1 is keyed to the "noise-generating property" and readings are taken at that property's line, so noise coming from a commercial lot next to a house is held to the commercial row (70/60), not the residential one. (2) The limit floats with background: each cell is the figure or 5 dB above background (10 dB for industrial by day), whichever is lower, and becomes the background level where background is already louder. (3) Phone apps are expressly ruled out as evidence of a decibel violation (§ 22-7(b)(1)). (4) Properties fronting the listed blocks of W. and E. Irving Blvd., W. and E. Second St., Rock Island Rd., N. and S. Britain Rd. and O'Connor Rd. (and their cross streets), which are held to the commercial/low-intensity mixed use limits, and high-intensity mixed use properties get an extra hour on Friday and/or Saturday nights (night starts 11:00 p.m.), and public entertainment facilities get 85 dB by day with outdoor amplification cut off at 10:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. (5) Two construction clocks overlap: § 22-3(a)(9) does not reach building work in or next to a residential district from 6:00 a.m. on weekdays, but § 22-3(a)(10) separately makes construction noise in residential areas a violation from 9:00 p.m. until 6:59 a.m.; after-hours construction permits from the building official (or capital improvement program director) last up to three days, renewable once for up to three more, and a three-member panel (inspections, capital improvement program, police) may grant longer permits after a hearing within 48 hours, with no appeal. (6) Late-night food-service deliveries keep their exemption unless the delivery occurs between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. and lasts more than one hour, is for supplies other than food, nonalcoholic beverages, food service supplies or ice, and exceeds 65 dBA at the closest residence (§ 22-4(9)); restaurants keep theirs if amplified sound stops by 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday and stays at or under 70 dBA at the perimeter, except a food service establishment within 300 feet of a residence occupied before it opened (§ 22-4(10)). (7) Other per se rules (§ 22-3): horns over ten consecutive seconds except as a danger warning; nonemergency bells, chimes and sirens over ten consecutive seconds an hour (with a defense for houses of worship, ice cream trucks, seasonal solicitors and city traffic control); exterior burglar, fire and car alarms must stop within 15 minutes, and more than two false activations in a calendar month is a violation; the engine of a motor vehicle with a manufacturer's gross weight specification over 10,000 pounds may not run more than 15 minutes within 300 feet of a residential structure unless the vehicle is in an enclosed structure; standby generators, including at data centers, are not "residential mechanical devices." (8) Exemptions (§ 22-4) include emergency work and vehicles, school and public playground activities, city-hosted events, generators during a power outage or grid instability, and permitted fireworks in set hours. (9) Speech, assembly and picketing must first be ordered to move, disperse or remedy the violation before an arrest or citation (§ 22-7(c)). (10) The registered owner of the vehicle is presumed to be the violator for the horn, moving-vehicle advertising, heavy-vehicle idling and vehicle-operation rules (§ 22-6, citing § 22-3(a)(2), (a)(6)b, (a)(12) and (a)(13)). (11) Animal noise is handled under Chapter 6: an "animal noise disturbance" needs two separate recorded events in 24 hours, each 20 minutes of continuous noise audible at least 100 yards away or behind the wall of a home (§ 6-1), and must disturb, distress or annoy a person of reasonable sensibilities on adjacent property or within hearing (§ 6-80(d)). (12) Penalty: a misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500; each occurrence, or each day of a continuing violation, is a separate offense (§ 22-8). (13) The public-space branch of the amplified-sound rule reads, as printed, "if the sound is plainly audible across the real property line of the public space from which the sound emanates, and is compliant with the decibel levels contained in table 22-1" (§ 22-3(a)(6)a.2); it does not apply to public performances, gatherings or parades operated by a governmental entity.

Document it before you report it

Irving's limits are measured numbers, so a reading is direct evidence of how loud it really is. Take a quick reading with the free online decibel meter — it runs in your browser and records nothing — and check how loud your block is on the Irving noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.