Are you getting a good night's sleep?

The service, which began on Monday, is expected to monitor a whole host of complaints, from loud music to barking dogs.

Alastair Brown, pollution control manager at the council's environmental protection department, said that more than �100,000 of Scottish Executive money had made it possible to employ the professional noise night owls.

He added: "We have done late night and early morning monitoring in the past, but the funding has allowed us to provide three dedicated staff members to carry out the night time work.

"And we are the first local authority in Scotland to offer such a service to residents."

Glasgow's 18-strong environmental protection department has been looking at noise pollution for more than 25 years and receives some 1,500 complaints each year.

Bathroom noises

More than half originate from residential properties and range from loud music and barking dogs to noisy floorboards and flushing toilets.

Mr Brown said: "The night service is not going to respond in the same way as an emergency service.

"Our team will have a diary of noise complaints to monitor

"Basically complainants will have the noise monitored at the time it is made.

"So, if the nuisance is being made at 11pm on a Friday night then we will be there to monitor it at 11pm on a Friday night."

WHO - NOISE FACTS More than half of Europe's citizens live in noisy surroundings One third of Europeans have disturbed sleep due to noise Prolonged exposure to noise can cause hypertension and heart disease Noise above 80db may cause aggressive behaviour A link between noise and mental health is suggested by the demand for sleeping pills and tranquillizers An adult's ear can tolerate an occasional noise level of up to 140db A child's ear should never be exposed to noise above 120db

Neighbour noise generates two types of complaint, said Mr Brown.

The first is everyday sounds which are annoying but not unlawful such as bedroom, bathroom and kitchen noises.

The second is noise which is classed as "unreasonable behaviour". The two biggest complaints in this category are loud music and barking dogs.

The council has no legal powers to stop "everyday sounds" but protection officers can act as mediators in solving a noise dispute.

Mr Brown said a lack of home insulation was at the root of much of the noise complaints generated by residential living.

He added: "We've also found that since the trend in stripped wooden floors and laminate flooring there have been more complaints about noise in the home.

"Carpets aren't actually an insulation but they do help to deaden noise."

Enforcement notice

Solving these problems is the joint responsibility of the neighbours.

Mr Brown said: "If it is a question of improving insulation then we can point people in the right direction.

"But it may involve lifting up floorboards and lowering ceilings and that of course has a cost factor which must be borne by the parties involved."

When it comes to "unreasonable" noise, pollution officers have the power to issue an enforcement notice.

Washing machines spinning at all hours are a cause of complaint

Mr Brown said: "If neighbours don't comply with an enforcement order then an offence will have been committed and the matter will be sent to the procurator fiscal."

There are no hard and fast rules about when you are allowed to make noise and what kind of noise you can make.

The World Health Organisation, which has studied community noise, has found that it is a growing problem.

It says few European countries have regulations about neighbourhood noise because there are difficulties with definition, measurement and control.