How low is too low?

[bennyk17]

My fire department has a Model 5 siren on our station number 2, which has been on the building since it was constructed in 1968. However, the siren has caused quite the controversy among neighbors in that section of town, complaining that it is too loud. Which I agree with. As a result, we've had to shorten the length of the blast to a quick "pulse" tone. We've been looking at ways to solve the problem, which I believe may have something to do with the height of the siren. Using the original plans for the construction of the station, i've calculated that the siren is sitting at about 30 feet. So, is that too low for a model 5 to be sitting? And if so, could placing it higher up, such as on a pole, make it quieter? Ive also attached an image of the siren and a link to a video of the siren.

Thanks,
Ben
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtwIcYpmpwM

[JasonC]

No that's about average height. Height isn't going to make much difference within close range of the siren as far as loudness goes. Your best bet to keep the neighbors happy is to set up a night cut-off timer to prevent it from sounding 9pm-7am. Most complaints about fire sirens down in NC center around them being set off at night. Another option is to have a separate tone set so 911 dispatch only triggers the siren for working structure fires, still alarms, etc. This can also be done manually at the station whereas the first volunteer who arrives will set off the siren manually. This keeps the siren from being triggered with every fire alarm activation or other mundane call your station gets.