soundproofing for urban people

If you're having noise problems in your home or business, you can measure the decibel level with inexpensive apps on your iPhone or buy a decibel-reading device. I downloaded a free app from the App Store called "Decibels" and purchased an inexpensive one - with more features -- called "SPL Meter," but there's many to choose from (just search for "spl meter"). Basically these apps help you measure the decibel volume in your home when it's quiet, and again in different noise situations -- your neighbor's TV or stereo, the sound of cars and trucks outside your windows, the sound of barking dogs, crying babies, etc. [update, Dec 2013: see this review of 30 decibel-reader apps.] All rooms have a decibel level, even when you think you're sitting in silence. So let's say the dB level in your home is 40 when it's quiet, but increases to 60 when your adjacent neighbors watch TV on their home theatre system. What does this mean w

I always get excited when I see new YouTube videos about installation practices. If you're interested in going the route of wall clips, here's a new video about using Green Glue clips before installing new drywall. (They recommend, of course, adding a second layer of drywall with Green Glue afterwards). You'll forfeit an additional 1.5 inches of room depth on each side if you use this method. It would be helpful if they supplied before and after specs for room acoustics!

Can you block noise by adding mass? That depends on the situation. What kind of noise? How does the noise travel? What materials will you use, and how will you apply them? This 2008 article from " Sound on Sound ," explains that sound "cannot be destroyed: it can only be converted into another form of energy." While some sounds are airborne and can easily be blocked, you might still hear lower-frequency sounds passing through on the other side. This is because the energy from sound waves makes the walls vibrate, and this creates more energy. Does adding mass help? Yes. Will mass solve all your noise issues? Possibly not. You might also need to address other characteristics of the space by adding sound absorption inside the rooms, or by decoupling the floors, ceilings, or walls from the structure to keep the sound (energy) from passing into it. Let's look at a couple of examples. Example 1: Interior doors Many American homes feature hollow-core interi

This video is readily available on YouTube. In my own experience the QuietRock -- on its own, as replacement drywall -- stopped neighbor conversation at normal volumes and muted TV at normal volumes. Even with the best drywall, a loud stereo with lots of bass might produce soft thumps, and direct impact against a neighboring wall (hammering, door slamming, etc.) might still come  through. But the noise is significantly reduced. One thing to consider in some instances: if you only soundproof the wall, but not your ceiling or your floor, some noise might come through in those untreated areas. I agree that most construction -- at least in the USA -- is done cheaply without insulation and by using ordinary gypsum nailed right on the studs. I'm amazed when I see construction sites and see ordinary drywall getting unloaded!

Resilient channels Some of you might be thinking of installing a suspended (or "floating") ceiling with resilient channels to reduce sound transmission between upstairs and downstairs floors. If you go this route and go to the expense and trouble of demolition and remodeling -- or you're building new construction -- make sure that you affix the channels properly to the wood framing. Improper installation can create a "fail" that continues to allow noise transmission between floors. These illustrations on the UK website "Sound Service" shows a close up of how the resilient channel should be attached to wood floor joists. Attaching them so that they flex away from the wood framing reduces vibration that typically transfers from floor to floor, and this is what's meant by the term "floating." This PDF from Buildsite offers a spec sheet of how to install a resilient channel, but with no illustrations. Added in 2023 : This YouTube video from

I took a photo recently that shows the cross-section comparison of QuietRock 525 next to QuietRock 510. QuietRock 525 (on the left) is the 5/8" sound-dampening drywall from Quiet Solution, which seems to be partially comprised of concrete. QuietRock 510 (on the right) is the 1/2" sound-dampening drywall from Quiet Solution, and seems to be comprised of two pieces of 1/4" gypsum, fused together with a membrane of other materials in between them. As I stated in my previous post, I think the most effective use of QuietRock products is to glue them with Green Glue on top of another layer of gypsum that's already affixed to the wall studs. Better still, insert insulation between the studs before you put another layer of sheetrock over the existing wall. After a month of curing, I can say that the combination of QuietRock 510 and Green Glue was the most effective of anything I've tried to date.

Drop ceilings without demo This video, made by a guy in Greece, shows another interesting approach to the drop ceiling that doesn't seem to involve demolishing the original ceiling. The materials he's using might be slightly different than what you can buy in the USA, but the principle is the same: creating a flexible suspension that keeps the ceiling from being attached directly to the wood joists. The more traditional RC-channel ceiling is detailed here in this PDF from Acoustic Sciences Corporation , which involves attaching metal, flexible RC channels on top of -- and perpendicular to --the wood ceiling joists. It involves: Removing the existing ceiling material in order to access the area Adding sound-dampening materials Attaching the channels across the joists Adding drywall to the channels.  This PDF is a good resource for how to properly attach RC channels, but I notice that in its supply list, it doesn't include some of the newer, superior materi

If you've read a lot of materials online already about what products to use in your own home – and horror stories about things that go wrong – then you probably already know some of the "solutions" that aren't effective. But I'll list a few of them here anyway. And while you're at it, here's an article on costly soundproofing mistakes that you might want to read, too. What DOESN'T prevent outside noise from coming into your home (especially an apartment): 1) Carpets and rugs as the only solution . This adds some sound absorption in your own home (for example, it reduces the "echo" effect in a room) and absorbs some impact from shoes, feet, and furniture. I'm not saying you shouldn't use carpets: you should, especially as a consideration to your upstairs or downstairs neighbors. But carpeting alone will not undo some of the sound transmission in the framing of your home. Here's a quick overview from The Soundproofing