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“Will adding batt insulation between the studs in my wall or ceiling block sound?” We probably get this question at least once a day; the short answer is NO!
Lightweight porous materials such as fiberglass and open cell foam are great for reducing reverberation in a space by absorbing the sound reflections off of hard surfaces such as plaster, drywall or concrete block, but they will not prevent sound from passing through them. A material’s ability to block sound is a direct function of its mass. Heavy dense materials will block sound; light porous materials will absorb sound.
So the solution is to reduce the airborne noise by adding weight to your wall or ceiling partition with a flexible mass loaded vinyl barrier, and reducing the structure borne noise by decoupling the partition with sound isolation clips
Acoustic treatment generally deals with improving the quality of sound in a room from the listener’s perspective. Soundproofing is specifically designed to increase the degree of acoustic isolation between a given space and the world outside.
It is best, where possible, to avoid any unprotected exposure to sound pressure levels above 100dB(A). Use hearing protection when exposed to levels above 85dB(A), especially if prolonged exposure is expected.
Unwanted noise from garage door openers is caused by the vibration of the motor and/or rails being transmitted through the joists they are mounted to. This can be solved by decoupling the mounting points using a garage door silencer kit.
No. Lightweight materials such as fiberglass will absorb a certain amount of noise, but will not stop it from transmitting through your walls. The best way to dramatically increase the STC of a wall or ceiling partition is with the use of mass loaded vinyl noise barriers and resilient isolation clips to add mass and decouple the wall from the existing studs. All partitions also need to be airtight, so a good silicone caulking around the perimeter is needed.
A good rule of thumb for a home theater is to cover about 50% of the total wall space. Since low frequencies tend to build up in corners, the addition of bass traps is also recommended.
A white noise generator is a common term for sound masking, but is really not correct since good sound masking systems use a contour of white and pink noise. White noise alone sounds very much like radio static and is not appropriate for a good sound masking generator, although some cheap brands do just that. Sound masking is typically used for speech privacy and to possibly cover unwanted background noise such as traffic noise transmitting into a bedroom.
If you have a good solid core door, you can increase its sound blocking abilities with the addition of an acoustical door seal kit which includes an active automatic door bottom seal and adjustable perimeter seals.
The reverberation you are hearing is the result of the sound waves bouncing off the hard parallel surfaces in the room, making it hard to understand speech. You can correct this with the addition of acoustical absorption panels.
Adding acoustical sound curtains to the perimeter of your job site will typically reduce construction noise to a level to meet standard municipal codes.
Yes. Our OELEX SoftStep Acoustical Underlayment is a rolled product that can be installed under carpeting, engineered, or nail down wood floors, and will reduce both sound transmission and footfall.