There Is Only One Place To Get The Best Acoustic Supplies

How to Choose Soundproofing Products for Your Home

There is no single soundproofing product that is suitable for every home or every noise problem. A board that forms part of an effective wall system may offer limited benefit when the main weakness is a window, floor, door or ventilation opening.

The correct choice depends on the source of the noise, how it travels through the building and the construction of the affected surface.

Home soundproofing can help reduce sound entering, leaving or travelling between rooms, but it cannot guarantee complete silence. Products normally work as part of a coordinated system that combines mass, separation, resilience, cavity treatment and careful sealing.

Identify the Noise Before Choosing Products

Most domestic noise problems involve airborne noise, impact noise or structure-borne vibration. Some rooms may be affected by more than one type.

Airborne noise

Airborne noise travels through the air before reaching a wall, floor, ceiling, door or window. Examples include:

• Conversations and televisions
• Music and gaming systems
• Dogs barking
• Road, rail and aircraft noise
• Household appliances

Products used to reduce airborne noise often add mass, improve airtightness or create separation between structural layers.

Impact noise

Impact noise is caused by direct contact with the building. Footsteps, moving furniture, dropped objects and exercise equipment can transfer vibration through floors, walls and ceilings.

Impact noise is generally best treated close to its source using resilient underlays, acoustic decks or floating floor systems.

Structure-borne vibration

Speakers, washing machines, pumps and mechanical equipment can transfer vibration directly into floors or walls.

Isolation pads, anti-vibration mounts or changes to the way equipment is supported may be needed. Adding acoustic boards to a nearby wall will not necessarily correct vibration entering elsewhere in the structure.

Find the Main Transmission Path

The area where noise sounds loudest is not always the route through which it first entered.

Possible sound paths include:

• Party walls and internal partitions
• Floors and ceilings
• Timber joists and concrete slabs
• Doors and door frames
• Windows and glazing
• Ventilation openings and ducts
• Pipes, cables and electrical sockets
• Loft spaces and ceiling voids

Sound that bypasses the main separating surface through connected parts of the building is known as flanking transmission.

For example, a wall may be upgraded while noise continues to travel through the adjoining floor or ceiling. Selecting products for the visible wall alone may therefore produce a smaller improvement than expected.

Soundproofing Boards

Dense acoustic boards can add mass to walls and ceilings. Greater mass can help reduce the movement of airborne noise through a separating construction.

However, a board should not normally be treated as a complete soundproofing system on its own. Its performance will also depend on:

• The existing wall or ceiling construction
• The supporting framework
• Whether resilient separation is included
• The treatment of the cavity
• The number and arrangement of layers
• The sealing of joints and perimeter edges

JCW Silent Board Plus may form part of suitable wall or ceiling systems. The full build-up should be selected according to the structure and noise problem rather than relying on one board to provide complete isolation.

Acoustic Insulation for Cavities

Acoustic mineral wool or similar insulation may be installed within suitable wall, floor and ceiling cavities.

Its purpose is to reduce resonance within an empty cavity and support the performance of the complete construction. It is not intended to work as a freestanding sound barrier.

Cavity insulation should normally:

• Be suitable for the available cavity depth
• Fit without avoidable gaps
• Remain uncompressed where possible
• Avoid creating rigid connections between separated layers

Stuffing insulation tightly into a cavity does not necessarily improve performance and may interfere with other parts of the system.

Resilient Bars, Channels and Isolation Clips

Resilient components create separation between the existing structure and the new wall or ceiling lining.

This separation can reduce the direct transfer of vibration. Depending on the system, it may be achieved with:

• Resilient bars
• Isolation clips and channels
• An independent timber or metal framework

The fixings and installation method are important. Screws that pass through a resilient component and connect rigidly to the original structure can create an acoustic bridge.

The chosen system may also reduce the room width or ceiling height, which should be considered before work begins.

Wall Soundproofing Products

Wall soundproofing may be suitable where voices, televisions or music travel through a shared wall or internal partition.

A typical system may combine acoustic insulation, resilient separation, dense boards and flexible perimeter sealing.

The correct arrangement depends on whether the original wall is:

• Solid masonry
• Lightweight blockwork
• Timber stud
• Metal stud
• Another specialist construction

Existing sockets, chimney breasts, radiators and connected floors or ceilings may also affect the design.

Floor Soundproofing Products

Floor soundproofing products may be used to reduce impact noise, airborne noise or both.

Options may include:

• Resilient acoustic underlays
• Acoustic floor decks
• Floating floor systems
• Cavity insulation between joists
• Dense layers added within the floor build-up

Timber and concrete floors behave differently and should not automatically receive the same products.

A floating floor must remain separated from surrounding walls and rigid fittings. If the floor touches the perimeter, vibration may bypass the resilient layer.

Floor systems can increase the finished level and affect thresholds, doors, stairs, skirting boards and fitted furniture.

Ceiling Soundproofing Products

Ceiling soundproofing may help where voices, televisions or footsteps are heard from above.

A ceiling system may use acoustic insulation between joists, resilient bars, isolation clips, dense boards or an independent supporting structure.

An independent ceiling can provide greater separation from the floor above but reduces the available room height.

Lighting, smoke alarms, ventilation grilles and cable openings should be planned carefully. Each penetration can weaken acoustic performance and may require appropriate fire-rated treatment.

Where impact noise is involved, treating the floor above is usually preferable when access and ownership allow. A ceiling fitted from below may reduce the direct path while some vibration continues through the surrounding walls.

Acoustic Underlays

Acoustic underlays are designed primarily to reduce impact vibration beneath suitable floor finishes.

The correct product will depend on:

• The existing floor construction
• The chosen floor covering
• The expected loads
• The amount of available floor height
• Whether airborne noise also needs treatment

A thin underlay should not automatically be expected to solve severe footsteps or airborne noise. It may need to form part of a more substantial floor system.

Doors, Seals and Thresholds

A lightweight door or open gap beneath it can weaken an otherwise substantial room enclosure.

A soundproof door should only be considered where the doorway has been identified as a significant transmission path.

The complete doorset may include:

• A dense door leaf
• A suitable frame
• Perimeter seals
• A drop seal or sealed threshold
• Appropriate hinges, closers and ironmongery

A high-performance door will provide limited value if most of the noise is travelling through the surrounding wall, floor, ceiling or ventilation system.

Acoustic Sealant

Small air gaps can reduce the performance of a wall, floor or ceiling system.

A flexible acoustic sealant may be used around suitable perimeter joints and small openings.

Common areas include:

• Board edges
• Wall-to-floor junctions
• Wall-to-ceiling junctions
• Pipe and cable penetrations
• Gaps around frames

Sealant is an important supporting component, but it will not soundproof a wall by itself. Service penetrations may also require tested fire-stopping products rather than ordinary acoustic sealant.

Windows and External Noise

Traffic, trains and aircraft often enter through windows rather than the surrounding external wall.

The acoustic performance of glazing depends on:

• The glass thickness and specification
• The spacing between panes
• The frame construction
• The condition of the seals
• Opening sections and trickle vents

Adding soundproofing boards to an external wall may offer limited value if the window remains the weakest part of the room.

Secondary glazing may help in suitable properties, but ventilation, condensation, planning restrictions and emergency escape requirements should be considered.

Ventilation Openings

Trickle vents, air bricks, extract fans and ducts allow both air and sound to pass.

They should not simply be blocked. Homes require appropriate ventilation for indoor air quality, moisture control and the safe operation of some appliances.

Acoustic vents, attenuators or redesigned duct routes may be required where ventilation forms an important sound path.

Soundproofing and Sound Absorption Are Different

Soundproofing reduces noise travelling between separate spaces. Sound absorption controls echo and reverberation within the same room.

Acoustic foam, fabric panels and ceiling absorbers can improve the internal sound of a room. They should not be relied upon to block voices, footsteps, music or traffic through the building structure.

A studio, office or home cinema may require both soundproofing and absorption, but each requires different products.

Consider Installation Requirements

Some straightforward products may be suitable for a competent and experienced DIY installer. More involved projects may require an acoustic installer or tradesperson familiar with the system.

Professional installation may be appropriate where the project includes:

• Independent walls or ceilings
• Floating floors
• Several flanking transmission paths
• Specialist doors
• Ventilation alterations
• Fire compartmentation

Incorrect fixings, unsealed joints and rigid connections can significantly reduce the effectiveness of suitable products.

Set Realistic Expectations

Home soundproofing products can reduce noise transmission, but they cannot guarantee complete silence or make every source inaudible.

The result will depend on:

• The source, level and frequency of the noise
• Whether it is airborne, impact-based or structure-borne
• The existing building construction
• Flanking transmission
• The products and complete system selected
• The quality of installation

Low-frequency bass, heavy impact noise, aircraft and structural vibration can be particularly difficult to control.

Choose Products as Part of a Complete System

Before ordering soundproofing products, identify the noise type, main transmission route and construction of the affected surface.

Boards, insulation, resilient components, underlays, doors and sealants perform different roles. Selecting products that work together as a complete system is generally more effective than choosing an individual material because it appears to offer the highest specification.

Call Acoustic Supplies on 01204 548400 or contact the team online to discuss your soundproofing project.