Sound Testing to Office Conversions
When it comes to refurbishment projects such as office block conversions or large houses subdivided into dwellings, we can undertake a sample sound test of the existing wall and floor construction. Once we have established the sound levels for the existing construction we can then look at extent of the acoustic upgrades to attain Part E Compliance. This is much more targeted way to formulate a more cost effective and accurate acoustic design as we know the sound insulation performance of the existing partitions.
The sound insulation levels required to pass Part E are usually 45dB for airborne wall and floors and 62dB for Impact Sound Testing on new build, however sometimes a higher target may be required in-line with the Code for Sustainable Homes; this is usually in defined in the following figures +3, 5 & 8dB, this means if its plus 5dB you will need to achieve 50dB for airborne and 57dB for impact sound testing. Obviously if you need to comply with the Code for Sustainable Homes then special attention must be shown to the acoustic design from the offset to reduce the chance of sound testing failure.
The amount of sound testing you require depends on the size of the development. All new build properties and conversions require 10% of each party wall/floor construction type to be tested, i.e. if you have built a pair of semi-detached houses you would be required to undertake 2 airborne wall tests. If you have up to 10 flats you would require 1 x 6 pack, consisting of 2 airborne wall, 2 airborne floor & 2 Impact sound tests – known as a 6 pack) However if you have 11 units this would rise to 12 Sound Tests or 2 x 6 pack. Also, if you have many different wall or floor types you will be required to undertake more tests to satisfy Building Regulations Part E.
There are many ways to improve the chances of passing your sound test at the first attempt, they are:
- Ensure all penetrations are fully sealed where they terminate through floors and they are adequately boxed with acoustic quilt and two layers of plasterboard.
- Avoid the use of lightweight blocks in the inner envelope construction as sound will travel both vertically and horizontally from dwelling to dwelling.
- The use of resilient suspended ceilings will help improve the performance of the floor partition.
- Ensure all support steels/timbers are carefully boxed out where they travel from flat to flat vertically and horizontally.
- Use a high quality resilient acoustic membrane on top of the floor to improve the impact performance of a floor.
Due to the overwhelming variety of material designs and combinations due to varying constructions, it is impossible to cover all problems in a short article such as this; however in our experience if the acoustic design is taken into consideration from the offset of the project, then it usually results in a successful sound testing and compliance with Building Regulations Part E.
If you have a project that requires sound testing in London then contact us now, we can propose a sound testing schedule that should comply with Part E. Please contact us at: info@aptsoundtesting.co.uk or call us at 07775623464