Soundproofing Walls to Reduce Noise from Neighbours
Have you moved into a new house and realised you have noisy neighbours and thought it a good idea to soundproof your party walls? There are many soundproofing methods you can undertake to reduce noise through your party walls, many of which can be installed by yourself or by a trained handyman; such a hybrid acoustic panel plasterboard, which minimise the impact the build up, or lost space within the room; however, these types of solutions come at a price and are usually more expensive than a more standard ‘off the shelf’ solution.
Unfortunately, in most instances the more space you lose within the room/s typically the better the result. Although these come at a price and are usually more expensive than a more standard solution such as batten the walls, install 50mm of acoustic insulation (min 45/kg/m2) then install resilient bars to the timber baton. The wall can be finished with two layers of acoustic plasterboard with suitable laps. Although this type of system would be cheaper in terms of materials, it may cost more in terms of labour.
Another thing you need to check is where the noise is coming from – is it travelling through the centre of the wall, or the edges of the wall? If it’s the edges of the wall you may be experiencing a noise flanking problem which is quite common in older dwellings.
Also, you need to consider if it’s a brick/block cavity wall or a timber/metal construction as masonry walls usually have more mass which results in better airborne wall sound results.
Getting the acoustic design right from the word go, is key, and APT Sound Testing can help in all areas of sound insulation design and sound testing. Please get in touch on info@aptsoundtesting.co.uk to request a quote or call us on 07775623464 or 01525 303905 to discuss your development.