Remodeled Houses
Remodeled Houses
Remodeled Houses
Noisy Neighbors
It’s a common complaint among city-dwellers that the walls and floors separating one flat from another(a) allow sounds from one side to pass too easily through to the other.
Loss of acoustical privacy hasn’t been a grudge in the suburbs until recently; as land prices increase, lots are getting littler and houses are getting closer together. Houses ar also acquiring closer to the street and its associated noise pollution. And attached condominiums are being built at a rapid pace – your next-door neighbor may be just on the other side of the wall.
It’s more vital now because so many of us have powerful multi-media centers in our homes, and we like to enjoy our movies with the sound turned up high.
The closer you live to your neighbor, the greater the opportunities for a loss of acoustical privacy. How can you keep the sounds of your daily life from bothering your neighbors and theirs from bothering you?
Hear Ye, Hear Ye…
Sound is transmitted from its source to the ear by waves traveling through the air. The volume of the sound when it reaches you is affected by the distance from the source and the presence of obstacles ‘tween the source and the ear.
It’s those obstacles we’re interested about – how can we make them stop the sound waves?
Some materials ar better at attenuating sound energy than others; generally the thicker or more monumental the material the more sound energy it absorbs. But placing big, thick, heavy materials ‘tween living units can be impractical and expensive, especially if you’re remodeling an existing home.
Fortunately there are some easy and cheap ways to build good “soundproof” walls and floors and to greatly improve the sound characteristics of existing construction.
Air Lines
When a sound is created on one side of a wall or floor, the energy causes the building materials to vibrate; if that material is a thin, flexible material such as drywall or wood flooring, it picks up the vibration and well transmits it to the next material in the assembly.
If the next material is air – in a hollow wall or floor assembly for example – then air vibrates, continuing the transfer of energy to the next material. Much of that sound energy can be stopped simply by filling the air space with insulation such as fibreglass batts or cellulose. The “loose” nature of insulation doesn’t transfer energy well and does a very good job of reducing the volume.
Small openings in walls are a big source of sound transfer. Light switches and electrical outlets ar installed in cutouts in the drywall and are often aligned directly crosswise from each other. When the electrical boxes are installed, there’s no room for sound insulation. The solution is to move one of the switches or outlets so that they’re non aligned and allow room for insulation behind them. It’s a small detail that can help a great deal.
To reduce the sound leakage even more, calk the electrical boxes to the drywall to eliminate any air passages from the outside to the inside of the wall. On outside walls the same concepts apply – insulate and seal all small openings to reduce noise.
Good Vibrations
But block air space is only part of the solution. When building materials touch each other they vibrate and transfer sound energy very effectively. There ar some specialised materials and a few basic techniques you can use to separate building materials from each other that work in new construction and remodeling.
An acoustical mat is a thin pad that can be rolled out on the floor like carpet padding. It’s placed under a wood floor or under rug and helps separate the building materials from each other. Some types of acoustic mats can be installed in walls under the drywall. Either way, an acoustical mat “breaks the connection” ‘tween building materials and helps reduce sound transfer.
In new construction and remodeling, a common technique is the use of stand-off clips, metal strips that attach to wood framing. The drywall is then attached to the strips instead of the wood; as sound energy causes the drywall to vibrate, the clips absorb the energy before it is transferred to the framing.
An even more effective but somewhat more expensive solution is a staggered-stud wall. In this framing technique, two parallel walls ar built with offset studs; the walls “nest” into each other without touching, and the interior finish is only attached to one side of each wall. This completely separates the materials and is very effective when combined with sound insulation.
Quiet As A House
Although there are many high-tech sound insulation products on the market, they’re not always needed to importantly quiet a home. Simple and inexpensive techniques can eliminate most unwanted sound from adjacent living units, next-door neighbors, and noisy streets.
Dedication of the remodeled State House: Concord, New Hampshire October 25, 1910
Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
Category: Remodeled Houses
Tags: Remodeled Homes Before And After, remodeled house plans, Remodeled Houses, remodeled manufactured homes
