Assessing a Wall for Soundproofing

When soundproofing walls there are various elements to look out for when you are looking to progress into the world of soundproofing, we will go through these step by step to give you clarity when looking to purchase soundproofing.

You are welcome to call on 01937 588 226 to go through in more detail. Our document on ‘Science of Soundproofing’ goes into more detail about how sound works.

iKoustic provide a variety of different options depending on the results you are looking to achieve, the space you can lose and of course your budget.

Assessing the property

At this first stage you will want to investigate the current make up of your wall as well as the adjacent walls for flanking noise (we will come on to this on part 3) as best as possible. Properties do differ from each other depending on their period of construction and size – where most apartments will be constructed of concrete, early period and single dwelling properties will in most cases be a brick and timber construction.

Another part of the assessment is to indicate whether the building is listed or not, this would determine what solutions we can put in place.

Wall Constructions

Brick

Brick can come in a variety of densities and it is at times difficult to identify this except for grading the noise issue, for example if a noise is heard with clarity or muffled. Brick constructions would often be single course or double course with the latter yielding a better result and often cavities associated with the adjacent walls (where sound can also travel).

Breezeblock

Breezeblock is lightweight in most cases and quite porous, often with a brick with a cavity in between which can amplify the noise issues.

Metal or Timber Stud Frame

Frameworks can be either acting as a standalone partition (an example being a newly fitted en-suite in an existing room) as a lightweight option, or off setting from the structural wall. The stud frame will in most cases have a Dry-lined plasterboard attached both sides.

An infill may be present between the stud frame such as a lightweight or acoustic mineral wool.

Dot and Dab Plasterboard

Dryline plasterboard fixed in a Dot and Dab method can cause further issues with sound transmission by creating a cavity, this would appear hollow to tap in some places and dense in others where the mortar is in contact with the wall.

These would be need to be removed in all cases to obtain optimum performance

What are the noise issues?

Noise can come in various forms in which you may be familiar with, this is Airborne, Impact or Structural Vibration

These can be present in all types of construction and the severity of this can be dependent on the construction too. For example, due to the density of concrete – the sound will tend to travel further as a basic principle which is why impact noise is more of a concern in these types of constructions.

We have listed a quick summary of common noise issues below;

• Airborne; conversation, television, music, kitchen appliances in operation
• Impact; footfall, moving furniture, doors shutting
• Vibration; similar principles as impact noise as well as mounted audio devices on walls, other external noises such as a boiler

Are there any flanking issues?

Flanking Transmission is a term you may have heard of, but if you haven’t – this is where sound takes an alternative path so in the case of treating a wall, you will want to investigate whether sound is also transferring down adjacent walls and through voids in floors and ceilings.

A high density acoustic mineral wool should be used between flooring and ceiling joists to reduce flanking, as well as in any partitions in adjacent walls if present.

What Wall Soundproofing options are there available?

We have a range of systems available for ceilings in which the 3 variables you will need to consider is budget, performance and space loss.

www.ikoustic.co.uk/systems/surface/wall

We can help to pick the best option for you, you can contact us via email on our Contact Page, or call us on 01937 588 226.

Can I install these materials?

If you have experience in plasterboard fitting and general DIY, you will find installation of these materials straight forward – we have designed each system to be applicable to those with an entry-level background experience in DIY.

If not, our installation team have over 15 years’ experience, so you can be assured that a fast and effective iKoustic System is put in place.