How to soundproof a wall in the apartment?

Types of soundproofing materials for sound insulation of walls

Material selection factors:

• wall thickness;
• budget for soundproofing operations.

You can choose between framed or frameless soundproofing of the apartment. These are fundamentally different methods, each with its own advantages and disadvantages.

Framed soundproofing of the room

Frame technology is considered more effective and has the following stages of operations:

1. Wall preparation: it is necessary to patch the cracks as they also cause noise transmission.
2. As soon as the preparation is completed, the installation of the frame profile begins.
3. The last stage is cladding, the best material for such work is considered plasterboard.

It is worth noting that the framed soundproofing is not intended for rooms of small area, it “steals” 10-20 cm of free space.

Advantages of the frame method of soundproofing of the apartment:

• Improved privacy: any of your activities at home are private and inviolable.
• Improved comfort: unwanted noises from outside or from neighbouring rooms can lead to stress and discomfort.
• Better sleep quality: your bedroom will be much quieter.
• Increased property cost: your property will gain additional value.

Frameless soundproofing of the walls

This option is suitable if you need to soundproof interior walls or for rooms where every centimetre of floor area counts. Frameless boards and panels are fixed directly to the wall.

It is reasonable to ask how effective soundproofing of only one wall can be. It can be effective, but if only certain requirements are met and proper materials are selected.

In the case of point soundproofing, that is, when you want to clad one wall, it is important to consider the following points:

• know the exact number of sockets in the wall;
• understand exactly whether there are cracks in the selected wall;
• know if there are pipes in the wall;
• know what kind of construction material the wall is made of.

Basic materials for soundproofing of the walls are provided below:

1. Mineral wool is the most common budget non-combustible material.
2. Cork sheets are made of natural material and quite expensive.
3. Soundproofing membrane is a thin modern material, which provides additional soundproofing by means of high density.
4. Soundproof panels is a ready-made construction made of wood materials or mineral wool.
5. Polyurethane foam is a universal moisture-resistant material.

You can contact experts to find out what the best material for soundproofing is.

How to soundproof walls?

In order to soundproof the walls and the whole apartment, it is necessary to do all the work in a complex and not to forget about such sources of noise as sockets and pipes. You should consider all sources of extraneous sounds and try to eliminate them.

Wall soundproofing

First of all, it is necessary to determine the scope of work. Walls adjacent to neighbours usually cause the most trouble.

If the size of the room allows, you can sacrifice 10-15 cm from the wall and install effective frame structures.

Soundproofing of sockets is necessary, but only qualified specialists must do this work.

Ceiling soundproofing in the apartment

The ceiling is the main source of impact noise from the neighbours above. Panel ceilings can not fully protect from air noise, which means that you hear the sounds of animals, stomping and children’s fun, which disturbs the peace after a hard day in the office.

A great advantage of the ceiling soundproofing is the speed of work. To protect yourself from extraneous sounds, you do not have to carry out major repairs of the room. Usually soft materials are used, which are put in a certain sequence in several layers.

As in the case with walls, the installation of materials can be framed, requiring more free space or frameless, which can be used in small rooms with low ceilings. The most common application for frameless insulation is the use of slab-mounted sandwich panels. Vibration nodes and fixing elements are usually supplied as a set, so there is no need to select them additionally.

A frame system always contains many elements for protection against extraneous sounds. The advantage of frame constructions is the simultaneous levelling of the surface, i.e. dual purpose. But often homeowners can be stopped by their rather high price.

The frame consists of a profile system and its components. The best option for those who do not want to overpay is sound-absorbing wool:

• non-combustible;
• durable;
• environmentally friendly;
• strong.

Let us consider the sequence of operations for frame and frameless methods.

Approximate sequence of operations in case the frameless method is chosen:

1. Levelling of the ceiling, plastering, elimination of cracks.
2. Gluing the walls with damping tape, wrapping the heating pipes with it.
3. Mounting of plates with the use of special fasteners.
4. Closing with plasterboard.
5. Finishing.

Consequently, this method is simpler, budgetary, saves free space, and does not reduce the height of the ceiling.

If you have chosen a frame system, the procedure is different:

1. Installation of the frame – you do not need to level the ceiling, primer is enough.
2. Filling the space with soft sound-absorbing material. This can be mineral wool, fibreglass board or membrane.
3. At the last stage, the entire construction is closed with plasterboard.

The finished ceiling looks aesthetically pleasing, and your peace is ensured. Especially effective will be the soundproofing of the ceiling together with the walls. If desired, you can also do the floor.

Floor soundproofing in the apartment

Measures for soundproofing floors are aimed at eliminating three types of noise:

• impact (moving furniture, footsteps, children playing);
• air (voices of neighbours, barking dogs);
• acoustic (echoes in an empty room).

It is possible to use concrete and dry screed, soundproofing pads made of synthetic materials. Noise-absorbing underlay is used when laying a prefabricated floor, put under linoleum or laminate. Up-to-date materials effectively absorb and reduce the noise level, increase the comfort of housing. Especially recommended cement-sand screed, which not only absorbs noise, but also levelling the surface, therefore, effectively solves the issue of aesthetics. For sure, it is better to carry out soundproofing of the floor at the stage of major repairs.

Floating floor construction is popular, which implies that there is no mechanical interface between the floor construction and the floor slab, which significantly improves the sound insulation properties.

So, it is high time to make a reasonable investment in the comfort of your own home. We recommend a comprehensive approach to this issue, rather than insulate only the walls. Such steps will only partially solve the problem of noise. In particular, this applies to panel and modern monolithic buildings with reinforced concrete floors. The panel constructions of the last century are very thin. Comprehensive measures and replacement of windows with modern double-glazed windows with several chambers are required.

As for the walls, it is worth paying special attention to exactly those that border the neighbours apartment. It is ideal to agree with the neighbours on the simultaneous performance of such operations.

Since all the materials listed in the article have critical parameters, their specialist selects them individually for a particular dwelling, performs an accurate calculation, and explains the choice of this or that method or material.

Also, you should not try to soundproof the room yourself. This will potentially reduce the quality of noise absorption, and in the case of the ceiling may even lead to the fall of the structure. Such precedents occur if the installation technology has been compromised.