SoundProofing Ideas?

datajam

Hey,

Anybody have some good ideas, new products, and/or tips for soundproofing a basement ceiling?

Mellison

What I have read as well as what I have been told by sound proofing contractors is that concentrating on the ceiling is only half the battle.
The other half has to do with sound proofing the flooring area to the surface above.
Using blown in insulation alone should produce about a 50% decrease in noise.

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OGStilts

Depends on what level of sound proofing you are looking for...a theater room typically requires a different level than simple foot traffic type sound.

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bonz

Can you supply more info?

Soundproofing is a very generic term...

You need to determine the frequency range and decibal level of sound you are working with. What level of dampening you are trying to accomplish? And, thru what medium?, over what distance?

If it is in a basement, it sounds like a residential job... What type of sound are you dampening?

Is it a home theater in the basement that you are trying to dampen sound so it doesn't disturb the people upstairs?

If so, it depends on alot of factors...

More info please...

Also, what level of dampening are we looking for here? What is current decibal output from basement sound source?

AtlanticWBConst

ear plugs.

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datajam

We have dug out the crawl space to make a basement semi-studio apartment. It is an older house, maybe about 50 yrs old. We want to soundproof the ceiling of the basement apartment to keep the noise from upstairs, upstairs.

I was looking at isotrax, any input or experience with it?

Inner10

Soundproofing is a BS term, you can only reduce sound.

Double drywall and inserting channel doesn`t make a big differece. Quiet rock is effective yet very expensive.

No matter what you use on your ceiling you have to change the mechanical to reduce the sound transfer but putting a bunch of lazy bends back and fourth in the piping.

AtlanticWBConst

Tell them to "talk softer"....

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naptown CR

If you are trying to reduce sound in the lower level the hardest thing to deal with is impact noise. Carpet and good padding on the floors above will help. sound channel and two layers of drywall will further reduce sound. Obviously sound insulation between floors.

bonz

I agree with Naptown CR...

Your best bet is to make sure the upstairs has thick carpet and padding to reduce the foot noise (high heels and pets with unclipped nails will drive the downstairs tenant crazy). Stay away from hardwood or tile flooring upstairs if at all possible...

If the area between the upstairs floor and the downstairs ceiling has a substantial gap filled with plenty of insulation (preferrably sound absorbing), that will help too.

Also a thick layer of accoustic absorbing panelboard on the downstairs ceiling would help too...

Good Luck,
Bonz

dreamz

For sound proofing we have the deck spayed with Monocote and 3" Rock Wool

Ted White

Any soundproofing effort is best applied at the source of the noise. For footfall, carpet and pad is very effective. Not very effective for airborne noise, but effective at reducing that initial impact of the heel strike.

Standard fiberglass in the flor is as good as it gets. No foam, and don't overpack. Insulation that says "acoustical" has same sound value as the cheap stuff.

Decouple the ceiling drywall from the joists with clips + channel (not RC-1) and use double 5/8" type X

You can build the best ceiling in the world, but sound will travel up and down through walls.

datajam

Thanks for your input everybody . . .

We do not have any planned for the existing upstairs floor. It's hardwood. I have no idea the underlayment, but since they had only planned on dirt being downstairs at the time, I am sure sound issues were not a consideration.

So, I think we will try packing the subfloor from underneath with a bunch of insulation, hang 2 sheets deep with 5/8" firecode resting on an isotrax system, cross our fingers, and hope for the best.

It almost seems that a "T-bar drop ceiling" might be a better idea. Regardless, I'll let you know how it turns out.

Thanks

datajam
http://dir4construction.com

Ted White

I would strongly urge you to not pack that insulation. That's a sure conductor. Just standard R19.

Standard isolation clips (PAC, WhisperClip) and standard 25 gauge Drywall Furing Channel to decouple.