Dear AT,
I just bough a new apartment and have only discovered since living here is that my ceiling is very thin, and I can hear everything my neighbors and their children do upstairs. They are nice people and do have rugs on the floor, but it is still really loud.
It is so bad that I can sleep well at night and have seriously thought about selling my apartment and moving.
Do you know of anything I can do? How would I insulate the ceiling or their floor. They are willing to work with me, but don't know what to do.
Thanks, Brandi
This is not an easy fix and can only think of three different solutions:
1. Layer your ceiling with insulation foam covered in a nice, neutral fabric, just as they do in restaurants
2. Build a new ceiling over the old one with insulation foam in between
3. Invest in wall to wall carpeting with padding on your neighbor's floor
We think that, unfortunately, the second choice is the best option and would recommend Anthony Riccio of AD Construction (347.267.1681) or email at adconstr@aol.comwould be able to tell you exactly how and how $$ much. This Link might be helpful too. (Thanks, Brandi!) MGR
I have a similar problem in a rental. So most of the suggestions wouldn't work for us.
Has anyone tried using "white noise machines"? If so, any feedback?
Thanks in advance!
Ha! "Feedback" on "white noise machines"! (okay, so I'm easily amused...)
If your ceiling is sheetrocked (or can be sheetrocked), there are a number of very effective solutions.
1. Use RSIC clips and hat channel to suspend a double layer of sheetrock. This second ceiling will be mostly decoupled from the existing ceiling, resulting in a large reduction in transmitted sound. Google for RSIC clips to find a supplier.
2. A new product is one the market called Green Glue. This is a spreadable damping product. Simply spread it over the back of a piece of sheetrock and screw that to the ceiling. Cover your entire ceiling with this, then tape/mud/sand/paint as normal. This will work in a similar manner to the RSIC clips, but without eating a few inches from your ceiling height. You can only get green glue from www.audioalloy.com. Note, this stuff isn't cheap, at about $275 for a 5 gallon pail. 5 gallons would cover about 300 sqft, though they say you get 75% of the benefits using only a 50% coverage, so you could stretch to 600 sqft.
Foam will do little to nothing when dealing with the noise of footfalls. What your really need is to decouple your ceiling from their floor, and RSIC clips or green glue are your best options. In either case, a double layer of sheetrock will be better than a single layer because of the added mass. At least one of the layers should be 5/8".
I should also note that whenever building a suspended ceiling you should make sure it doesn't touch the walls. Leave a 1/4" gap between the walls and the ceiling, and fill it with acoustic caulk. Anything that punches a hole in the ceiling provides a hole for sound to escape through. If you use recessed lighting get airtight fixtures. All other holes should be filled with acoustic caulk.
Although it might be too bulky for the ceiling applications being discussed, Insultouch from BondedLogic (.com) is supposed to have superior noise-insulating properties. (Superior to traditional fiberglas batts, in similar thicknesses, anyway.) For those who are looking for something to insulate thermally as well as aurally, this might be a good choice. It's made of recycled denim scraps from blue jeans, and it's a heck of a lot easier to install than fiberglas, but as I said, a layer of that in between the existing ceiling and the drop ceilings mentioned above might eat up too much overhead space.
I bought a white noise machine for my bedroom hoping that it would help with the noise from my upstairs neighbors. It's good for things like drowning out snoring & the t.v., but not very helpful for things like heavy footsteps, squeaky beds, and general banging around. Next time, top floor for us! I hope you find a good solution.
What Max said. An acoustical engineering my husband works with gave us exactly the same advice, and we're in the process of installing the ceiling now. I'll report back on the results...
Uh, acoustical engineering consultant.
I have the same problem regarding footfall. I have done a fair amount of research on the subject and have heard good things about the RSIC clips/second ceiling solution. I would be very interested in hearing any feedback from people who have tried this approach. I have never heard of the green glue, although I will research that too. From what I gather, the RSIC clip/decoupled ceiling solution seems to be state of the art, replacing the old resilient channel method. I have tried white noise machines in the form of fan motors and agree that they are essentially useless for blocking out footfall noise.
NAOMI: I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW THE RESULTS OF YOU SOUNDPROOFING JOB YOU DESCRIBED ON YOUR CEILING. HOW DID IT DO? I AM CONSIDERING DOING IT. PLS. LET ME KNOW. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. FRAN
I too suffer from footfall noise. I live in a gorgeous condo in Florida. There were no existing regulations concering noise abatement when installling wooden floors so to save money, my neighbors upstairs installed without. There is about 16 inches space between my ceiling and their floorboard. Of course there are brackets and whatever goes between floors in condos that are two stories. Anyone tried any of the aforementioned methods with success. Please let me know.