Residents of apartments know firsthand what inconvenience is caused by sounds coming from neighbors. On the other hand, you can also disturb the tenants from below, especially if small children are running around the apartment. What to do? Take care of the soundproofing of the floors, which will help reduce the level of extraneous noise, and at the same time insulate the room. Novate.ru will tell you how to choose the right materials and install the coating.
What is the noise
There are several types of noise that interfere with our comfort:
1. Acoustic - these are reflected sounds, that is, echoes, which are mainly found in empty buildings and rooms. Echo rarely appears in residential apartments, but it can enter the house from the entrance.
2. Spatial noise - the so-called airborne noise, which includes everyday sounds like music, human voices, car signals, etc.
3. Structural - these are noise vibrations that propagate through the structural elements of the house. It is they who most of all interfere with the tenants and are eliminated due to sound insulation.
How to get rid of annoying sounds
Please note that you cannot completely get rid of all adjacent sounds. No matter how good the materials are, only a concrete wall with an insulating layer of 2 m and a pair of steel partitions can provide sound absorption by 99.9%. However, with high-quality noise cancellation, living in an apartment will become much more pleasant.
The easiest way is to use floor coverings, since because of them you will not have to do major repairs and spend fabulous sums. The following products and materials work most effectively:
- linoleum with a thick base;
- cork floor;
- laminate on a noise-suppressing lining;
- carpet, carpet;
- foamed polyurethane.
Such solutions perform two tasks at once: decorate rooms and muffle annoying noises. Polyurethane is an exception, since it will not hurt to put a carpet, laminate or other product on top of it.
Installation of sound insulation under the screed
For high-quality sound insulation, you need to remove the floor to the overlapping slabs, and then make a floating concrete screed. Step-by-step instruction:
1. Cover the floor slabs with polyethylene, so that after the screed is poured, they do not show through on the neighboring ceiling.
2. Use styrofoam tape or strip cut laminate to separate the walls and screed. Then lay the material along the walls.
3. Make sure the gaps are 2-5 cm wide. Fill them with sealant and cover with a skirting board.
4. Lay a foam layer on top of the polyethylene, which will act as an insulator.
5. Reinforce the screed with a fine metal mesh measuring 50x50 mm or 100x100 mm and a diameter of about 3 mm. The material should be lined on top of the insulating layer to prevent the screed from cracking.
6. Use adjustable mounts and position beacons. Another option is to cut holes in the styrofoam for them.
7. Now proceed to pouring the screed. Prepare a mortar of cement (grade 150 or 200) and sand in a ratio of 1: 4. Carry out a one-layer filling and remember that the optimum screed thickness is from 50 mm.
8. Leave the room until it is completely dry, as elastic materials can crack. The drying process can take about four weeks.
Sound insulation of wooden floors
1. First of all, remove the wooden floor and treat the logs with an antiseptic solution.
2. Reinstall the logs in a horizontal plane using brackets in the shape of the letter P. Do not forget to fix the boards when working with drywall.
3. Fill the gaps between the mounted joists with insulation. Do not take polystyrene, because it disrupts full air circulation under the floor, and the boards can rot.
4. Take care of the installation of the flooring. Slide the boards very tightly and, thanks to the self-tapping screws, screw them to the joists.
Features of noise insulation materials
1. Polyfoam - only material with a high density and a thickness of 50 mm or more is suitable (the more, the better). You shouldn't even try to work with soft foam, since the screed on such a base will quickly crack.
2. Expanded polystyrene - an alternative version of polystyrene, but more durable and wear-resistant. Thanks to the material, the weight of the insulating structure can be reduced.
3. Mineral wool - if you use this material, you will have to make high-quality waterproofing. Cotton wool is vulnerable to moisture, but with proper installation it will last at least 40 years. However, many people are afraid of this material, since it can be a source of dust and hazardous to health phenol-formaldehyde resins.
4. Cork sheets are wear-resistant and easy-to-install material that will “work” up to 40 years. Panels made of cork chips are not subject to decay and are excellent at suppressing vibrations and other types of noise.
5. Expanded clay is an environmentally friendly and affordable material that will help you forget about noisy neighbors for a long time. Plus it provides thermal insulation.
6. Glass wool is an excellent sound absorber, resistant to vibration and fire. Compared to other materials, it is lightweight and suitable even for old houses.
7. Foamed polyethylene is a low-cost and easy-to-install material. However, it quickly loses its sound-suppressing properties under prolonged loads and instantly decays from exposure to moisture.
8. Perlite is also not the best option, because it overloads the supporting structure of the house. In the case of this material, the thicker the "pillow", the better the noise suppression.
We also recommend reading about 5 types of self-leveling floors: how to choose, so that you will not regret it later.