How to sound proof my room? Living in the city with so much noise around.

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

BikeAdvice

Contributor
I live in the heart of the city and there are a lot of noises including but not limited to honking, birds, dog barking, some industrial sound. I am looking for a good sound proofing solution. Mostly the noise is via the windows and doors.
 
Good solution is expensive.

Better go for old skool methods like Thick Curtain, Carpets, Wood furniture etc.
 
m-jeri said:
Good solution is expensive.

Better go for old skool methods like Thick Curtain, Carpets, Wood furniture etc.
Click to expand...

I would like to know more about a good solution. My dad is also gonna help me in this.
 
Mostly the noise is via the windows and doors.
Click to expand...

What happens once you close them?

If your windows and doors are leaky you need to look at better glass, better construction or both. I managed a 4dB reduction by changing out creaky wood/glass windows to aluminum and double layer glass.

Once the sound is in you need to soften the reverberation, that is when furnishings help. They're not going to reduce the sound level itself.

Total sound proofing is usually not possible, especially in city environments and single buildings directly on the road, unless you take drastic measures - double walls and so on like studios in Mumbai.

Which city are we talking about, and which part of it?
 
cranky said:
What happens once you close them?

If your windows and doors are leaky you need to look at better glass, better construction or both. I managed a 4dB reduction by changing out creaky wood/glass windows to aluminum and double layer glass.

Once the sound is in you need to soften the reverberation, that is when furnishings help. They're not going to reduce the sound level itself.

Total sound proofing is usually not possible, especially in city environments and single buildings directly on the road, unless you take drastic measures - double walls and so on like studios in Mumbai.

Which city are we talking about, and which part of it?
Click to expand...

I am in Salem. The heart of it. Near bus stand.

BTW, how do you calculate the dB ?
 
just call up some upvc windows or aluminium windows and ask them for double glazed windows... once you set that up and see how much the noise levels drop
 
BikeAdvice said:
I would like to know more about a good solution. My dad is also gonna help me in this.
Click to expand...

You can contact some Home Theater installation folks to get contacts about sound absorbing foams/sheets, Dampening materials etc.
 
You're screwed.

You need a dB meter, there's no way to calculate it. Switch it on, and take readings.

Salem is extremely noisy and it doesn't sound like there is an easy solution.

How much can you spend?
 
Looks good, not sure if you can get cheaper ones.

First, how bad is it once you close all doors and windows? Is it a problem (for example) that you can solve with two airconditioners? Are you overthinking it?
 
A few kam jugadu tips which comes to mind -

1. If the door is made of hard wood/metal, get it replaced with 1-1.5" thick ply door with good fitting(not more then .5 cm space at the bottom). should cost around 1.5k.. Additionally you could fit the long rubber strip at the bottom of the door, which touches the ground(you can get it for 20-30 bucks from any leather workshop). We did this on the main doors to keep out snakes etc :P , wandering off from the garden. If the chokhat(the outer frame which holds the door) has bottom support as well like windows, which doesn't leave any gap then much better.

2. If not going to use the window, then close the window, try to fill the gaps with newspaper/polythene any useless stuff which can be stuffed and fit a large cardboard(single piece) perfectly on the outer windows(from inside). I see that you have good enough budget then you can try double glass windows.

3. Generally sound doesn't pass through 10" thick walls, but older apartments usually have 6" thick walls made of traditional bricks, if so then cover the outer walls(from inside) with the 1/2" plybords and paint it with good colours. Shouldn't cost more then 10k for one side.

EDIT: For me, cheap AC's noise is very irritating when no other sound is coming from outside :). I mean may have to invest in the Good ACs :P
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vince
kippu said:
just call up some upvc windows or aluminium windows and ask them for double glazed windows... once you set that up and see how much the noise levels drop
Click to expand...
You know i'm also thinkiing this seems like the first thing you want to do. When i close my windows, it cuts out even a heavy pour outside. They're not dbl-glazed at all, its just normal wood frames that close very tight.

Once you have a dB meter you will know how much of a difference it made.
 
kippu said:
Noise Reduction - Reduce traffic noise with secondary glazing - YouTube
Click to expand...
Key takeaway here is 'secondary glazing'. Nearly all new houses in the UK come std with dbl-glazing, whose main idea is to retain heat inside. Because it gets cold there and heating is expensive. This is adding an extra, or secondary window to further drown out the noise.

kippu said:
this looks like a great idea , but hopefully its all airconditioned space
Click to expand...
Right, so this is the limitation, UK is cold so no problems with closed windows, in Salem which must be hot, then you would need some sort of ventilation otherwise it will be stuffy.

But the difference is dramatic without any extra fancy stuff.
 
Bumping this thread since we are on the same topic. I would like to know how efficient and effective would be sound-proofing/double glazing windows. I live in Mumbai and close to my house there is a college ground which plays high volume, high bass music, coupled with marriage processions/parties/any occasion to celebrate in a nearby locality. Being an open environment it echoes a lot from the opposite building and enters my room. The main source of sound entry is through the sliding window panel and the wash room(opposite to the reflecting building). I have some queries as to how should I sound-proof my room.
1. Will double glazing entirely stop ventilation since it is the only provision for fresh air. I have seem some images and it seems to entirely pack the open frame.
2. I do not want a pin-drop silence situation but manageable enough for my studies.
3. What are the solutions to absorb sound entering in your room?
4. The entrance door to my room is a single board door with gap from the bottom which leads to noise from the adjoining hall.

Can anyone help me with some good UPSV retailer or who can guide me with sound proofing.

P.S: I live in a flat so I don't know if soundproofing walls would be possible.
 
Last edited:
For sound detection, if you have a good Android phone, use application called AndroSensor. It gives Sound Level with even a graph. You can even log it I think. But, am not sure about the accuracy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kaleen Bhaiya
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom