New House - Thin Walls - Need to Soundproof

Kone

Hi all,

I have just moved into a new place and the walls are a lil thin, it's not a huge hassle but I would like to be able to soundproof my bedroom as it is large and 'echoey'

Does anyone know how to do this 'on the cheap'? I don't want to spend hundreds on it! :cool:

cheers,
/Kone

PS: Sorry if this is in the wrong forum...

irlirishkev

To effectively do it, you would need to spend a good bit of cash I'm afraid.
You could try the old eggcarton trick, but I don't know how effective it is, and It wouldn't be very nice to look at.

Look in the Golden Pages, or speak to a builder. I know someone who had the same problem, but they were told it would cost a lot of money to do it properly..

K.

Hal1

Line your walls with those cardboard egg boxes should do the trick j/k insulate the inside of the walls with rockwool (available from your builders providers) or apply another layer of plaster board over the existing one, might be a bit messy but its one of many solutions. :rolleyes:

Hal1

Ah you bet me to that one irlirishkev

Blub2k4

You're not my downstairs neighbour who woke me at 04:30 on Sunday night/Monday morning are you?

Kone

Blub2k4 wrote:

You're not my downstairs neighbour who woke me at 04:30 on Sunday night/Monday morning are you?

Not me! I am a quiet individual, however my next door neightbours are quite different.

Thanks for the suggestions, however I am renting so I cannot make any permanent changes to the room.

Blub2k4

Kone wrote:

Not me! I am a quiet individual, however my next door neightbours are quite different.

Thanks for the suggestions, however I am renting so I cannot make any permanent changes to the room.

haha ok was just wondering cos I went down and had words with him yesterday, all amicable this time.

gobby

The proper way to do it is actually to build a room within a room with proper soundproofing material in all the gaps.

Then to build an extra door as they are the hardest part to soundproof. Bit overkill for your needs.

The eggboxes would defo take the echo out of your room but I dunno if it would be enough to shut your neighbours up. Try asking them to shut up or just thump on the wall.

Caesar_Bojangle

gobby wrote:

Try asking them to shut up or just thump on the wall.

or if they're really thin, jump through the wall and frighten the living crap out of them

Kone

Caesar_Bojangle wrote:

or if they're really thin, jump through the wall and frighten the living crap out of them

Now that's an idea

I might try the eggbox idea

The_Conductor

Putting pictures on the wall, maybe even a tappestry, should at very least deaden the echoes in the room. Additional furniture will also help. As for noise from your neighbours- seriously recommend you check whether there is some residents charter in place- stating e.g. no loud music can be played between the hours of 12 midnight and 8AM- or whatever...... If there isn't, I'd be pretty certain that you have few like minded neighbours, who might be happy to help you draft one. As for the transgressors- a few calls to the Gardai particularly in early morning if they are being really annoying- can work wonders......

Victor

If it's a new property, the builder needs to comply with the building regulations - quite a few properties aren't these days.

To get rid of the echo in your room, just fill it with a normal amount of stuff, bed, wardrobe, clothes, etc. The multiple edges and soft surfaces break up the noise.

Ciaran_Dub

From what I have heard putting up another Plasterboard really isnt worth doing. In my house you can hear the neighbours quite clearly and all the houses in the estate have the same issue. The problem actually occurs from when thenblock work is done. A hole in the mortar or block the size of which a pen could fit through is where the leak in sound is happening. That hole will also cause higher noise levels in all other parts of the house/apartment. So the only effective way to stop the problem is find the leak point and fill the hole!!!! not something you want to be doing.

The_Conductor

Given that the blockwork is largely hidden by plasterboard, fixtures and fittings- there doesn't like a lot to do.....
I'm in a not dissimilar situation- I live for when my neighbours go on holiday. For good measure, I'm also next door to a bank, and can overhear everything that is going on in the offices there. I have pointed this out to the manager- who didn't seem too off-put, what bothers me more is if there is ever any work being done there, its inevitably outside office hours- late at nights and weekends, I just can't win.

The only short term solution I can suggest to the original poster is check for a residents code of conduct- and if one does not exist- call a residents meeting and draw one up. Thereafter, liberal calls to the Gardai when noise levels are unacceptable late at night and very early in the morning may be the only solution. To call the Gardai- make sure its not just someone wandering around the kitchen listening to the radio though- or else you'll look like a serious arsehole to all concerned.

S.