How to sound proof old house

Hi All,

i am staying next to heavy traffic road and i want to do sound proofing from the traffic noise. Can anyone let us know some idea to do sound proofing. house external is cladding and it's 60 plus years old. have carpet flooring.

any related suggestion and feedback are much appreciated.

 

One of the best things is the windows. You can do a version of double glazing where the current windows stay Australian Retrofit Double Glazed Windows | Magnetite

Then good insulation in the ceiling if it doesn't have it.

 

There is also retro "inject-able" wall insulation

 

Try and look into a higher fence ,then fill the area in with plants ..
You can also fill the walls in in foam -or reclad the area near the road..imho..

 

Windows are ineffective without wall & roof insulation. Soundproofing is a complete system - you can't do one without the other and expect 100% results.

 

To avoid spending a mint on ineffective costs seek professional advice. Things like foam can be useless with some noise as it can help transmit between wall layers. Acoustic consultants can advise on the most cost effective improvements in order so you can identify if its even worthwhile and the range of strategies ranked in order of merit and cost. Acoustic treatments need to be based on actual noise source and the specific issues of that property. There is heavy traffic and HEAVY vehicle road traffic...Two very different issues. A endless parade of Bdoubles and heavy haulage trucks up and down a small hill on a 6 lane road may transmit noise long distances and be difficult to address.

I know someone affected by this on one of Sydneys busiest roads - Pennant Hills Rd. They are waiting for the new tunnel which will remove all trucks sending them underground to avoid a $350 penalty. Acoustic testing suggests a 80%+ reduction in noise for $0 cost. They plan to then build two new villas to modern specs based on actual noise at that time.

 

Tge RTA built a 'quiet house' on PH Road years ago. Very modern design (for the '80's).

 

Have you used the retrofit glazing? Considering this sometime next year.

 

Someone I know used magnetite to try to dampen heavy traffic noise - but the traffic sound still came through the walls and floor etc - so not that effective overall.

He ended up installing heavy duty sound matting and sound batts in the roof space and sound batts in the walls which helped - in addition to triple glazing in front window.

 

I haven't, but one of my clients has and I recall him saying it did help. Calling @Skuttles

 

I have soundproofed (near enough) several rooms and sheds to make music studios. Trying to keep the sound in, but same concepts. Airtightness and material mass are the key aspects of sound insulation.

I find that sealing up any and all air gaps to the outside is a good start; vents, around windows, door jams, etc. This makes a huge difference.

Windows tend to let a lot of sound through due to imperfect (or non existent) seals and thin glass, so some new double glazed well sealed units will make a big difference.

Your plasterboard wall the wall is probably the only thing in your wall stopping noise at the moment. You could look to replace your external cladding and insulate the cavity with a heavy density insulation. Might need to also put this insulation in the ceiling as well.

There is heaps of online regarding acoustics and soundproofing rooms. Read through it, start with the low hanging fruit like windows and work your way through until your happy with the result.

 

Yep we did our front two 1950s wooden windows with retrofit double glazing, essentially an aluminum frame with perspex within and a magnet surround to 'seal' to the existing wood frame.
Not cheap for what it is, but the noise reduction was fantastic, really muffled the sounds a lot, wished we'd done it years earlier. We're double brick walls though, not sure what a framed/cladded house would be like.
We never expected it to completely remove traffic noise, you'll always 'feel' large trucks n busses passing though, but yep worth doing.