Common Soundproofing Mistakes You’re Probably Making

You don’t need to hire a team of acoustical engineers to find a solution to your noise problems. Many noise related issues have simple solutions you can achieve on your own, provided you do the necessary research. A successful soundproofing project, like any other home improvement project, begins with proper preparation.There are a lot of common soundproofing mistakes that people make and we’re going to tell you about a few of them. We’ll also give you some tips on how you can avoid these mistakes so your home soundproofing project actually works.

4 Most Common Soundproofing Mistakes

1. Ignoring the Root of the Problem

All the soundproofing in the world will be for nothing if you still have cracks and gaps in your walls. Any sound leaks in a wall, especially around doors and windows, will let excess noise seep into the house, rendering your soundproof panels and curtains useless.

Always check for the low hanging fruit before you begin a major soundproofing project. Sometimes the simplest solution can end up being the most effective one. Always check your walls carefully first and seal up any cracks that you find. A simple grout will work or you can spring for a special, soundproofing sealant.

MORE: See our Myths About Soundproofing

2. Focusing on Glass

Many people believe that windows are one of the main culprits of noise problems. If you are experiencing excessive street noise, your windows may be playing a role, but installing expensive double-pane glass will do little to resolve the issue. The airtight seal of double-pane windows, not the extra glass, is what makes them better at blocking noise.

You can achieve the same result for much less money and hassle with soundproofing curtains. These curtains are designed to eliminate street noise and will create the same airtight seal around your windows for a fraction of the cost of replacing all your glass.

3. Adding More Mass

It might make sense to think that if you cover something with a heavy enough object not as much sound will be able to get through, but that’s not how it works. For example, some people think the solution to blocking out noise is to add extra layers of drywall over their current walls. This actually creates more structure borne noise because sound travels further through solid surfaces.

Some people might also try to place moving blankets over their doors and windows to act as a soundproof curtain. However, no matter how thick or heavy a blanket or any other fabric is, it’s still fabric so it’s still porous and noise will be able to get through. Like we said in mistake #3, our soundproof curtains work so well because they seal around doors and windows and they are lined with mass loaded vinyl.

4. Skipping the Research

There is no magic, one-size-fits-all solution for soundproofing. The first step to resolving your noise problem is understanding it. If street noise is your issue, you need an airborne noise solution. If your pipes are loud, it’s structure-borne. If there is a constant hum of background noise in your space, you might have an echo and reverberation problem. Before you begin any soundproofing project, it’s important to do some research and figure out exactly what type of noise problem you’re dealing with so that you can properly address it.

We have plenty of blogs on how you can effectively soundproof your home using our products and other products to help. If you’re going to use google to do your research, just make sure you keep this blog open as well so you can check if the tips you find are actually going to work.

Avoid the Common Soundproofing Mistakes

Just to review, these are what we consider to be the biggest soundproofing mistakes you could be making:

1. Ignoring the root of the problem
2. Focusing on the glass
3. Adding more mass
4. Skipping the research

Just by doing a little research and avoiding common mistakes you can make the soundproofing process run much more smoothly. Now that you know what not to do, it’s time to get started! Still aren’t sure about something noise related? Let us know, we’re here to help!