Soundproofing FAQ

1) What is the difference between Soundproofing and Acoustics?

Soundproofing is the process where you are trying to contain sound from passing through a membrane i.e. keeping sound from leaving a room or from entering a room. Acoustics is the process where you are trying to control the sound in a room i.e. from echoing off the walls.

2) Is it possible to really create a soundproof barrier?

Definitely. Soundproofing is an art and when done properly with the right materials and applied to the correct places you will be pleasantly surprised at the amazing results.

3) What has changed in the soundproofing industry in the past couple of years?

The construction industry standard for sound control was basically: Insulation, Fiber Board and Resilient Channel. The results are not the greatest to say the least. New products like Damping Compound (Green Glue) Resilient Sound Clips (Whisper Clips) and a better understanding of sound control which includes the use of Acoustical Caulk, Acoustic Pads on electric outlets, Sound Seals on Doors etc. have changed the face of the sound control industry and any contractor/homeowner willing to put in the effort will reap outstanding results.

4) Will stuffing more insulation in my walls/ceilings help me?

Not really. Insulation is but one step in the soundproofing process (an important one that should not be skipped) and adding more of it or more expensive ones (like spray foam, cotton etc.) will not give you that much more. Save your money and move on to the other steps. Read more about Insulation for Soundproofing.

5) What is the best advise you can give me when constructing a new building?

The best thing you can do and this is very important for contractors and architects of hotels and condos is to put down a complete set of 2 sub floors with a damping compound like Green Glue sandwiched in between before the framing of the walls begin. This should be done on each floor. The advantages of doing this are enormous and it will save you a tremendous amount of headache later on when trying to eliminate noise problems associated with flanking noise, recessed lights etc.

Another great thing to do is to build double or at least staggered stud walls in any areas of concern. The benefits of doing these two simple construction techniques will assure you of great results in sound controlling your projects.

6) Why can't I just install materials that have STC ratings of 60 and higher?

If you see materials claiming very high STC numbers, usually they will fall under the category of "if it's too good to be true than it probably is". Look (usually you will have to ask for it) closely at the testing and see what other materials were used in the process. Don't be surprised to see concrete floors or funny spacing of studs etc. Additionally keep in mind that when a product tests to an STC as a free standing membrane e.g. an STC of 27 does not mean that in a wall/ceiling assembly it will add another 27 STC points it may only add 3 points. Therefore you should always look for testing in wall assemblies similar to the project you are looking to construct.

7) We are building a Hotel or Large Multi-Family project. Can't we just rely on our architect?

Architects are great people and their specialty is designing the project and the construction materials to be used. With the hundreds of components that are involved in every construction project it is impossible to expect an architect to be an expert in every aspect of the project. Instead they have to rely heavily on suppliers and sellers to support their claims through verified tested paperwork allowing the responsibility to be shifted onto the supplier. If you have done some research on the subject of soundproofing you are sure to have seen just how complicated and confusing it can be. We will just give you one example of a company that was rehabbing a luxury 5 star hotel in South Carolina due to sound control issues. They were convinced to use a very expensive highly touted material with claims of high STC ratings. With half the project under way they realized that the actual on field performance was actually not that great. That is when Trademark Soundproofing received the call from some very harried customers trying to see what went wrong and what they can do for the 2nd half of the project. Our suggestion and materials were less expensive with far better results. It is imperative for each Hotel/Condo/Multi-family builder/owner to rely on their own research and present that to the architect in order to achieve great results on their sound control and at the same time will probably save themselves a nice amount of money.

8) How about Spray Foam Insulation. I heard that is a great soundproofing product?

Save your money and use cheap (about 3-4 times cheaper) fiberglass or cellulose insulation. Use the extra money on an extra layer of drywall and quality damping compound. Insulation absorbs some sound waves and that's it. The fiberglass will absorb as much if not more than the spray foam. This has been confirmed to us by many builders. As a side note one thing we do hear from contractors and we have noticed it as well during sound control installs that we have done is that contrary to "science soundproofing" mineral wool and cellulose are better at controlling sound than fiberglass. Either way if you are on a budget fiberglass will do the job.

9) How about the brown fiber board? Every one uses that as "Soundboard"!

The only place fiber board has any use by professional soundproofing companies is on the floor. You read that right, sandwich some fiberboard and Green Glue between 2 layers of sub flooring and you will have a great floor for absorbing impact sound. In walls and ceilings it just does not make the cut. We need "Mass" and drywall is heavier than fiber board. We need absorption, fiberglass can absorb, fiber board is not absorptive enough. When applying a damping compound like Green Glue you need 2 smooth rigid membranes, fiber board is not as smooth as dry wall. Bottom line: use more drywall if you are looking to beef up your walls or ceilings.

10) You got me thinking; now how do I know what really works and which materials are suitable for my project?

Trademark Soundproofing was analyzing and applying all types of soundproofing materials for 2 years before we opened up TMsoundproofing.com. Additionally we are constantly getting feedback from our growing base of builders and General Contractors. If you read through our articles and browse our carefully selected materials you will notice that what we write makes sense and we are not trying to sell just anything that goes, our reputation depends on it. Additionally browse the internet and you will slowly get the picture of the right way to soundproof, then come back here and see how we prepared it all for you. And remember always feel free to pick up a phone and give us a call at 845-352-3200.

11) What is all the hype about Green Glue?

Green Glue is a visco-elastic damping compound which when applied between 2 rigid membranes e.g. 2 layers of drywall will dissipate (destroy) sound waves that hit the panel thus preventing them from traveling through and/or along the membrane.
Green Glue is the most thoroughly tested and used damping compound on the market and it so versatile that it can be used on floors, walls and ceilings.
Our own field installation and customer feedback has proven time and again that Green Glue lives up to its name by providing outstanding sound isolation results. Read more about Green Glue Damping Compound here.