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Post by ferrofluid on Feb 14, 2024 23:16:21 GMT
Hello,
The dedicated music room is upstairs on a suspended floor.
It’s been suggested that placing insulation between floor joists can/will drop the noise floor by 6db. To give an idea of current noise profile, in the still of the nite when HVAC is not running, my spl app reads 33db, but much higher when life is being lived below the room.
The cost of removing the subfloor, precludes the use of batts. However, I can use blow-in cellulose insulation. And, because the subfloor is made of 8’W pine deck boards with 1/3” gaps, I can see through to ensure proper fill.
If anyone reading this believes blow-in cellulose insulation will NOT provide a benefit, please let me know.
If anyone reading this believes blow-in insulation WILL be beneficial in this application, please continue reading. The questions below address two ways insulation might improve audio reproduction quality in my room. If there are other ways, I’m all ears.
Questions:
1. If dropping the noise floor is the singular benefit, how much of a drop is warranted to justify the job? And would you expect my plan to provide such a drop?
2. Currently, when soundwaves created by my speakers pass thru the floor they enter into a hollow air chamber made of wood and drywall (my floor, the joists and the first floor ceiling). It seems like it would resonate/reverberate and gosh knows what else in there. QUESTION: Will filling the empty air chamber below my floor with blow-in insulation be beneficial to my room acoustics even if—hypothetically, it doesn’t drop the noise floor by blocking outside noises originating from the living space below?
Thank you
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Post by Ethan Winer on Feb 16, 2024 19:56:30 GMT
Yes, filling that void fully with blow-in "fluffy" type insulation will absolutely make a real improvement. I can't tell you how much reduction to expect, and it probably depends on several variables. But your assessment that "it would resonate/reverberate and gosh knows what else" is absolutely valid. When you contact a contractor to do this, they may have a better idea of how much noise reduction to expect. But whatever the amount is, I'm confident it will be worth the effort and expense.
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Post by ferrofluid on Feb 16, 2024 21:22:34 GMT
Ethan,
Thank you very much for creating and maintaining this forum and for sharing your expertise through it. With your advice added to the mix, my research on this topic has ended. I will insulate the joist spaces under my music room.
I really appreciate it.
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Post by Ethan Winer on Feb 16, 2024 21:31:02 GMT
Please don't go away forever. At least come back after you finish to let us know what happened.
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Post by ferrofluid on Feb 17, 2024 3:25:04 GMT
I’ll report back.
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Post by ferrofluid on Mar 7, 2024 1:11:22 GMT
I have discovered that the joist cavities below my have fiberglass batts in them. Which partially explains why my room noise floor is already pretty darn good.
So, that saves me some time and money.
New QUESTION:
Is there an underlayment that will improve the acoustics of the space?
The layers of my construction from joists up, are: Joists, subfloor of 1” x 8” pine boards (I can see the insulation thru the spaces between the boards). An underlayment would go on top of the pine boards prior to installing 3/4 plywood that replaces the particle board that I am removing now. Engineered hardwood floors that I am putting in cannot be glued or nailed to particle board. Hence the swaps out of it for plywood.
Thank you
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Post by Ethan Winer on Mar 7, 2024 19:56:10 GMT
I'm not aware of any flooring material other than carpet that will improve acoustics.
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Post by ferrofluid on Mar 9, 2024 18:24:59 GMT
Thank you Ethan.
Your answer supports my plan to skip underlayment. Some I have asked agree with you and some don’t. All who recommend underlayment also sell it. This does not mean they are dishonest, but nether can it be ignored.
Notably, those who advise to skip underlayment are joined by one company that sells it and whose founder holds a patent on underlayment made from tire rubber. They say that on a suspended floor such as mine, it will provide no benefit. On a commercial cement-and-steel-girder floor, maybe so.
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Post by Ethan Winer on Mar 9, 2024 18:47:47 GMT
That makes sense.
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