Soundproofing

Sometimes noise can fall into both airborne and impact sound categories when sound vibrates from a surfaces.

12
Jun
2015

Why Poor Sound Insulation Can Be Bad For Your Health

Offices can be noisy places particularly if they happen to be in the city centre where traffic noise and the general hustle and bustle of daily life adds to noise levels.

Some people seem naturally immune to the noise around them and have the ability to switch off. There are plenty more people however who find themselves in noisy environments that actually end up damaging their health over time.

The importance of sound insulation is now much higher on the agenda when architects are designing buildings because of the effects excessive noise can have on health and well-being. The level at which sound becomes potentially bad for your health is 65Db.

This isn’t actually that high considering that this is the level of a normal conversation and much less than the ring of a telephone. Being regularly and continuously exposed to noise at this level raises the risk of stress related illness by 20%.

The reason sound over certain levels raises the risk of illness is due to the release of adrenalin. Adrenalin is not in itself harmful and can be extremely very useful to us humans. Too much of it released over long periods, however, can cause health problems.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
23
May
2015

Traffic Noise Can Increase Your Waistline Says Study

The last thing you might expect to have an effect on your weight is noise. Yet this is what one Swedish study has discovered and this could force many people who work in offices near busy roads to consider installing better sound insulation.

Weight gain has traditionally been associated with inactivity and eating too much, but the Swedish study on the effects of noise found that noise from traffic had the potential to increase fat deposits around the waste due to the effects of cortisol production.

Cortisol is a steroid hormone produced by the body in reaction to stress. Having too much cortisol in the body often leads to weight gain and the Swedish study of more than 5,000 people found that noise triggered an increase which led to weight gain in the majority of participants.

Road traffic noise contributed to a 0.21 cm increase in waist size for women compared to 0.16 cm for men which means the former is more likely to suffer the waist expanding effects of noise. The study also found a direct relationship between an increase in the sources of noise and the amount of fat carried around the waste.

Posted by admin in Construction, Soundproofing
10
May
2015

The Importance Of Acoustic Design In The Offices Of Today

Noise pollution was once accepted as part of working in a busy office, however much has changed in recent years as business owners see the value of acoustic design in the office.

If you happen to be sitting in an open plan office where phones are constantly ringing, this can place a considerable amount of stress on your shoulders. Noise can be distracting and often an interruption to your train of thought.

If you happen to be sitting near someone with a loud voice the situation can often become intolerable. This is the reality for many people everyday who have no power to change their office acoustics for the better as they would do at home.

Thankfully employers are waking up to the fact that environments can have a direct effect on productivity and profits in some cases. So the important thing is to raise these benefits if you happen to be a staff member suffering from the effects of office noise pollution.

Changes to office acoustics can often be quite straightforward to implement and not necessarily expensive. Interior materials for example should absorb sound. In an office the idea is to prevent sound from travelling too far where people may be having frequent conversations on the phone.

Cubicles can be contained where possible behind lightweight drywall systems which generally consist of two framed plasterboards with an air gap in between. This acts to insulate sound in that area, helping to reduce noise significantly.

This is just one of a number of sound insulation measures you can take to keep the office a pleasant place to be. Contact our experts if you would like to find out more about insulation solutions for your office.

Posted by admin in Construction, Soundproofing
16
Mar
2015

Wind Turbine Noise Pollution Study

Metropolitan Insulation are only too aware of the problems facing people living next to wind turbine farms in the UK at the moment. These farms seem to be popping up everywhere and more and more of them are coming inland and impacting on our countryside.

Whilst there are many environmental advantages for Wind Farms and there are plentiful arguments for and against their continued development, it cannot be denied that there are concerns when it comes to the noise pollution that comes from these wind turbines.

This is why the recent news that the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is commissioning a study to look into the acoustics of wind turbines known as Amplitude Modulation (AM) is very welcome indeed. It is hoping to define a threshold for an appropriate noise level produced by the turbines. The review is set to finish this Spring and will add to the current Good Practice Guidance and the AM working group available here.

The Institute of Acoustics (IOA) issued a statement from William Egan, Institute President in regards to the assessment of wind farm noise;

“In doing so, our aim is to enable members of the public to have a full understanding of our work in this field during the past few years, what we are currently engaged in doing and the area of our responsibilities. We draw particular attention within the statement to the fact that we as an Institute are not involved in the setting of noise limits, which we strongly believe is a matter for the Government to decide.”

The full statement can be read here.

If wind farm noise is affecting your living conditions or you have a concern about noise pollution caused by wind turbines in your area, Metropolitan insulation can provide guidance and solutions relevant to your situation. Please call us on 0800 028 4042 to talk to one of our friendly advisors.

Posted by admin in Building Trade, Soundproofing
07
Mar
2015

Noise Management in the Planning System

Local Planning Authorities and professional advisors in the field of new planning and acoustic design, have asked for additional guidance on new changes in the planning system.

The Professional Guidance on Planning and Noise (ProPG: Planning & Noise) will aim to give good practice advise to the likes of Metropolitan Insulation so that we can ensure that we are up to date with the most recent changes in the law and on the ‘application of the land-use planning process to encourage good acoustic design.

This initiative is ran by a steering group of members made up from the Association of Noise Consultants (ANC), Institute of Acoustics (IOA) and Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH).

You can read the full press release from the ProPG: Planning and Noise initiative here.

It is expected that the guidance will be published in early 2015. The concern amongst noise reduction practitioners is that the new policy objectives do not provide technical guidance. This has created confusion for developers and the concern that development may be refused planning consent and that the whole system will be slowed further at a time when new housing is such a high profile concern for the UK economy.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
21
Feb
2015

Can Plants Be A Viable Form Of Acoustic Insulation

As the world becomes more eco conscious, the search is always on for materials that can replace man-made materials with materials that are organic or can be recycled. The acoustic insulation industry is no different and there are currently engineers exploring the idea of plants being used as an alternative method to reduce noise.

The research is being carried out at the UPV/EHU-University of the Basque Country by Zaloa Azkorra, an agricultural engineer. During research into the potential of using plants as insulation, it was concluded that there was “great potential” in using plants for the purpose.

In fact it is proposed that the use of plants could help improve quality of life in homes and offices in a number of ways including, noise reduction, increasing biodiversity, controlling rainwater as well asreducing waste and pollution.

The idea does, however, have its drawbacks. If plants are used for wall insulation then it can be difficult to position them so that they receive enough water and thrive in the polyurethane boxes they will be placed in. Wall insulation made from plants has the potential to become a ‘cool’ alternative to usual methods even if it will be more expensive to maintain the systems needed to maintain their effectiveness.

More information can be found here: http://www.azobuild.com/news.aspx?newsID=19444

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
20
Feb
2015

How To Keep The Peace In An Open Plan Office

Open plan offices can be far nicer to work in than being cooped up in smaller rooms. They can also help boost creativity and interaction between employees but there are some disadvantages, one of them being noise!

Offices can be noisy places and if you happen to have several employees all working in the same open plan environment, then things can get too noisy. Not everyone in the office will appreciate the creative noise, the buzzing of phones, the clanging of photocopiers or the sound of knives and forks as people increasingly choose to eat at their desks.

Fortunately there are things that you can do to minimise the disturbance for people who really want a bit of peace and quiet, without moving their desk into the broom cupboard. Acoustic insulation is one of them.

The key is to cut down the level of ambient noise to the point where everyone is happy. Simple things like adding carpets and reducing hard surfaces that don’t absorb noise can help. It is also worth introducing some plants and perhaps curtains and other soft furnishings.

One of the most effective things you can do alongside this is to reconstruct office walls so that theyhave larger air gaps between them. These can be constructed from various materials including mineral wool, cork and rockwool. You can even get sound proofing paint!

If you want to find out more about office sound insulation please contact us and we will be happy to advise on ways you can reduce noise.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
01
Sep
2014

Metropolitan Sound Proofing

If you are thinking about soundproofing a home, office or industrial space, consider exactly what kind of noise you want to stop, where it’s going coming from.

Usually, the majority of sound volume comes through your windows especially old single glazed, untreated windows. Another source may be through walls and ceilings. Varied frequencies are transmitted more effectively through certain types of materials. If you’re unsure where the sound is coming from, an assessment by a professional soundproofed will help you to find out.

Flanking noise involves sound waves being transmitted through gaps in walls, vents, plumbing, power switches and outlets.

Structural noise is generated by banging on one side of a wall/floor to the other side (example: people walking above particularly on a bare floor).

Windows
Double or triple glazed windows will block sound effectively. The layers of air provide a barrier for any sound passing through. It’s difficult for sound vibrations to travel through dense material-air-dense material than to pass a vibration through a single-paned window. The majority of the sound’s energy is lost in the passing between the different mediums with double glazing.

Walls
Soundproofing your walls may be easy or very difficult, depending on what stage of construction you are in. It’s considerably easier to install soundproofing while the framing is exposed. Retrofitting soundproofing is possible, but you run the risk of other issues hidden behind the wall that may have a negative impact on the effectiveness of the soundproofing.

Ceilings
Ceiling spaces are fairly simple to soundproof because they are easy to access regardless of what stage of construction your home is in. But ceilings can present a few issues like ductwork and ventilation, which may still allow a certain amount of flanking noise through.

Floor coverings
There are many ways inside your home that sound energy can bounce off. Think of a room where there are soft furnishings, curtains and carpet. There is considerably less echo than a very stark room with bare floors, hard furnishing and exposed windows.

Once you know where you need soundproofing, the next step is to get in touch with professionals who can advise you on the best materials to use. Metropolitan Insulation can help.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
20
Jul
2014

Noise Pollution Near Airports

New research suggests that living next to an airport can be bad for your health. The noise pollution created by the constant air traffic exposes vulnerable people such as the elderly to excess stress and worry.

The report by the Harvard School of Public Health has found that those elderly people affected are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.

The report was published in the British Medical Journal and is the first to expose a link between noise pollution and hospitalisation. Another report by the Imperial College of London found than 3.6 million residents in close proximity to Heathrow Airport were at a higher risk of stoke, and developing coronary heart disease.

Residents had a 3.5% higher chance of hospital admission due to heart problems, when aircraft noise rose to 10 decibels higher than the average.

Co-author of the study Jonathan Levy states;

Our study was not meant to evaluate interventions, but I think there are clearly things that can be done to reduce exposures to aircraft noise, such as soundproofing of homes that are close to airports, measure that can be taken by (the) FAA or others to reduce noise of their aircrafts,” Levy said. “This certainly could be a beneficial health measure.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
01
Jul
2014

Noise Pollution Resolutions

A recent Metropolitan Insulation project was carried out in Catford on a shop with residential flats above. The residents of the flat were having issues with the levels of noise pollution coming through the ceiling from the shop below. And likewise, the shop was getting noise pollution from the residents of the flat.

A solution was required that caused minimal impact on the business and on the lives of the people living in the flats.

The work was undertaken to lift all of the floors of the flats and install 60kb acoustic bloc insulation between the floor joists.

At the same time, an acoustic ceiling from the shop ceiling was installed, with an aluminium framework, isolated by acoustic hangars and a double sound barrier board.

Both the shop owner and residents were delighted with the results and the work met with the Local Authority Compliance with Part E for noise reduction.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing