Office Soundproofing

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

Sep

2016

Can Bad Acoustics Put You Off Your Food?

According to restaurant surveys, the biggest complaint from restaurant customers after poor service is noise. There is good reason for restaurant owners to take this seriously as the effect of noise on customers also works at a deeper level when it comes to the links between our senses according to a study.

Anyone who has been to a busy restaurant will understand that noise levels can get out of hand. Depending on what kind of occasion it is, noise may even help with the atmosphere, but when it comes to actually enjoying food, less noise means more enjoyment.

A recent study by Manchester University showed that bad acoustics can affect the way our food tastes. Saltiness and sweetness were detected more strongly when it was quiet than when background noise was introduced. The experiment had participants eating the same foods and it turns out people actually enjoyed the taste of their food more when they had a bit as opposed to a lot of background noise.

This may explain why a quiet restaurant is often the choice for romantic meals. Besides being able to hear what your partner is saying, the extra enjoyment they get from their food is likely to make the occasion more memorable.

Aug

2016

Noisy Neighbours

Getting The Local Authorities Involved:
Keep a Record of Disturbances

Before involving your local authority, it makes sense to gather a body of evidence which you present to them as proof of the types of disturbances you are experiencing.

Note down the time of a disturbance, its length, and its nature.

If there is a reason for you neighbours making noise at that time, for example a dog barking because it is locked outside at night, then note this down too.

Once you have a decent body of evidence to show the extent of the nuisance your noisy neighbours are causing, you can contact your local authority or council.

Contact your Council

Within most councils, the environmental health department or city living department will have a dedicated contact for antisocial noise related issues. Some councils have a dedicated staff of Environmental Health Officers, who are able to issue warnings and on-the-spot fines to noisy neighbours who do not cease making noise. Failure to pay such fines can result in prosecution and a further £1,000 fine.

What The Law Says

Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, councils are obliged to take reasonable steps to investigate complaints of nuisance noise (and other types of nuisance such as littering or emissions) made by residents. The same law states that where the local authority believes that a nuisance is present, it must serve an ‘abatement notice’ on the individual responsible. The abatement notice can forbid the nuisance altogether, or restrict it to certain times of day.

If the person creating the nuisance cannot be found, the notice is served on the owner or occupier of the property from which the nuisance is coming. Failure to obey the abatement notice is a criminal offence and can result in a fine of £5,000.

In considering whether a nuisance is taking place, the council will consider (1) the nature and location of the noise, (2) the time and duration of the noise and (3) whether the activity creating the noise has any value.

‘Nuisance’
In England and Wales, ‘nuisance’ is defined legally as an unreasonable interference with the use and enjoyment of one’s property. In deciding this, consideration of the standards of the average person, and the character of the neighbourhood in question (such as whether other residents who are affected have also complained) will be taken.

Confusingly, the definition of nuisance in Scotland is not the same as England and Wales. The definition in Scotland requires that the behaviour is both unreasonable and causes discomfort. Reasonableness is judged with regard to an imaginary ‘reasonable person’ – would they be affected by the level of noise being created?

There is no level of volume which must be met for a noisy neighbour’s behaviour to be considered a nuisance. The standard is subjective and the assessment made by the local authority will be subject to the individual assessor. This is another reason why keeping a diary of noisy behaviour by neighbours is important – it can lend weight to your case.

Solutions for Noisy Neighbours

Having noisy neighbours can be very unpleasant, but if you are informed you can do something about it. We recommend the following points of advice:

If you feel safe enough to do so, try to make personal contact. Many times you will find that your neighbours had no idea they were causing a nuisance.
If you prefer to keep a distance, use an anonymous letter or note. Be amiable, and try to let your neighbour see things from your perspective – if they are reasonable people they are likely to appreciate that everyone needs sleep!
Collect evidence. If your efforts at informing your neighbours that they are causing a nuisance are unsuccessful, you will benefit from having a diary of their noisy behaviour when you contact the authorities.
Be safe. When in doubt, do not engage your noisy neighbours – if you fear that they might escalate the situation into something beyond just noise making, or you feel frightened, bullied or intimidated, then contact the police rather than putting yourself into a potentially unsafe situation.

Aug

2016

Reducing Noise From Water Systems

One of the biggest noise problems in houses comes from water systems. Specifiers can sometimes face a challenge to reduce noise from pipes in new constructions as can those who buy homes with pipes made from materials that do little to insulate noise.

Manufacturers can often fool specifiers when it comes to acoustic levels in pipes by disguising their actual performance levels. Add to this the drive to reduce building costs and the level of soundproofing around pipes can be less than ideal.

Plastic based systems are the worst culprits for noise and ironically the old cast iron pipes they replaced still offer the best sound insulation than their cheaper alternatives. Moreover, opting for plastic based systems can end up costing more in extra insulation costs where additional materials need to be purchased to compensate for the extra noise.

According to those in the industry current standards of testing sound insulation in water pipes are not stringent enough to replicate the sound generated under normal usage conditions.

Reducing noise from pipes in an existing house is a different matter of course. It can be a major job to replace a water system therefore one option is to use acoustic heavy sound proofing in the ceiling, which can reduce noise by up to 25 db. By using glass wool and an enclosure constructed from gypsum board, it is possible to reduce the level of noise by up to 30 dB(A) in walls.

Jul

2016

Should I Buy A New House If I Want Good Sound Insulation?

If the predicted fall in house prices becomes a reality following Britain’s exit from the EU, it may soon be a good time to go out looking for property at reduced prices. However before you do have you considered how good the sound insulation is?

Few people think about noise until it becomes an irritation after moving in. By this time it is usually too late too late to change your mind and you will be left with two options, move house or install sound insulation.

There are many factors of course which can cause excessive levels of noise entering your home. Age of the property can be a big factor in this. Older houses will usually lack the modern sound insulation you get in new houses unless someone thought to install it beforehand.

So if noise could be a problem for you, then buying a new house could be a better option in this regard. The problem is new houses generally cost more than the equivalent older property so you will be paying an extra premium anyway.

One way to solve the dilemma of buying new or old is to weigh up how much you will need to invest in sound insulation and other alterations to bring a house up to today’s standards.

Jun

2016

Survivors UK Commercial Property Soundproofing

We have successfully completed the design, build and installation of soundproofing at Survivors UK in Wapping.

This project involved taking down a side of external walls and dividing walls for the purpose of improving acoustic integrity and privacy in a highly sensitive environment. We also sealed existing fire doors without having to replace these, with acoustic/ smoke seals.

The system we used was the MetroSoundGuard system for the walls. This combines reduction for airborne and impact noise aswell as giving it high thermal conductivity. The result has been another outstanding bespoke solution in the City.

Airborne conversation has been reduced to a whisper and the clients are delighted with the results. Once again Metropolitan demonstrate they can deliver ‘sound’ solutions for your commercial and domestic needs/property.

Jun

2016

How To Reduce Noise From Upstairs Flats

Living in flats often means putting up with noise from neighbours above if you happen to live on lower floors. There are times however when noise such as footsteps, and the sound of TVs can become unbearable. At this point you may be wondering what can I do about it?

First of all, if you flat or apartment is part of a block, then the first thing to do if your property is leasehold is to check that there is any provision for quiet enjoyment. If it is mentioned in the terms of the lease that flat owners fit carpet and underlay, then this will usually be enough to win any case which goes to court.

Before things get that far, it will need the involvement of either the freeholder or management company in any legal action which may not always be as easy as it sounds.

If there is no provision for noise from people walking above you or having their TV too loud then you can go to the local authority, however this can be particularly slow and time consuming.

If there appears to be no prospect of fighting your case without big legal bills, then acoustic insulation slabs fitted inside your ceiling cavities could be the answer. This option will require professional installation but at least it will reduce those annoying sounds to a minimum.

Jun

2016

How To Combat Noise From Within

When people talk about sound insulation they often refer to noise from the outside like street noise, cars and noisy neighbours but in the modern world there is likely to be just as much if not more noise coming from within the home.

So here are some practical solutions to making your home quieter.

Open plan living and hard flooring are just two aspects of the modern home that have conspired to create noisy environments in the very places we go to get away from noise. Of course noise in the home isn’t avoidable altogether but there are a lot of ways to balance out the extra light and space with good sound insulation techniques.

Flooring is one area to start particularly if you are planning to open up a space by knocking out a wall. Opt for flooring that helps reduce noise such as vinyl. Higher quality brands are particularly effective at helping to reduce noise compared to hard wooden floors or stone tiles.

Introducing a rugs or textured wallpaper can help reduce noise to a small degree in the home and even a painting or two can add to the insulating effect. One of the most effective changes you can make is fitting acoustic panelling which is often included in office designs but can just as readily be used in the home.

Feb

2016

Hotels Working Towards Solving The Problem Of Room Noise

Staying in a noisy hotel isn’t fun and most of us will have experienced how unpleasant it is at some point in our lives. Now it looks like some of the biggest hotel operators are striving to make noise from corridors a thing of the past with a new solution they hope will radically reduce cut down noise levels.

While this new ‘solution’ to the noise problem in some hotel corridors hasn’t been introduced into the UK, Holiday Inn have launched a special sliding internal door which it hopes will make life a little more peaceful for its guests in the US.

Unfortunately it didn’t include this extra piece of soundproofing in the first four of its UK hotels with new look rooms in January of this year. The door has been unsurprisingly named ‘the acoustic door’ and is placed at room entrances which separate bedroom and living areas from the corridors.

Disappointingly for people who like peace and quiet in the UK and Europe, IHG, the company that owns Holiday have said they have no plans to install their acoustic doors in any new or renovated rooms in Europe according to reports.

Instead they hope that guests will be content with ‘padded noise reducing headboards’ although it is difficult to see how a padded headboard will do anything to reduce noise from noisy corridors.

Other chains currently looking into innovative ways to tackle the effects of noise include Hyatt, Marriott, and Ritz Carlton.

Jan

2016

Imagine If It Was Possible To Turn Soundproofing On And Off

Now You Can!

It is now possible to soundproof rooms in your home at the mere flick of a switch thanks to advances in soundproofing technology.

The innovative new solution for people who may need peace and quiet at certain times of the day involves the use of elastic tubing that is built into a wall and controlled by remote control. The new technology could see a variety of uses, not least in the bedroom where people who are light sleepers could benefit.

While having a completely soundproofed room 100% of the time may not be practical, having the ability to let sound in during the day and then prevent noise during the night could catch on in a big way. It would come in particularly handy for people who live in busy cities where noise is a factor 24 hours a day.

Being able to switch on sound proofing is also useful if you want more privacy in the bedroom or if you don’t want your neighbours listening to what you watch on TV. The new material works by interfering with sound waves as it is stretched and squashed. When the sound proofing is switched off, sound is allowed to pass through the tubes. When it is turned on the openings are closed to prevent sound passing through.

Nov

2015

Airport Noise Complaints Down Near Manchester

Noise complaints have gone down significantly near Manchester airport, even if some residents have gone to extremes in their battle for some peace and quiet. The drop in complaints could be down to a range of measures taken to reduce noise in home around the airport including insulation grants.

The number of noise complaints from people living near Manchester airport fell from 1,509 in 2013/14 to 860 complaints in 2014/15. Apart from making planes quieter as they reach the runway (no easy task) the only other way to stop noise disturbing people living near an airport is sound insulation.

£371,540 was sent out in grants to 108 householders in 2013/14 which may have gone some way to reducing the impact of noise and complaints. However this didn’t appear enough to stop one disgruntled Manchester resident who complained 729 times in a year according to the Manchester Evening News.

This meant that the individual took it upon himself to complain twice a day for 12 months. Is complaints would no doubt have been heard even if it isn’t clear whether he gained any special treatment as a result.

If you happen to live on a noisy flightpath, why not ask about the availability of grants to fund the cost of sound insulation? It may be the quickest way to living a quiet life.

Metropolitan Insulation Blog