Costs of keeping noise outside

[summersongblues]

Hi folks,

do you have any idea what can be done to make a room as quiet as possible and how much it would cost me? I sofar just got advice to buy thicker curtains but that is not good enough.

I work at home and need it quiet in order to do my job. Cars, neighbors' boom boxes, even news channel's chopper, kids jumping on their scate boards, that all is a pain in the head.

I am really interested in getting an answer and I am no troll. I am new here and just discovered this group.

Please give me your advice.

[summersongblues]

Hi folks,

do you have any idea what can be done to make a room as quiet as possible and how much it would cost me? I sofar just got advice to buy thicker curtains but that is not good enough.

I work at home and need it quiet in order to do my job. Cars, neighbors' boom boxes, even news channel's chopper, kids jumping on their scate boards, that all is a pain in the head.

I am really interested in getting an answer and I am no troll. I am new here and just discovered this group.

Please give me your advice.

[Lawrence]

Earplugs?

[mm]

Might work. I wear earplugs in airplanes, and in my convertible if I go more than an hour at speeds 65 or more. LOwer than that and the wind noise doesn't bother me. Teh most comforable effective ones are the foam rubber cylinders that one rolls beween the fingers and then puts in the ear, where they expand.

The first owner of my house thought there was too much noise, and put a second layer over the two outside walls and the one common wall of his bedroom. I'll give you the details if you want, but I didn't quite get it straight if his efforts worked. I never hear the neighbors, but I never hear them in other rooms either except the bathroom a bit once in a while.

[Chris Friesen]

Simplest would be some hearing protectors. You can get earmuff-style ones that block 30dB.

More comfortable (but more expensive) would be custom-molded earplugs.

After that you're looking at double layer drywall, mass-loaded sheets, isolated metal channel, insulated sealed doors, etc. Gets expensive.

Chris

[Berkshire Bill]

I can't give you an estimate for the particular room but here is a source for the foam used in a home recording studio.

Bill

[hallerb]

OP probably concerned callers will hear outside noises, making it clear they arent in a office.

gut room, remove all wall overings / drywall plaster etc.

install closed cell foam, it prevents noise transmission by sealing air passages, and direct noise transmissions. pricey but effective.

then new low noise drywall, upgrade windows add storm windows or perhaps triple pane noise diminishing windows. then heavy window treatments

add nice thick carpet and pad.

unfortunately its expensive:( and may not be 100% effective:(

or you might be able to mask the noise by a white noise generator that creates a soothing rainfall sound, waves etc. at the low end a fan running sometimes does the job:)

[dkhedmo]

What about a white noise machine? I've used one for years, when I put the kids down for nap and to bed at night. I first started using it when we had a new baby and very noisy next door neighbors (a houseful of guys in their 20's, one whose only gainful employment seemed to be dealing drugs form the house, and the general drinking, hanging around outside, and coming and going at all hours).

It kind of neutralizes all the exterior and other household noises so the rest of us don't have to creep around like mice when a child is sleeping. You get used to the sound of it (many have multiple soundscapes to choose from) and after a few minutes the sound kind of shifts to the back of your mind and your environment then seems really quiet. One trick I've found is to point the speaker towards the area where the noise is coming from.

The machines can be had for average $25-50, anywhere from Target to those mall stores full of gadgets.

Good luck.

Karen

[e-mail] wrote:

[Ron Hardin]

Noise-cancelling headphones. Put them on for a particular noise event that you want to control ; it's probably not necessary to wear them all the time. Having the resource available is often enough.

Bose is overpriced but works okay ; I have the older over-the-ear model rather than the newer cooler on-the-ear model. I don't know how they compare, but they offer money back.

They do still let voices through, which I think is supposed to be a safety feature.

I used to use them chiefly for lawn-mowing, but occasionally when some teen male somewhere is tuning up his 1000 watt car bass system for an hour at a time.

[.]

All the noise (if the house is not made of wood) is coming through the windows.

[hallerb]

I disagree ANY air leaks carry not only air but noise.

superinsulated homes tend to be very quiet.

interior and exterior joints bettween materials, like window and framing. where one should caulk, and obscure paths like ridge vent to interior non insulated walls.

Is the OP SURE this work at home job isnt a rip off? if they paid for info its sadly likely it wouldnt make any money:(

Noise cancelling headset for phone will help too.

fixing it isnt likely one thing, its a bunch of efforts all combined.

the low bass boom boxes will be the hardest:(

[OldRoads]

The cheapest and most effective thing I've found when I need to concentrate and not be distracted by outside noise is to keep the storm windows closed, curtains closed, and run a fan on high to create a white-noise background. It really works.

Vin - On-line old maps for genealogical, local history, real estate and gold claims research at

[Doug Miller]

The very first thing to look at is your windows, because that's where most of the noise is entering. No storm windows? Add some. Single-pane glass? Replace with sealed double-pane.

Then look at absorbing the noise that gets in. Curtains help. If the floor is hardwood or tile, carpet it.

If you still have a problem, then:

-- earplugs

-- classical music on the stereo, especially Mozart, Purcell, Arriaga, or Barber

-- white noise machine

If still a problem ... move.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

$6788.95

[Dave Bugg]

I hate to disagree, Ed, but the total should be $6932.16

[Pat]

Go get a mosquito and blast it outside. It produces an ultru-high pitch squeal that "adults" can't hear but is painful to young people. It will drive away all of the kids, etc. Then you have to decide whether driving away kids is the right thing to do or no.

I don't think earphones will work because you need to talk on the phone, etc., but maybe Valium might help so you don't worry/obsess about it.

Otherwise you'll need to do some work on the house -- double stud the walls, etc. What's your budget?

[Just Joshin]

Might be easier to get like a boise noise canceling headphones.

However, discribe how your home is constructed, standard stick? Are you trying to quiet the whole house or uust your office?

later,

tom @