I'm about to buy a flat that was built 1/2 years ago (building commenced on the development 2 years ago and it was finished 1 year ago, from what I can tell).
Can anybody tell me what kind of sound proofing I can expect? Particularly with regard to neighbours both below and also to the side (it's a top-floor flat).
This is a flat in England. I remember building regs virtually ignoring sound proofing once upon a time, unlike in Scotland.
On Mon, 13 Jun 2005 20:13:35 +0000 (UTC), a particular chimpanzee named "NB" randomly hit the keyboard and produced:
The requirements changed in July 2003 to increase the standard of insulation. Originally it was proposed that all new developments should undergo a series of tests. After a bit of pressure from the building lobby, a system of 'robust details' (standards slightly in excess of the Building Regulations requirements) was introduced last year which can be used instead of testing.
The previous requirements were based on a series of 'deemed to satisfy' types of constructions, which, if properly adhered to and detailed, were capable of producing a good level of sound insulation. And there lies any potential problems.
Your development would almost certainly fall under the previous regulations, and even if not, wouldn't be required to undergo testing.
Having said all that, although I'm not certain, my guess would be that the vast majority of sound insulation problems are from impact noise (people's footsteps, banging doors, etc) rather than airborne (speech, TV, etc). As a top floor flat, you are the least likely to be troubled by noise. Your downstairs neighbours, however, will have something to complain about if you have laminate/wood flooring rather than carpet, or if you have your speakers sitting directly on your floor.
Particularly
Thanks Hugo. At the moment the flat is floored in cheap laminate. I'd like to put some good carpet down but would this help block noise too? Having lived next to incredibly loud neighbours in the past, I am concerned for my neighbours being affected by MY noise, but I would also be keen to stop noise from them drifting up to me.
Is there any particular type of carpet that's good for noise reduction? Are there any tricks that can be employed before putting the carpet down? Perhaps a special kind of underlay?
You can use what is called type 5 underlay. It gives the best feel and deadens noise downwards very well but I think upwards it is more likely to be higher frequencies you hear so you needs something like filling the void under the floorboards with Rockwool
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