Commentary: The sounds around us

One of my greatest pleasures, and one of the most soothing in these days of relentless stress, is listening to the sound of the sea.

One of my greatest pleasures, and one of the most soothing in these days of relentless stress, is listening to the sound of the sea.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s the pounding of waves during a winter storm or the soft susurrations of more gentle surf, the sound can smooth away all my anxieties. It’s one of the reasons we continue to live on these Islands.

It’s easy to imagine the way things were here 100 years ago: almost no man-made sounds at all. Maybe somebody hammering a boat together, chopping bush or digging their ground. Maybe even the occasional Saturday night kitchen band (unamplified, of course).

But there were no machines, no television, CD players or boom-boxes, and no vehicles except horse-drawn carts. Think of it – no jets, no trucks (no Jake brakes), no cars, no leaf-blowers, no outboards, no Jet-Skis, no bulldozers, no nightclubs, no DJs, no fireworks, no telephones, no air conditioners, no generators.

It was QUIET!

Last weeks soundproofing news of interest. (May 1st to May 8th)

"High-tech curtains block sound but let in light" Read

Summary: These computer designed translucent curtains absorb up to 5 times more sound than similar curtains.

"A soundproof room — but you can hear outside" Read

Summary: Soundproofing acts like a one way mirror, the neighbor can not hear the noise but someone just outside the wall can be heard by the occupants inside. This concept was dreamed up by some Italian scientists and is not yet reality.

"Building for a quiet life: Choice of materials will keep the peace or make a din" Read
Summary: Some tips for picking the right materials for soundproofing.

The upstairs neighbor with the hard surface floor

The Noise

This story has to do with condominium floor/ceiling separation assemblies between upstairs and downstairs units. A woman purchased a very expensive downstairs unit only to discover that it was barely habitable due to noise from the people upstairs.

Another story comes  from a homeowners’ association board (HOA). They were trying to respond to complaints from condominium owners whose upstairs neighbors had removed the carpeting and pad from their floors, and had installed hardwood flooring in its place.

Another two stories came in regarding complaints involving conversions of existing buildings into condominiums. In one situation, the problem had already erupted into a full-blown lawsuit.  

The Problem 

What did all these calls have in common? In layman’s term’s, footfall noise. In acoustical terms, this is known as impact noise.In each case, a hard surface flooring material such as wood, tile, slate or marble had been installed on a floor/ ceiling separation assembly that wasn’t designed to accommodate such materials. This led to dramatic increases in noise levels in the downstairs units when a person upstairs walked around, or dragged an item of furniture, such as a chair, across the floor.

What Causes the Problem? Without the proper design, a floor/ceiling assembly can act like a drum skin, broadcasting the noise into the unit below. Imagine the force exerted on the floor/ceiling assembly every time a shoe heel strikes the floor, and you’ll begin to understand the nature of the problem. There are actually several sources of noise involved with a simple footfall. The first is the actual impact of the foot on the hard surface material. This creates a noise that, if not properly mitigated, travels directly through the floor structure into the unit below.

E-Crete has better SoundProofing among other advantages

A quest for energy efficiency lead a builder to new material. With rising energy and lumber costs, homeowners are looking for more energy-efficient building materials.

Kuerner Homes, LLC, a developer in Bullhead City and Lake Havasu City, is working with a form of concrete known as “e-Crete,” also known as autoclaved aerated concrete, which is a more efficient form of concrete, according to Greg Brasher, project supervisor for Kuerner Homes for the Bullhead City/Fort Mojave area.

While the blocks look similar to regular concrete, e-Crete is lighter than regular concrete and is more environment-friendly, according to Brasher.

This is because the material takes less energy to manufacturing, and no pollutants or byproducts are produced during the manufacturing process, according to the e-Crete web site.

The material is made from natural raw materials such as lime, cement, water and aluminum powder and any waste created by the manufacturing process is recycled back into the mixing process.

So, how will e-crete help you with your soundproofing? Porous structure, high mass and the ability to dampen mechanical vibration energy is going to reduce the noise coming into your home. The manufacturer claims the wall units can achieve a STC rating of up to 60.

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