Soundproofing Your Home

pickapro.ie would like to thank noise reduction specialist, David Fitzgerald of Cunas for his advice and input to this article.

When Judith got the keys to her new apartment, she celebrated in style. "I liked the location, the apartment itself was really nice and best of all it was my own - finally!". Three years later, Judith was a lot less enthusiastic. "The problem was noise from the neighbouring apartments. I could hear them talking, listening to TV, flushing their toilet even! And no doubt they could hear me too, which I hated. I was just lucky that they weren't particularly noisy but it still drove me crazy".

With more and more Irish people living in high density apartments and houses, Judith isn't the only one to be feeling the pain of thin party walls. The long term solution may be higher standards in building but that won't help anyone who's suffering with this problem. And for most people, moving is just not an option.

However, many apartment dwellers, including Judith are now applying a far less drastic solution than moving house - soundproofing. While soundproofing is not a new idea obviously, the option of going to a firm that specializes in noise reduction now makes it a much more straightforward process for homeowners.

Judith said "I was worried about the disruption to my apartment, which I had just finished decorating. But they were in and out in 3 days and left the apartment exactly as before, except that it's much, much quieter "

According to David Fitzgerald of specialist noise reduction firm, Cunas, the process is relatively straightforward. "We add an additional layer of special soundproofing board to the party walls in your house, significantly reducing noise pollution. This process involves removing the existing plasterboard, inserting the soundproofing layer, and replacing and making good the plaster, plus repainting etc. It takes about 3 days to soundproof a 2 bedroom apartment. Afterwards, the only visible difference is that about one inch of floor has been lost at each party wall."

Apart from noise reduction, there are several other benefits to homeowners. The additional board provides enhanced insulation and reduces heating bills. Enhanced noise reduction is also a real selling point if you ever decide to move, so it adds value to your property. But there's no price on the real benefit - old fashioned peace and quiet!