Soundproofing and breathability

[erol_flow]

Hi, I am in the process of taking everything back to breathable on a small victorian cottage.

The soundproofing is awful and you can hear the neighbours talking let alone walking / stomping.

The party wall was studded with Styrofoam behind it downstairs and what looks like fibreglass insulation upstairs.

I have got the woodwool boards with lime plaster to do these but wondering if there's a breathable option for soundproofing insulation behind.

I also want to do between the ceiling and floor as I can hear foot traffic coming from nextdoor upstairs when I'm downstairs.

Im guessing it's quite important for the void above ceiling/below floor to be breathable?

 

[eon]

Breathability is less of a concern when it comes to party walls because they are not exposed to the elements.

 

[erol_flow]

Thanks, that makes sense.

I have been advised to create a stud wall from ceiling to floor and seal it as air tight as possible, then add my acoustic soundproofing stuff, I wonder if this could create an issue for the lime plaster?

 

[malcolm]

You shouldn't be able to hear people talking on the other side of a brick wall. That's a sign of airborne noise coming through a hole.

If the noise is downstairs I would be tempted to pull a floor board up and have a look to see what is blanking next door from you. For upstairs a look in the loft

 

[aockenden]

For ceiling-to-floor soundproofing, sheepswool did the trick for us

 

[erol_flow]

For ceiling-to-floor soundproofing, sheepswool did the trick for us

Amazing id much prefer to use that, Could you share basic the process? Did you have to create a sealed gap between the party wall and the soundproofed studwall?

 

[aockenden]

Amazing id much prefer to use that, Could you share basic the process? Did you have to create a sealed gap between the party wall and the soundproofed studwall?

Wait I meant for the space between the downstairs ceiling and the upstairs floor… isn’t that what you were asking? Also our house is detached so we don’t have party walls. But we stuffed sheepswool into each space between the noggins (which themselves are between the floor joists) and then reboarded the ceiling downstairs with tongue-and-groove pine boards which hold it in place. This has made footsteps upstairs almost undetectable when downstairs.

 

[erol_flow]

Wait I meant for the space between the downstairs ceiling and the upstairs floor… isn’t that what you were asking? Also our house is detached so we don’t have party walls. But we stuffed sheepswool into each space between the noggins (which themselves are between the floor joists) and then reboarded the ceiling downstairs with tongue-and-groove pine boards which hold it in place. This has made footsteps upstairs almost undetectable when downstairs.

View attachment 13909

Oh yeah that is interesting, thanks very much, if its stopped the sound of footsteps... it must work behind a party wall too...

 

[erol_flow]

You shouldn't be able to hear people talking on the other side of a brick wall. That's a sign of airborne noise coming through a hole.

If the noise is downstairs I would be tempted to pull a floor board up and have a look to see what is blanking next door from you. For upstairs a look in the loft

I've had a look in the loft and it is blocked off with a brick wall, will check that side of the room beneath floorboards, we also hear them walking around, even cooking in the kitchen, I've lived in some old properties but never had such a noticeable issue. It's an air bnb so a new set of excited guests every other day

 

[eon]

Thanks, that makes sense.

I have been advised to create a stud wall from ceiling to floor and seal it as air tight as possible, then add my acoustic soundproofing stuff, I wonder if this could create an issue for the lime plaster?

Yes from what I understand if you can afford to give up the floor space then decoupling from the party wall with a stud wall tends to be a more effective approach.
What kind of issue do you mean with the lime plaster?

 

[LillyInBelfast]

Hi, I am in the process of taking everything back to breathable on a small victorian cottage.

The soundproofing is awful and you can hear the neighbours talking let alone walking / stomping.

The party wall was studded with Styrofoam behind it downstairs and what looks like fibreglass insulation upstairs.

I have got the woodwool boards with lime plaster to do these but wondering if there's a breathable option for soundproofing insulation behind.

I also want to do between the ceiling and floor as I can hear foot traffic coming from nextdoor upstairs when I'm downstairs.

Im guessing it's quite important for the void above ceiling/below floor to be breathable?

Have you thought about using cork?

 

[erol_flow]

Have you thought about using cork?

No but thanks I am now! I'm guessing it'll be nice as thin aswell to save me space in my already small room...

 

[LillyInBelfast]

I was thinking about cork because I own a Victorian townhouse on a street. It's not awfully trafficked but it can get busy. And when I looked into that I discovered cork can be used both for insulation and soundproofing in this type of building. This is because it won't let water seep through but it's breathable. The company I contacted just uses corkboards and then lime plaster. So it felt perfect for me and my needs.