Checking out soundproofing

[Abby]

Had a coffee with the neighbour yesterday and she was saying that Coco (BE2) has been much noisier lately. I asked her to describe the noise and no it's not Coco, it's actually Merlin (Ekkie) who arrived here 3 weeks ago doing his cockatoo impersonation. Poor Coco getting the blame when for onceot wasn't her fault.

Where the birdroom is we have a carport then it goes straight to her bedroom. We can't change the location of the birdroom so I'm checking out some sound proof windows for the room. It's only the one window so hoping it won't be too expensive however, keeping neighbours content and not making the problem of Merlin joining in the morning noise by reinforcing it will be worth it I think.

Anyone had any experience with some of the techniques available?

I was looking at this place to get a quote (on top of all the other quotes we're getting for our upcoming renovations).
Double glazing, acoustic windows, noise reduction, sound proof windows - Magnetite Window Insulation

[Monica]

I've heard of popcorn ceiling, and putting foam up on the walls that you'd get to put down on a bed... or using cork board instead since it supposedly works better than foam.




Moving into an apartment, help with noise control
Help with complaining neighbor
Apartment?


I've never tried to sound-proof a room, so can't give any advice there...

[Abby]

I forgot about this post.

The window itself needed to be replaced as well as the noise reduction. Wood rot on the outside frame. So...we've had a guy out to give a quote. We're getting the type of glass they use in the windows at the airport. I'm pretty sure even Merlin and Coco aren't as loud as a 747. With a new window frame all sealed properly this should make a significant reduction in the volume.

He also gave us some other ideas. For example putting up trellising on the neighbours side of our carport with added shadecloth, blocking the vent off that goes outside to that area and if push comes to shove then we'll go halves on the neighbours window. The current problem is that her bathroom window is an old louvre style that can't be shut. Great for air flow but sound just goes straight through.

[Savery]

I've never had any noise complaints (in fact my closest neighbor never knew we had birds until I mentioned it) but when I moved in i took preemptive measures.

Since I rent the house, there was a limit to what i could do and spend. Essentially, i wanted to be able to take anything with me when I left and re use it.

I started with putting noise reducing curtains on the windows in the bird room. There is a brand called eclipse, but they have limited colors. Our approach was to buy black out fabric from the craft store and attach it to the back of regular heavy curtains.

The next approach was to fill the room with stuff. So we put in an area rug and indoor plants, along with using it as a sort of storage area.

Another thing that had nothing to do with soundproofing, but happened to help was to put an old mattress in the room. Since we bought a new bed and didn't want to get rid of the old mattress, it was wrapped in plastic and set against the wall in the bird room (we never have guests.) Obviously, this may not work for you if you don't have an unused mattress, or if your birds are overly curious (our birds pay it no attention) but the idea is to fill the room with STUFF.

If I owned the house, and didn't plan on leaving, I would:

1. Make sure the walls and ceiling were insulated, blowing in insulation if necessary.

2. Install a "false" wall and ceiling using thin strips of wood and another layer of drywall, with soundproof batting in between.

3. Install soundproof windows.

4. Install a high pile carpet with the thickest carpet pad available. (using area rugs to help contain mess)

5. Install a tight fitting , insulated door.