Home Mini-"Studio"

[B2Bomber]

Hi all, I've got a colleague here who's bugging me how to do this and how to do that while I'm surfing my fave boards. So I figured, I might as well ask you guys for some solutions.

Here's the scenario:

He turned one of their house's rooms into a practice area for his kids who are all in the same band. So, you've got your typical drums, keyboards, guitars, etc. in there. His initial problem was that (ofcourse) neighbours complaining about his kids' "racket". So he had this room (size - 3mx4mx1.5m) treated with:

concrete walls - he used some sort of "insulating foam" (don't ask me, I wasn't there, hehe), then double walled with plywood if I'm not mistaken.
ceiling - he installed a so-called "acoustic board" (I haven't seen it yet too)
concrete floor - created a wood-false floor and had it carpeted.

According to him, he's had good results already but still wants more. Apparently, the drums (naturally) are still scaping into the neighbours' hearing.

I know this doesn't have enough details, so please feel free to ask if you'd need more info to help him further make his kids' practice room less noisier to the ears of his neighbours. Oh, and if it's any help, he really doesn't matter whether they sound good inside, as long as they don't disturb the neighbours.

BTW: I suggested heavy drapes in addition to what he's got now, but he doesn't seem to be to keen on that idea. I was also contemplating on suggesting Dynamat's architectural materials but by the looks of it, the price might be too steep for his liking. So, let's try to stay within Lumen's mantra: "singgaling pero di singmahal".

TIA.

[MG]

Does he have operable windows? If so what kind?

[B2Bomber]

I guess you're question is regarding openings in the room so I'll just detail available openings to the room.

-he used to have one 1.5mx1m swing type windows (you know the ones with steel frames) that's now permanently shut. he's "plastered" it with some (I think) sort of 2" fiberglass insulation (he refers to it as "foam" and describes it as itchy) and curtained (not the heavy drape type).
-he's got a normal wood panel door (unmodified yet) to one side which is approximately .8x1.8m
-he's also got a glass sliding door (approximately 1.6x1.8m) with medium weight curtains to another side

TIA.

[jhermano]

Although He has done extensive work already, there is no way to tell if he has done everything correctly. Without seeing the place, all i can recommend is to check the usual paths of transmission. The windows are usually the biggest culprit. You need to seal the perimeter of the operable windows with sealant. Then you need to board it up with at least a half inch plywood or gypboard leaving the 2" fiberglass insulation. So you'll end up with a glass/insulation/board sandwich. if the sliding door you mentioned leads to the outside and thus the neighbors then there is very little we can do.

If there is another room connected to the band room like a bathroom, the doors to that room need to be properly sealed or you need to seal the windows in the other room too.

Is the house a 2 story unit? Is there a concrete slab above the ceiling? What is the construction of the ceiling?

When you are sure that you have fully enclosed the area, your next step is to apply some absorption into the room. If he just glued the acoustic tile then you are not getting its full benefits since these are meant to work with an airgap. The drapes you mentioned, carpeting and absorptive wall panels can also help.

Just a little note on sound proofing, the area needs to be completely air tight for sound not to escape. The smallest gap can render all your treatments useless.

[B2Bomber]

Although He has done extensive work already, there is no way to tell if he has done everything correctly. Without seeing the place,...

Yup and thanks for your patience guys, as I myself haven't seen the place yet.

The windows are usually the biggest culprit.

Yup, this occured to me when he was describing the windows and doors (the sliding doors in particular.

You need to seal the perimeter of the operable windows with sealant.

I'll relay this to him and leave it up to him. He is giving the sandwhich a tought though. The sliding doors leads to the kids' bedroom (The floor plan's a little hard to describe without drawing.. ). The wood door (which he plans to treat too) leads to the hallway leading to the living room.

Is the house a 2 story unit?

It's a bungalow, he says he's treated the ceilings already.

Is there a concrete slab above the ceiling? What is the construction of the ceiling?

I know we've establish that the house's a single story one already, but out of curiousity, can you please further explain the relevance of these two, specially the concrete slab question, regarding noise reduction. TIA.
Again, on behalf of my colleague, thanks guys for your inputs. Ofcourse, feel free to still add in any more ideas should you remember other suggestions. TIA.

[mikep]

Allow me to chime in:

-he used to have one 1.5mx1m swing type windows (you know the ones with steel frames) that's now permanently shut. he's "plastered" it with some (I think) sort of 2" fiberglass insulation (he refers to it as "foam" and describes it as itchy) and curtained (not the heavy drape type).
-he's got a normal wood panel door (unmodified yet) to one side which is approximately .8x1.8m
-he's also got a glass sliding door (approximately 1.6x1.8m) with medium weight curtains to another side
TIA.

The culprit seems to be the ceiling. A heavier and beefy ceiling - probably 2 pcs of 1/2" gypsum on metal studs - should be placed as additional reinforcement for the ceiling. Caulk all areas where sound can possibly escape. 4" glass fiber on top of the ceiling will help arrest resonances and help in adding isolation in that part of the room. Another area that has to be looked at are the windows. Seal all windows, first, by caulking all possible openings.joints with silicon sealant. From the inside, put 2 layers of 1/2" gypsum on metal studs, the gypsym arranged in a staggered basis. Gypsum must extend about a foot around the window sills. Put 3" (2" 16 kgm glass fiber over 1" 48 kgm glass fiber insulation with foil, the foil facing the glass window) of insulation for resonance arresting purposes. Seal all gaps. Since the doors lead to other rooms, treatment of the doors are not that necessary. What is important is to temper the sound of the room. Put a lot of absorptive material around the walls (to cover at least 25% of total surface area), maybe area rugs and acoustic tiles in the ceiling. The room may not be acoustically sound. but it will keep the sound inside the room. If the neighbors are about a meter away, the sound of a high SPL drum set will not bother them anymore.

Hope this helps.

[B2Bomber]

Thanks alot sir MikeP, will relay this to my colleague.