Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Drum kit for 13-year-old: practical in a semi-detached house?

27 replies

Kittkats · 19/07/2026 11:52

DS (13) has been learning drums in school and loves it. It’s his birthday soon and he’d like a drum kit.
I’d love to encourage his hobby but DH has ptsd and I’m not sure how he’d cope with drumming in the house, also we’re semi detached. We do have a summerhouse/ gym at the end of the garden though, so I could put a kit there. I don’t imagine he’d practice more than 30 minutes to an hour a day. Does that sound reasonable? Also, there seem to be quiet kits/ drum mutes/ electronic kits available. Does anyone know if they’d feel the same to DS playing them? Are they worth getting or do I bite the bullet with a kit like the one he’s learning on?
Any kit recommendations on a budget also appreciated!
The only other things he’d like are climbing shoes for when he goes climbing occasionally with his older brother (too young to be allowed in unsupervised) or a gaming pc and I’m trying to hold off on the latter.

OP posts:
Octavia64 · 19/07/2026 13:50

My DS is a drummer.

the acoustic kits can be muffled - you can put a duvet in the bass drum and pillows in some of the smaller ones. You can also get pads to go on the top that help muffle the sound. There’s also rugs that help dampen vibration.

the electric kits are much quieter but the pedal for the bass drum still makes quite a thump and it’s not the same as a proper kit.

what’s the soundproofing in your house like generally?

don’t use an outside shed or similar the wood doesn’t stop the noise at all

SisyphusDad · 19/07/2026 14:30

My DS had a decent (one above entry level) electronic kit that took him perfectly well to Grade 5. After that his tutor said he really needed an acoustic kit, as he'd need to use techniques that could only be done on an electronic one several times the price.

Fortunately our neighbour in the other half of our semi has a hearing aid and just turned it down when he played (when she didn't want to listen - she said she quite enjoyed it sometimes).

New posts on this thread. Refresh page