Soundproofing advice

[Littlepigsmig]

Does anyone have any good recommendations for soundproofing, or anything else that would help stop the noise from our neighbours coming through. We're in a 1940s semi-detached.

We constantly hear them, their kids and their piano, I've asked them nicely on more than one occasion to turn the piano down (the other day I was in a Teams meeting and my mic was picking it up and I couldn't mute as I had to speak) so it's quite loud.

We moved here a few years ago and it was a renovation project so we don't want to move as we like the house and area and have spent quite a lot on it.

I'm not saying we're quiet as a mouse, we've got a young DD and no doubt our sound travels through and I get that when you're attached you'll get noise come through but we do think their noise is louder than the norm, we've always lived in terraced or semi-detached houses and have never had the noise come through so loudly. We also don't want to fall out with them, so anything we can do without them realising what we're doing would be good. They can be quite nosy (when they walk past they always have a good look in our windows).

Any hints or tips, please pass them my way!!

Could you build floor to ceiling cupboards along all of the adjoining walls?

Double layer of acoustic plasterboard
False wall a little in front of your wall with rockwool in the gap
Cupboards - but they need to be fairly full to have an effect
There are also acoustic panels you can buy and stick on the wall but they do tend to be fairly expensive. This slatted option is probably the best looking I’ve seen but depends if it goes with your decor!

Whoops forgot link here

@minipie I do like the look of that slatting but I don't think it would go with our decor.

We've thought of built in cupboards but wasn't sure how much they would help, we have a ton of books/vinyl etc. so could easily fill them and that wouldn't look too bad.

Basically what helps stop sound through walls is mass, so the cupboards should help if full! Books would work well.

I bought sound proofing for one of our houses as it was a terrace and the difference was brilliant. We could still hear music if it was very loud but didn't hear voices at all. I bought really expensive sound proofing board that is attached onto the entire length of our joining wall. Then it was plastered and painted. I didn't use a firm because it was so expensive. But I know a brilliant builder who did it cheaper. Put sheets up against your windows and doors to stop them looking in but they will hear the drill!

When we had our loft done we rendered wall, installed a double aquostic board later with a gap. The boards weigh an absolute ton. The neighbour has put some of those slats in. We still here them. Poor house design in chimney is our issue I think.

We tried to soundproof. DH built a stud wall and filled it with special soundproofing insulation. We added cupboards and filled with books. Upstairs we put wardrobes on the same offending wall.

None of it worked.

• sorry we still hear them. And board layer not later. Need to proof read don't I!

I'd agree with the chimney point above and how sound travels through joists etc can be more complicated I think.

The downstairs joists were replaced next door. They put chipboard down I think, insulation and then wood or laminate floor.

Since then when they walk through tbeir dining room their floor creaks so badly and the sound of footsteps or when they drop something is so loud that they may as well be in my house.

Even the sound and vibration of their washing machine at full spin comes through. It's a lot louder than my own.

I am slowly being driven mad and to top it all my house will be nigh on impossible to sell at market price!

So I feel for you OP and want to find a solution as well.

We’ve fitted soundproofing to our party wall. We had a timber stud frame built a centimetre away from the party wall, decoupled with acoustic tape where it is touching the side walls, floor and ceiling. It is filled with acoustic insulation. Then resilient bars, and 2 layers of acoustic plasterboard on top, then plastered and painted.

It works well - we’re very happy we did it. A local carpenter should be able to build it.

Ours is pretty much like this: www.soundstop.co.uk/soundproofing/soundproofing-walls/Independent-wall-solution3.php

We don’t have the Tecsound membrane as it is fairly expensive. Do go for resilient bars, they are cheap and do the majority of the work when absorbing sound.

I think it can make a difference - so not stop the noise completely but at least muffle it a bit.

Pianos are quite loud and not much that can be done about that... we have a piano but I am very conscious of the fact that our neighbours can hear it, so dd has always just practiced but never banged on it aimlessly...

We bought an ex gp's surgery that has sound proofed walls. We can't hear our neighbours at all. I hope they won't hear us because we have piano and horns.

...can you turn pianos down?

I just got my fiancé a piano and I'm quite conscious that the neighbours can hear so it's not played too early or late and not just banged on by children.

However my neighbours are incredibly noisy so maybe I'll just try and drown them out...

Thanks all for the replies.

It's an electric piano so can be turned down, when we went round to ask if it it could be turned down before they did it in front of us so we know it's possible. I think even they had to agree that it was stupidly loud that time!
If it was played well it'd probably be lovely to hear but unfortunately we get the unnecessary banging and that hasn't improved since we moved in. And I'm not sure even if 'She'll be coming round the mountain' was played well I'd always like to listen to it!!

Ah, electric pianos aren't great at the best of times let alone when playing either awful nonsense or just generally bad songs!

I'd argue that if it's electric then they should just plug bloody headphones in while they practice and keep their terrible noise contained.

Just to update, we are getting soundproofing next year, found a couple of local companies who install (as DIY isn't really our thing. Also getting the chimneys blocked up in the hope that helps.

Christmas hasn't exactly been peaceful, they were being really loud last night that it woke our daughter and as we've already changed her bedtime to try and fit in with when they make less noise we've decided enough is enough!

If the soundproofing doesn't work, we will have to look at moving (which we really don't want to do) so fingers crossed!