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By: Robert W. Orther
In today’s world, basements are no longer simply
places to store things like a glorified garage. With the
price of housing ever on the rise, many people are converting
their basements into rental spaces where they can make a
little extra income each month. There are also a lot of
folks who want to create a refuge space for reading or meditation
or even a home theater in their basements. In this article
I am going to talk about soundproofing your basement from
the tenants below or from the noise transmitted by a home
theater.
The first order of business is to talk about the ceiling.
Many times pipes and conduits as well as electrical and
cable lines run between the joist cavities in a basement
ceiling. A lot of people feel that need to have access to
these components, but in order to achieve great soundproofing,
there devices need to be sealed up by constructing a sealed
drywall ceiling below. If you are concerned about the plumbing
and wiring, have a professional come in before your drywall
in your new ceiling. Remember that 90% of your plumbing
and wiring is behind drywall and if there are problems with
them then naturally the drywall will need to be removed.
My point here is that if the plumbing and wiring has been
inspected and given a clean bill of health, then go ahead
and seal up the ceiling below.
Generally most basement areas have low ceilings which prevents
us from installing a fully floated ceiling, however there
is always room for materials like mass loaded vinyl that
can be stapled or nailed directly to the bottom of the joists
like a membrane. You will caulk all of the seams as well
as around the entire perimeter of the MLV using a good quality
acoustical caulk, stay away from cheap silicone caulks,
they do not work as well.
Once the MLV membrane is caulked and sealed properly, it
is advised that you also tape the seams with a lead tape
or a mass loaded vinyl sealer tape. You will tape directly
over the dried caulk. Now it is time for a layer of drywall.
I would recommend a layer of 5/8” fire code drywall.
This application will stop most of the airborne sound transmission
and some of the impact noise from above, but the best way
to alleviate the majority of the footfall or impact noise
is to float your ceiling using sound clips and metal furring
channels. I will talk more bout them in subsequent articles.
There is one other method for soundproofing a basement
ceiling that I will briefly discuss. Instead of using the
mass loaded vinyl, consider installing 2 layers of sheetrock
with a layer of Green Glue applied between the 2 layers.
Here’s how it works. First you make sure you have
your batt insulation in place between the joist cavities,
this is only necessary if your need the thermal protection
of the insulation. Next you would screw in a layer of 5/8”
drywall. Always screw in your drywall; never nail it in
especially in a ceiling application. Then you will lay out
your second layer of 5/8” drywall on saw horses, but
on this layer you will apply 3 tubes of a product called
Green Glue top the backside of the drywall. Green Glue is
a visco elastic damping compound that is used to deaden
or dampen the existing drywall and the newer layer that
is being installed. You could apply only 2 tubes of Green
Glue per 4’ X 8’ sheet of drywall, however using
3 tubes per sheet of drywall is much better for soundproofing.
Once you have applied the Green Glue to the backside of
the second layer of drywall, you will simply screw in the
second layer directly over top of the first layer. A little
hint here is to screw the second layer of drywall down as
tightly as possible without pulling the screw through the
drywall, this will insure the best dampening possible of
both pieces of drywall.
After that second layer of drywall and Green Glue are installed,
you will simply tape mud and texture the ceiling as you
would a normal ceiling. Well, that’s all there is
to soundproofing a basement ceiling. For more information
about soundproofing a ceiling, walls or floors, read my
subsequent articles or simply call a reputable soundproofing
company, they will be glad to help you. Until next time,
this is Dr. Bob…Out!
About The Author
Dr. Bob is the Senior Technical Advisor at Soundproofing
America Inc, the leading authority in Soundproofing and
Acoustical treatment technology.
Dr. Bob O.
Soundproofing America, Inc.
Senior Technical Director
Soundproofing Expert to The New York Times, The San Francisco
Herald Examiner,
The San Diego Union Tribune, and the Charlotte Observer
Ph (877) 530-0139 Toll free Fax (347) 721-9079
E-mail: Dr.bob@soundproofingamerica.com
Website: http://www.soundproofingamerica.com
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