Soundproofing in a flat

SuzieSue

jee wrote: »

To be honest I think she has it in for the vendor because she was quite rude about him and the state he'd allowed the flat to run into as well as a "nightmare" tennant he had living there (in her opinion). I think she wants to sabotage the sale!

That doesn't make sense. If she doesn't like the vendor then it would be in her interests to help him to sell, not to sabotage it.

I think she sounds like the neighbour from hell, so I would be very careful. See if you can speak to some of the other neighbours to see what she is like.

jee

I did think that as well SuzieSue. However, the place has been empty for around 6 months and he doesn't want to spend the money in doing it up and putting it on rental again- the EA told me this. I think she wants to ruin his chances of selling at a good price. I admit she does sound like a nightmare though...but to be honest when you're living in a flat no neighbour is ideal. There is always an issue.

rentergirl

wapow wrote: »

Egg trays are good for soundproofing

No. That's a myth. Soundproofin in conversions is always a nightmare, and laminate flooring makes everything worse, so good to hear you're avoiding it. It's not just the floor: the doors and windows need work.

serious_saver

Did you check the current flooring? If you haven't could will give you a good idea of what you need to do. If there is carpet and good underlay in there already and the neigbour below is still complaining then you know you'll have to spend a bit more. most of the flats I have lived in have had cork tiles, a thick underlay and then carpet on top. However I have never lived in a conversion.

jee

At the moment the carpet is thin and some parts have no underlay or very little because I could feels the boards underneath my shoes when I was walking.

bobthedambuilder

Tell the downstairs neighbour that when you move in, she will need to soundproof her ceiling.

wapow

rentergirl wrote: »

No. That's a myth. Soundproofin in conversions is always a nightmare, and laminate flooring makes everything worse, so good to hear you're avoiding it. It's not just the floor: the doors and windows need work.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5160356_soundproof-room-studio.html

http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=15925.0

Searches yield similar results.

chris_m

rentergirl wrote: »

Quote:
Originally Posted by wapow
Egg trays are good for soundproofing

No. That's a myth.

Not so much a myth as a common misunderstanding. They are certainly of little use for soundproofing between rooms/floors since they have very little mass, which is what's needed to absorb and deaden noise transmission through floors and walls.

What has lead to the misunderstanding is that they are good for improving acoustics within a room, the combination of the shape and the relatively soft surface breaks up noise beautifully and reduces echoes off the walls, hence they are (or were, there may be a better modern alternative now) often used in amateur or low-budget radio and recording studios.

Casati

Knock on the door & ask to come in whilst the Estate Agent potters around upstairs.

AllSpent

Too many 'red flags' here. I'd consider your purchase carefully - as others have said - unless you are sure you can cure the problem of noise in an affordable way.