Noise reduction suggestions please.

Retired_TD

We live in a semi-detached bungalow which consists of two bedrooms, kitchen and toilet -bathroom and a lounge with an open fireplace.

The property was built in 1936 where the fire places backed onto each other and linked by a 'single party wall'

Recently our neighbours, who have recently moved in, changed the lounge into a kitchen and removed the chimney breast on their side  completely and now has worktops etc fitted, thats fine but the noise in the kitchen as you can imagine is quite loud coming into our lounge when they are preparing their meals and seeing that it is only a single party wall that does not help at all.

We have done quite a good number of DIY jobs in the past and would like to do the work ourselves as we are both retired, so we thought that maybe it would be a good idea to fit some sound absorbing materials to the wall each side of our fireplace. 

Maybe make a framework and cover it with materials that your experts advise and maybe leave a void between the frame and the neighbours wall.

Our question is to ask the experts their advice please.

Many thanks.

cymruchris

FlaatusGoat said:

Oh my gosh, your semi-detached bungalow sounds super cute! I mean, two bedrooms, a cozy kitchen, and a lounge with an open fireplace? That's just adorable. I can totally imagine sitting by the fireplace on a chilly evening, sipping hot cocoa and reading a good book. It must be such a charming place to live, especially since it was built in 1936. There's something so special about older homes with all their character and history.

I can see how it would be a bit of a problem with the noise, though. Your new neighbors sound nice enough, but turning their lounge into a kitchen and removing the chimney breast must have really changed the dynamic. I can totally imagine how the noise from their kitchen would seep through the single party wall and into your lounge. It must be quite the adjustment, especially since the wall isn't really designed to block out noise like that.

It's awesome that you and your partner are so handy with DIY projects! Being retired must give you plenty of time to tackle new projects around the house. I think your idea of fitting some sound-absorbing materials to the wall is a great one. It's like a fun little challenge to make your home even more comfortable. Plus, doing it yourselves will give you a sense of accomplishment and make the space feel even more your own.

When it comes to soundproofing, there are lots of materials and techniques you could use. One option might be to create a framework on each side of the fireplace and cover it with sound-absorbing materials. You could use something like acoustic panels or soundproofing foam, which are designed to reduce noise. It might also help to leave a small gap or void between the frame and the neighbor's wall, as that can help to block sound from traveling through.

Another idea could be to add some mass to the wall, which can help to absorb sound. You could do this by adding a layer of dense material, like gypsum board or mass-loaded vinyl, to the framework. This can be really effective at reducing noise, especially when combined with the sound-absorbing materials.

You might also want to consider sealing any gaps or cracks in the wall, as these can let sound through. You could use acoustic sealant or caulking to fill in any spaces where sound might be getting through. This can be a quick and easy way to make a big difference in the noise levels.

Of course, I'm not an expert, but there are lots of resources online where you can find more detailed advice and instructions. It might be worth reaching out to a professional or looking for tutorials and guides from people who have done similar projects. There are also lots of forums and communities where you can ask for advice and get tips from others who have tackled similar issues.

I hope this helps and gives you a good starting point for your project! It sounds like you have a lovely home, and I'm sure with a little bit of work, you can make it even more comfortable and peaceful. Plus, it's always fun to take on a new project and see it come together. Good luck, and I hope the noise issue gets resolved soon!

Thanks so much for sharing your story, and I hope you get some great advice from the experts. It's always nice to hear about people making their homes better and more enjoyable. Take care, and I hope your DIY adventures are successful and fun! 😊

Why are you posting these stupidly long, daftly constructed AI replies? Isn't it better to only reply when you personally have something constructive to say, focussing on the matter in hand, instead of this pile of old waffle?

To the OP - noise isn't easy to eliminate in the circumstances you've described. You can lessen it, but noise has a funny way of getting through no matter what you put on the wall. Is your fireplace blocked up now? Or still open? Do you get on well with the neighbours? If you do, you could mention how the noise travels through - and see whether they'd consider adding something to the wall on their side too? (Even if you paid for it!) A good quality acoustic panel on both sides would likely reduce your noise, but sadly not eliminate it.

SootySweep1

Hi
Have you tried having a friendly chat with your neighbour?

If you can hear them they'll be able to hear you and so maybe try to find a joint solution?

Jen

M_anonymous

I work for a manufacturer in sound absorption and other materials. 

Ecophon or basotect would do the job 

Sapindus

SootySweep1 said:

If you can hear them they'll be able to hear you 

Not necessarily. The problem here is a kitchen makes more noise than a living room (hard floor, tiled walls, clattering pans, lively conversations, cupboard doors).  So the noise problem is probably only one-way, and the noisier neighbour may not realise or believe there is a problem for the other.

Sapindus

cymruchris said:

Why are you posting these stupidly long, daftly constructed AI replies? Isn't it better to only reply when you personally have something constructive to say, focussing on the matter in hand, instead of this pile of old waffle?

Totally agree - maybe this needs to be specifically mentioned in the forum rules which haven't been updated since 2021. Edited: oh, it is, I've found it now.  Needs to be higher up!

Can we be sure that a person is putting the queries into an AI, generating the replies and then pasting them in, or is AI actually trying to directly take part in the conversation??
 

i_like_cats

Sapindus said:

cymruchris said:

Why are you posting these stupidly long, daftly constructed AI replies? Isn't it better to only reply when you personally have something constructive to say, focussing on the matter in hand, instead of this pile of old waffle?

Totally agree - maybe this needs to be specifically mentioned in the forum rules which haven't been updated since 2021. Edited: oh, it is, I've found it now.  Needs to be higher up!

Can we be sure that a person is putting the queries into an AI, generating the replies and then pasting them in, or is AI actually trying to directly take part in the conversation??
 

It will be a person copying OP’s post into ChatGPT or similar, then pasting the AI generated answer here.   Mods do delete such posts when they see them.

I suppose it could/will happen that AI spammers will run bots that scrape forum posts, and then automatically post apparently useful AI generated replies which contain spam links too.  Some new fresh hell to watch out for!

DullGreyGuy

There are a lot of products out there to help with noise reduction, normally sold to those wanting to make a lot of noise and not annoy others but they work in either direction.  The problem will be how much noise is coming via the chimney breast itself as you could spend a fair mount of money on isolation brackets, insulation, acoustic board, green gunk etc but still get a notable percentage coming through the chimney. Depending on the structure you can also have sound through the floor or ceiling. 

Have had friends kit out rooms for home cinema and the level of reduction has been fairly impressive but they didnt skimp on the materials and didnt have the complexity of a fire. 

Our flat is strange, in most of it we dont hear our side neighbours at all however in the lounge every night circa 10:30pm we hear a plug being pulled/put in (not sure which) and thats it. In the bedroom, which is next to the stairs of our other neighbour we can hear their kids giggling and occasionally muffled conversations. Never however hear anything else anywhere else in the property.

cymruchris

Sapindus said:

cymruchris said:

Why are you posting these stupidly long, daftly constructed AI replies? Isn't it better to only reply when you personally have something constructive to say, focussing on the matter in hand, instead of this pile of old waffle?

Totally agree - maybe this needs to be specifically mentioned in the forum rules which haven't been updated since 2021. Edited: oh, it is, I've found it now.  Needs to be higher up!

Can we be sure that a person is putting the queries into an AI, generating the replies and then pasting them in, or is AI actually trying to directly take part in the conversation??
 

Off topic - but if you look at the poster's history you can see their recent posts are all this waffle gobbledygook - and they previously posted using regular style replies with normal language.