What can you do to avoid hearing your neighbors?

Thin walls lead to increased stress from constant noise. You don’t follow the lives of your neighbors and collect the latest gossip with your ear to the wallpaper, do you? So let’s not sit with earplugs idly, but let’s take active action!

Let's start with the basics - what is noise and where does it come from?

This is any extraneous sound that causes us discomfort. There is no single classification, but it can be divided into two types: air and shock. The first type is transmitted through the air, for example, a conversation between neighbors. The second occurs due to mechanical influences: the stomping of children during a fun game, the grinding sound of furniture being rearranged.

You don't have to have a rowdy neighbor to regularly enjoy the sounds of someone else's life! But it is possible and necessary to deal with troubles; stores now offer a huge selection of materials that help make your apartment as safe as possible. The main thing is to take into account all the nuances.

Major renovation of the apartment

Nerves are more expensive, so it’s worth starting with global changes, at the same time changing the decor and color scheme.

Let's pack the walls

Panel and sibit walls are not particularly sound insulated. There is a radical way to solve the problem: install metal frames, lay insulating material and cover with plasterboard.The method is good, but it will eat up 5–10 cm of space. In small apartments, soundproofing panels are installed on the wall adjacent to the noisiest neighbor.

Sibit is a good material, but it needs to be placed correctly so that it reduces the sound load. In a private house, we can initially include in the estimate the work of a competent specialist, but in multi-storey buildings we have to work with what the developer did in his time.

We insulate the ceiling and floor

There is also life on the floor above or below! For example, problems may arise with a young couple moving into the apartment above you. Wonderful people who love sports, especially in the evenings, and they set up a gym at home. Can you imagine what sounds you will enjoy? You can’t complain to the local police officer, and what complaints can you have against people who don’t organize drunken parties, but promote a healthy lifestyle?

The following solutions to the problem will help:

1. Covering the ceiling with plasterboard.
2. Installation of stretch ceiling.
3. Soundproofing panels.

A wooden floor will be an excellent way to isolate yourself from neighbors below.

Street sounds are reduced if you isolate yourself with a thick glass unit of a modern window. Just make sure that the seals do not move away from the frame.

A radical approach helps to avoid becoming a source of extraneous sounds.

Cosmetic renovation work

All cracks and holes act as air conductors of sound, so we carefully check several treacherous places:

1. Plug holes where the pipes pass through. Experts advise using vibration-isolating sleeves, but there is a simpler way: remove the crumbling cement around the pipe (but without fanaticism!), cover the hole with mineral wool and re-cement it.
2. Aluminum batteries conduct noise well, so it is recommended to cover them with a removable, beautiful screen with ventilation holes.
3. Sockets are installed in a through hole in the wall, and they become a “radio” broadcasting about the lives of strangers. In this case, a plasterboard partition is made, and a piece of hardboard is cut out as a formwork in the shape of a rosette to close the gap.

Polyurethane foam will help us close the excess joints, just don’t forget to cut it and cover it with something, otherwise our renovation will look like construction stopped at the most unnecessary moment!

Rearranging furniture and the notorious carpets

Dense types of wood are effective noise absorbers. Cabinets are placed along the walls, forming a defensive complex. For the bedroom, it is better to choose a bed with a large headboard made of dense materials.

Lay carpets or rugs on the floors. Long pile will give the room coziness, and increased fluffiness will dampen both yours and your neighbors' noises.

Thick fabric curtains

This is a great option for protection from sunlight, street dust and noise. Plus, the fabric dampens sounds, reducing the load on the nervous system. Housewives have already tried it and recommend using corduroy, velvet and brocade for curtains. To increase noise absorption, create complex draperies and lambrequins.

Walking into an empty apartment, you flinch from every knock that echoes through the empty corridors. As we settle into the house, it becomes quieter and more comfortable.

Houseplants

Grow any flowers or at least tenacious cacti. Plants absorb sound, so feel free to fill your window sills with stylish pots. You can put them in the entrance, at the same time enliven the dull landscape.

If you are going to plant flowers in the entrance, then check first to see if there are any allergy sufferers among your neighbors!

An integrated approach will save us from problems with thin walls. In apartment buildings, we are all a source of noise! Ideally, all neighbors should take care of soundproofing, and then life will become much quieter and calmer.