GetRidofNoise.com

Welcome to "Street Noise is Driving me CRAZY!!!" page

We have many of you asking if there is anything that can be done to reduce noise from the street.

First of all I would like to separate audible noise and vibration. If you are unlucky to live or work by a major highway or a railroad and as a truck or train is passing by you have glasses jumping up and down on the table - you have a BIG problem. Vibration that is passed through the structure can be reduced only by undertaking major structural improvements that in most cases are much more expensive than cost of relocation or new construction.

If you are annoyed by audible noise but there is no vibration in the structure of the building that is something that you could do something about. Most of the time the outside walls are good sound barrier and you may want to start by checking your windows. Especially older wooden frame windows after being exposed to elements for many years may have gaps and crevices around the frame especially if they were not properly taken care of. Please visit your local hardware store and they should be able to help you with materials to take care of the problem.

You sealed gaps but still it is too noisy. We offer custom made 1 lb. clear vinyl window coverings with velcro around all four edges and mating velcro for wall. All coverings are custom made so there is no price list. Just to give you an idea - covering for 70" by 30" window will be about $200.00.

You also may want to consider ABSORBING the noise.

Very often it is not the noise that bothers us so much but its echo. Sound bounces off the walls and ceilings and reaches us over and over again many times making it sound a lot worse than it actually is. Absorbing the noise is reducing amount of times the same sound reaches us. That can be achieved by installing sound absorbing foam on adjacent walls eliminating parallel hard surfaces in the room that sound could bounce off back and forth. Sound absorbing acoustic foam is not just any foam. Acoustic foam is "Open Cell" foam that allows the air travel right through. This foam will be more expensive but will be worth your investment. You will still get more noise reduction per dollar invested than you would if you bought a cheaper - not acoustic foam. Please take a look at "Ceiling and Wall Panel" page. There are a few designs and colors available. Some products are available in cheaper Polyurethane foam but if you are looking for fire"Class 1" rated product - Willtec foam is for you.

Foam panels are easy to damage so if you have children in the house I would recommend the fabric covered foam panels - FABRITEC that are a lot more resistant to physical damage. Foam panels and Fabritec are easy to install by simply gluing them onto the surface but if you are planning to move and want to take them with you you can attach panels with screws or nails. Just try to avoid touching them because nail or screw would just rip through the panel.
The great thing about panels is that you can buy as few as one box so you can keep on adding them to your room till you reach a satisfactory noise level.
Also adding a carpet with a thick padding or gluing some panels onto the ceiling would help too.

Please have in mind that 100% noise reduction is nearly impossible even with unlimited financing but noise perception depends on a lot of variables and even 5% noise reduction may be enough to make us feel comfortable again.

I hope this page did help you put one more step towards successful problem solution. However if you have any more questions please do not hesitate to contact us via email or phone.