ᐅ Effective soundproofing elements near the property boundary – any recommendations?
Created on: 15 May 2021 13:54
K
kati1337
Hello everyone!
We talked again with the neighbors (about the metal shed issue, some of you might remember) and have easily agreed that we want to build a privacy screen on our side so we don’t have to deal with the shed view from the terrace.
Now, this property boundary is longer than just the length of the shed. The original idea was to enclose the rest with a hedge.
That is no longer what we want, but the neighbor will plant their hedge right on the boundary, which is fine. We will also put something along the boundary on our side, but we are still unsure what.
The neighbors on this side like it a bit louder in the garden, mostly music. They have this speaker box with heavy bass on their porch that somewhat ruined our Father’s Day. Just to be clear upfront: No, I don’t want to and shouldn’t complain to the neighbors – I’m sensitive to noise and get annoyed quickly.
Our problem is that this is a new development area and everything is still very open. The bass from the speaker hits directly against our house wall, and even with closed blinds (and who wants to keep the blinds closed all day), it pounds noticeably in the living room. I don’t want to have to keep the TV on constantly to “compete with the noise,” and it’s really hard for me to just “not listen” to it; I’d simply prefer not to have that in my living room.
Now we are considering what we could build or plant in the garden along the boundary that would absorb sound effectively.
A nice brick wall came to mind, but even a rough calculation makes it quite expensive (even if I try to build it myself): 22m x 1.80m at 50€/m² (around $54/ft²) adds up to about €2000.
Cheaper would be wooden privacy fence panels, which I also find very attractive visually, but do they absorb sound well? Or panels covered with plants?
Do you have any other ideas?
We talked again with the neighbors (about the metal shed issue, some of you might remember) and have easily agreed that we want to build a privacy screen on our side so we don’t have to deal with the shed view from the terrace.
Now, this property boundary is longer than just the length of the shed. The original idea was to enclose the rest with a hedge.
That is no longer what we want, but the neighbor will plant their hedge right on the boundary, which is fine. We will also put something along the boundary on our side, but we are still unsure what.
The neighbors on this side like it a bit louder in the garden, mostly music. They have this speaker box with heavy bass on their porch that somewhat ruined our Father’s Day. Just to be clear upfront: No, I don’t want to and shouldn’t complain to the neighbors – I’m sensitive to noise and get annoyed quickly.
Our problem is that this is a new development area and everything is still very open. The bass from the speaker hits directly against our house wall, and even with closed blinds (and who wants to keep the blinds closed all day), it pounds noticeably in the living room. I don’t want to have to keep the TV on constantly to “compete with the noise,” and it’s really hard for me to just “not listen” to it; I’d simply prefer not to have that in my living room.
Now we are considering what we could build or plant in the garden along the boundary that would absorb sound effectively.
A nice brick wall came to mind, but even a rough calculation makes it quite expensive (even if I try to build it myself): 22m x 1.80m at 50€/m² (around $54/ft²) adds up to about €2000.
Cheaper would be wooden privacy fence panels, which I also find very attractive visually, but do they absorb sound well? Or panels covered with plants?
Do you have any other ideas?
Scout schrieb:
When in doubt, the only solution is to enclose the terrace, basically a cold conservatory made of glass. If the neighbors are just inside, you open the sliding doors wide. Is there no way to slow down or break the sound before it crosses into the property?
I’m not sure if the glass dome over the terrace will help, since the sound currently hits our house wall unimpeded and is clearly audible in the living room.
If the noise passes through walls and triple-glazed windows, how is the conservatory supposed to stop it? I would like to reduce it before it even reaches our garden. What absorbs outdoor sound best?
hanghaus2000 schrieb:
Thick skin. Or other neighbors.I have neither. If you have nothing constructive to contribute, then why make these posts?kati1337 schrieb:
If the sound passes through walls and triple-glazed windows, how is the conservatory supposed to stop it? I’d like to slow it down before it reaches our garden. What absorbs outdoor noise the best? Mass. The lower the tones (bass), the more mass you need.
There is also soundproof glass – it’s thicker (=mass) and has larger gaps between panes (which, as far as I know, dampen the higher frequencies more).
H
hanghaus200015 May 2021 16:04kati1337 schrieb:
What absorbs sound best in outdoor areas?Nothing. Not even noise barriers help with very sensitive people. :p
Another alternative: you trick your brain by installing an alternative sound source as close as possible to your seating area, especially white noise. For example, a water feature (fountain, spring, stream). This blends with the neighbor’s noise, and in your brain, their noise level arrives twice as muted.
This is called psychoacoustics and works quite well.
This is called psychoacoustics and works quite well.
H
hanghaus200015 May 2021 16:07kati1337 schrieb:
I have neither of those. If you don’t have anything helpful to contribute, why make these posts? Because it’s the truth. But you don’t want to hear it. If noise even disturbs you inside the house, what do you think will help outside?