Band Practice, Hair Dryers, and Surround Sound, Oh My!
Just how many sources of noise are there in a home? As someone who runs a creative business out of his house on an 8-days-a-week basis (any Beatles fans out there?), with a 13-year-old son who’s a drummer, let me tell you there are quite a few sources that even go beyond him wailing on his kit. And because I’m one of those folk who love to look things up on the internet, let’s take a gander at some of the most common noise-offenders you’ll find in nearly every home.
Noise in the Home - Its Bigger than You'd Think
- Hair Dryer: 60-95dB
- Toilet Flushing: 75-85dB
- Alarm Clock: 65-80dB (your mileage may vary)
- Vacuum: 75dB
- TV Surround Sound: 75-90dB
- Garbage Disposal: 80dB
- Dishwasher: 55-70dB
- HVAC: 50-70dB
- Washer/Dryer: 50-70dB/ea
To put that in perspective, a typical movie theater showing peaks at about 100dB, and the Beatles’ concert at Shea Stadium in 1965 was just over 131dB. Louder than a jumbo jet! And just for you folks who love to look at Web MD when you have a cough...
- Harmful dB level of sustained sound: >85-90dB
Rock concerts and my son‘s drum kit aside, if you take a look at some of the biggest offenders in the home, you’ll see that many will touch the edge of a sound level that will begin to cause a negative reaction. Even if it’s not sustained noise, it can most definitely be disruptive!
Even removing from consideration the needs of remote work, who among us would love a nice, peaceful conversation with a friend, family member or partner without having to say “What? Sorry, my son’s practicing for his concert, could you repeat that?”, or “Hang on, the movie is too loud downstairs.”
Well, who says you can’t have that? Noise control isn’t just for office buildings, school gym, and theaters you know. And it’s also not just those old carpet-covered foam panels in your grandparents’ church either. Today’s acoustic solutions are creative, visually interesting, and can fit right in with any decor in any home.
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Residential Noise Control - Imagine Peace of Mind at Home
The spare bedroom in our house also doubles as my son’s practice room, with his entire 9-piece drum kit in there. The room used to echo to the point that it was difficult for him to hear his playing accurately, and it would also turn the music he makes into just straight noise. Now we have some amazing large art pieces in the room...that are made from quality acoustic foam panels, wrapped with dye-sublimated print graphics! Couple that with some acoustic carpet under him and while we can still hear him, the noise is gone and only the sound remains.
Another great example would be the ever-popular home theater set-up. While we all want that action sequence to rattle our teeth when we watch it, I sincerely doubt our neighbors want to feel it as well. Especially when they aren’t there watching the movie! Enter the acoustics experts and watch as your home theater goes from a source of neighborhood disturbance, to one of sound clarity and even more enjoyment.
No matter what your particular situation is, yes even you remote worker, bringing in an acoustics expert to help you bring your home to the peaceful place you need it to be is something we should all consider. The days of the often-thought-of carpet panel are long gone, and with them is the idea that acoustic balance and noise control is only for commercial spaces. Gaus Acoustics has the experience in both commercial and residential interior acoustic solutions to help, and the love of interior design to bring it to your home in beautiful ways.
We spend so much time in our homes, we should enjoy what we hear in them.
...or better yet, enjoy what we AREN’T.