Been in good terms with your next door neighbors can improve your happiness in your new neighborhood. When I moved in with my little girl into our apartment, it was a new beginning for us.
The next door neighbor on my right was the first to welcome us with a little dog and she seemed to be a nice person. Sometimes when I go getting small things close by she will offer to look after my little girl.
The other neighbors also were nice to us. The problem I noticed after a few weeks was that, the building wasn’t that quiet as I was expecting.
The nice neighbor dog likes barking and the other neighbors make noise in one way or the other that were distracting.
Sometimes, the even cost me my sleep. It is normal to have some level of noise in an apartment because of the closeness of different families.
People have different things they do at different times and so do I. After I began noticing the sounds around me that were interfering with my private life.
I started looking for ways to deal with the noise problems and thanks I found some exciting soundproofing techniques in my search that I am about to share with you who is also looking for how to block noise from next door neighbors.
These soundproofing tips here apply to you whether you are living in an apartment, condo or your own house and the neighbors are giving you noise problems.
Non-Invasive Soundproofing Solutions( If You are Renting)
These soundproofing tips here are suitable for those who are renting and do not own the apartment. Therefore do not have the right to make permanent modifications without the owner’s permission.
These noise reduction solutions are not apartment damaging and hence you can implement them in your room to absorb some of the disturbing sounds from the neighbors.
1 . Reduce Noise Through the Walls
Sharing walls in apartments is a very common thing. Walls are the biggest culprits when it comes to noise yet they are the easiest to soundproof in the room.
Most apartment walls are built with drywall and the level of sound insulation is usually low.
I was sharing a wall with my nice neighbor with the dog. She wasn’t loud but her dog makes noise at irregular hours and the washing machine was also making noise when she is doing her laundry.
I decided since the majority of the noise I was hearing was through the walls, it was time for me to reduce the sound and damping their effects on me.
Luckily as I was looking into ways to deal with the walls, I found a lot of soundproofing walls techniques. Some of which don’t cost much.
Install Acoustic Walls Foam Panels
These acoustic walls panels are effective at trapping and converting the sound waves energy into heat energy. They are made into different colors and shapes.
Very cost-effective when soundproofing your room. They can be used in different areas of the room beside the walls. Often found in recording studios and home theaters.
Most often than not, these foam panels come with self adhesive for you to just stick them to the wall, but in some cases, some don’t have the adhesive on them, so you have to get the foam adhesive separately.
I used these acoustic foam panels on one of my walls to reduce the noise from the neighbors. They have different colors for you to choose from. They also come in packs of twelve or twenty-four. Depending on how many packs you want, you choose.
Place Soundproof Foam Wallpaper on the Wall
In love with brick walls?. Then you will love these 3D brick foam wallpapers. They are soundproofing foams that are made in the shape of bricks to look like the brick walls you see around.
These wallpapers are made to be soundproof, anti-children collision, waterproof and moist proof.
These wallpapers are self-adhesive. So you simply peel them and paste it on the wall. They are removable and don’t cause any damage to the walls.
The recommended surfaces that you can use them are Featured walls, Dirty walls, TV walls, sofa background, living room walls, bedroom walls, kitchen, kids room, stairs and on glass, painted surfaces, wood board, wallpaper, etc.
Easy to DIY cut the shape according to your room area. You can take them with you when living. They don’t damage the walls when you are removing them.
Love brick walls? there you have it.
Place Your Bookshelf Against the Wall
If you have a bookshelf in the house you can place it a few inches away from the wall for it to help in reducing the noise from the wall.
If you enjoy reading fill it with some nice books and put it against the wall. The sound waves will be trapped in between the wall and the bookshelf, by the time they get to through the shelf, their intensity will be reduced.
If you like too you can place your clothing cabinet against the wall. Feel the cabinet with some nice clothes. Sound intensity reduces as it goes through a thick mass object.
Permanent Soundproofing walls Solution(Property Owner)
These soundproofing techniques are for people who have permission to alter the apartment. This is mostly homeowners or property supervisors.
Hang a Mass Loaded Vinyl Mat
Mass loaded vinyl mat is like a very thick mattress that has sound damping properties. They are effective at absorbing impact sounds such as vibrations through the walls.
You can get one and hang it by either stapling, screwing or nailing it to the existing walls. This way when the soundwaves are trying to come through the wall, it will absorb it and dampen the sound.
This will reduce the level of impact noise you hear. These mats can be used for different parts of the room as well. Many people use them because they are effective in reducing impact noise.
Add Extra Drywall to the Wall
It is likely you are hearing your neighbor’s noise through the walls because the walls are not sound insulated and the walls are pretty thin walls.
Walls that are dense and heavy have a high level of STC and hence can block sound from passing through them.
So the best way to make them more soundproof is to add extra mass to the walls.
Drywall goes by other names such as plasterboard, sheetrock or gypsum panels. These boards are mostly used on interior walls and are have different soundproofing levels.
So in your case, because you are using it for soundproofing purposes, it will be good to go for soundproofing drywall with a higher STC rating.
To make the soundproofing more effective, I suggest you sandwich a mass loaded vinyl mat and damping compound like green glue in between the drywall.
This way, you will achieve a better soundproof wall. You first put the soundproof compound on the first wall, followed by the vinyl mat and add the drywall on top and screw or nail it in.
Now that you have increased the wall mass, you will need to paint your wall to look nice. To even reinforce your wall soundproofing efforts, use soundproof paint to paint the drywall.
IF you add two to three or more layers of the soundproof paint it will really help in making the wall more soundproof.
Need more soundproofing wall ideas, here is my recent article on how to reduce noise between walls in apartments and homes.
2 . Soundproof Your Windows and Doors
These are the places with the biggest openings in the house. Where there is an opening sound is bound to travel through it easily.
After soundproofing the walls, to take your soundproof even further, you have to seal the gaps and cracks in your windows and doors that sound could be passing through inside the room.
You can use a weatherstripping tape to take care of the gaps and cracks in the door jamp, the door frame, the gap between the door and the floor, the windows gaps frames.
Personally, after sealing the gaps and cracks, hanged a soundproof curtain on my windows. They did a good job of blocking out sound and light.
If you don’t like the curtains and prefer blinds, get the thick blinds the can also help. They will help muffle any sounds from outside. See my recent articles on soundproofing windows and doors here.
3. Use a White Noise Machine
A white noise machine is a device for noisy neighbors. These machines come in different prices and styles. They are used to generate rhythmic sounds that are soothing.
You can use this machine to Blockout the unwanted sound that is coming from your neighbors. With these devices, you actually choose the type of sound you want to listen to.
If you are looking for a quick and temporary fix, then these white noise machine will be a better choice. Why am I saying its a temporary fix? – it’s because you might not want to always start playing soothing music when your neighbors are making noise even when you don’t want to.
These devices are great in the bedroom during the sleeping time to help you sleep better. They generate sounds such as waves of the ocean or rain in the forest.
4. Fill the Room Up
another way of reducing echoes in a room is by filling it with a lot of things. The emptier a room is, the more surface echoes will have to bounce around.
But if you fill the space with house furniture such as sofa, shelves, and artwork. The echoes will be absorbed by some of the heavy thick materials.
Placing nice thick carpet or a floor rug will also absorb any sound that is transmitting through the floors. Carpets and floor rugs are good where to soundproof a floor in any room. Especially if you place a thick rug or carpet pad under the rug or carpet.
Similar Read: How to soundproof hardwood floors in apartment or condo
5. Talk to Your Next Door Neighbors
My neighbors had welcomed me nicely into my apartment. I am sure their intentions are not to disturb me with their noise and I am sure yours don’t either.
Sometimes, the neighbors might not even be aware that their noise is disturbing you or it even travels that far. Paying them a visit is a good way to start.
The only way talking with them might help is if you have a good neighbor relationship. Don’t bring this up when they are busy or not in a good mood.
Approach them in a calm and friendly voice that way they won’t feel like you are attacking them. If you make them feel attacked it won’t solve the problem. Rather, it might even magnify it after your neighbors have the right to enjoy their own property too.
I know conversations like these are tough but if you feel it will help why not give it a trial. You can even have a look at your lease regulations and see if there is anything there concerning noise and base that as your reference..
Final Words on How to Block Noise from Next Door Neighbors
If you are asking yourself how to block noise from next door neighbors that means you have had enough of their noise and is willing to find ways to reduce noise coming into your apartment or home.
As mentioned above, if you are renting, there are some non-permanent solutions to soundproof your rooms.
These involve soundproofing your walls with soundproofing materials such as foam panels for walls, using soundproof wallpapers like the 3D brick peel and stick wallpapers I mentioned above.
The white noise machine is also a good investment to help you sleep in a noisy environment. The soothing music works wonders if you need relaxing music to sleep.
Permanent solutions like adding extra mass to the wall is a great way to soundproof the wall. As I said earlier, this will involve major changes and therefore can be done by those who own the apartment or with the permission of the building owner.
Sometimes the noise from the next door neighbors is not only passing through the walls but the doors and windows as well. In that case, It is always a good idea to soundproof the doors and windows as well.
Having a good relationship with your neighbors is a great way to coexist in a neighborhood. Therefore, get to know your neighbors and be a good neighbor to them and they, in turn, will have your interest at heart.
If after soundproofing your apartment, you still feel the need to talk to them concerning the noise issue. Well, then you can do so amicably.
- How to Chew Quietly While Eating-Effective Tips - April 14, 2023
- Why is My Clutch Pedal Squeaking – Causes & Fixes - April 14, 2023
- Propane Tank Making Hissing Noise (Solved) - February 25, 2023
