By Three Birds Renovations

On our very first recce to view what would later become ‘House 12’, we were immediately struck by one of the most apparent challenges that comes with a home positioned on a busy main road - the noise.

It’s the cutest little cottage but with the main commuter way on the doorstep combined with a Royal Australian Air Force base just down the road and a flight path overhead, we knew that superior sound insulation was going to be super important for this renovation. Especially with two of the three bedrooms being positioned right at the front of the house.

Whether it’s trains, planes and automobiles … or noisy neighbours that you want to mute, getting the right sound insulation sorted for your house is something you’ll want to consider right at the start of your renovation. Insulation is not up there with the sexiest of items you’ll choose for your renovation (wait till you see the tiles! #drool) but it’s the invisible products that will make your home feel as good as it looks.

STREET SMART SOUNDPROOFING SOLUTIONS

Sound enters your home through doors, windows, floors, walls and ceilings, so your goal is to block it out as much as possible, through a combo of insulation solutions, to achieve the sound of silence (or a least the sound of relatively quiet!) inside your home.

Insulated walls and glass are usually the most obvious sound insulation methods in a residential property. Let’s take a look at these, along with a few other smart solutions that we like to use in our projects…

HIGH-PERFORMANCE PLASTERBOARD

With noise insulation being a priority at House 12, we spoke to the experts at Gyprock about our options for superior acoustic performance and, lucky for us, they’ve got the perfect plasterboard product worth shouting about. #punintended

Gyprock Superchek is the ultimate lining for homes. It’s the highest specification plasterboard in the Gyprock residential range and its high density and board strength delivers exceptional impact resistance and noise control.

Superchek is ideal for use throughout family homes, particularly in those areas subject to high traffic and high spirits such as; corridors, hallways, rumpus and games rooms, mud rooms and childen’s bedrooms. When installed in ceilings of multi-storey homes, Superchek can also reduce noise levels between floors.

INTELLIGENT INSULATION

If you and your family like to live in peace and quiet, even higher levels of noise control can be achieved by including acoustic insulation within the wall cavity, such as Bradford SoundScreen. SoundScreen has been designed to greatly reduce unwanted noise transferring through internal walls and mid floors to help keep the peace – whether you are working, resting or playing.

GIFTED GLASS

At House 12, we replaced the windows and doors with brand new ones from Colonial Warehouse and took the opportunity to install acoustic laminated glass in the double-hung windows on the road-side of the property.

When we reconfigured the bedrooms inside the home, we had the opportunity to reposition the windows of the master bedroom from the front to side of the house, reducing the noise even further. A simple but very effective method if your window schedule allows for change of position.

CLEVER CLADDING

Updating the cladding old original cottage at House 12 had the additional benefit of creating additional insulation from the exterior of the home too. We can’t wait to show you which profile we chose… and the colour. #allwillberevealed #oct12th

James Hardie’s innovative fibre cement is thicker than traditional timber cladding, adding more durability and insulation to your home. In isolation, updating your cladding may not make a major difference, but when combined with other insulation methods it becomes another weapon in your soundproofing armour.

BRIGHT BLINDS

Another way to pump up your soundproofing is to add noise reducing window coverings, like we did at Lana’s house. She chose Luxaflex Duette shades which provide efficient insulation (both heat and sound) by trapping air within their honeycomb cells.

Insulation really does help form the foundation for how a space feels. If you miss the mark here, no amount of wall paint and pretty styling items will right that wrong so, add it to your reno planning ‘must-do’ list right now!