Blocking sound and vibration.

I recently moved to a new town and a new home.
It's a duplex. An old all wood house that was split into two apartments.
It has high ceilings because of the loft. As you could imagine every sound echos in this place.
That's not the bad part the bad part is that most noises vibrate the entire place.
That brings me to my neighbors. They work nights at a bar while I work days from home.
They seem to enjoy nothing better than to play loud bass heavy music all night long when their off.

I asked them to keep it down and they did turn it down. But there's more to this story.
I sleep on the floor. No mat. Just right on the thin rug. A blanket on the rug. And I sleep on my side.
I literally place my ear to the wood floor when I lay down. Sleeping on hard flat surfaces is the only thing that helps my back stay un-#ed. Harder the better.

I can't expect my neighbors to tip toe around and play their music at super low levels. They also have dogs that run up and down the stairs on their side. Not when I'm sleeping in such a abnormal way.
And the way I sleep is making the vibrations on me worse.

So what can I do on the cheap to block sound and vibration? Cheap means less than 200 dollars for me.
My plan is to buy some vibration canceling mats and place them under the rug I sleep on. And to get some sound blocking foam squares for the wall. I ordered them and they'll be here tomorrow.

But what if they don't work? I have no other plan right now. Except one that might work. Since I work at home I can kind of pick my own hours. there's a pool of hours that all the workers can pick from. But it's first come first serve. They work at a bar. i assume they have set hours and days of work. Theoretically I could learn their work days and pick hours on days I now they will be a work. Other option is to pick evening hours an be up at night. I don't like that option. I like working and being up in the day.

Ats help me out. How do you sound and vibrating proof a wood floor?

a reply to: scraedtosleep

The best idea is to use 'sound absorbing' materials and then then attach very heavy, very dense panels to them.

Imagine that as a surface vibrates, it moves back and forth minutely. Then you put something sound absorbent and slightly flexible on the outside of that (like a dense rubbery foam), then you put something very heavy and dense on the outside of that (I have seen lead impregnated rubber tiles used for this ). Any energy from the vibrations gets absorbed mostly by the mass and inertia of the heavy outside layer.

The problem, of course is that they have to seal flexibly, but air tight, or otherwise the sound will still get through all the gaps. If that isn't enough, you can repeat and layer things up, overlapping the tiles to cover gaps.

I once worked in a recording studio that literally floated in oil. There was an underground railway tunnel not far from under the studio and you could never hear even the slightest rumble. Talk about a different (hi-fi) reality, but such things are very expensive!

Most other surface sound treatments don't stop sound transmission, but rather they stop reflection. You need to stop transmission.

a reply to: scraedtosleep

Wouldn't it be easier to sleep on a table with headphones on?

I have empathy with the bad back.

a reply to: scraedtosleep

Unfortunately I don't have a better solution for you other than what you are already starting to do. However, I just wanted to tell you to not get your hopes up too much with your mitigation plans. Low frequency sound is very difficult, if not impossible, to mitigate. The long wavelengths resonate with other materials such as walls, floors, etc. making them in essence acoustically transparent. You hit the nail on the head when you talked about vibration; the vibration is a perfect example of this very principle in action.

I've even seen examples where a low frequency sound can actually be louder in another space from where it originates because the walls and floor basically turn into a passive speaker and amplify the sound rather than dampening it.

I think what I'd suggest is to work a little harder on talking (nicely) to your neighbors. Explain your situation, and see if maybe you can negotiate some established time frames for them to do their thing and times to be quiet(er). I think one of the important things here is expectations. You shouldn't expect them to ever be completely silent, because this isn't realistic, but rather see if you can agree on some times when they can rock out (or whatever they do) and other times when they can respect your sleep.

If your neighbors refuse a polite and nice discussion about the matter, then I'd probably escalate the matter to both your landlord and the authorities. Authorities are often slow to take action in these matters, but if you establish a reasonable track record with them they will act eventually. Your landlord is also a tool in this fight. He/she needs to understand your enjoyment of your place is a function of your sleep. If you can't sleep, you can't enjoy your place and thus may have to move. This should get action.

Sleep is critically important to your health, and not being able to get good sleep will only lead to problems. This isn't just a casual observation, it is supported by hard medical science.

ETA - Dogs. You mentioned your neighbors dogs in your OP. Controlling people is one thing, but controlling dog movement especially inside a home is a whole other matter. I'd suggest you try to get used to the dogs and address the larger issue of the people noise. Trying to get someone else's dogs to change their behavior is likely not going to get you anywhere other than sideways with everyone.

a reply to: scraedtosleep

If you're on good terms with your neighbours, you could pick up some speaker-spikes for them, they screw into the bottom of the speakers and acoustically isolate them from the surface they're on, reducing vibrations through the floor.

Depending on the design of the building results may vary, and while you can spend a small fortune on them for the really hi-end ones, cheaper ones seem to work just as well, they can be picked up for only a few bucks.

They've helped me maintain healthy relations with my neighbours for years,

Woah! I know I've been reading for years! But I've just been posting for a week now! Why am I getting blocked!? (I'll go read the thread and give a proper reply in a sec)

a reply to: scraedtosleep

You can't block anything. I had a 6 piece rock band in a duplex...I know.

Seriously? 45+ years of 3 marriages, and countless duplex's....

The only thing: Move. I have a studio as well, soundproof.

In duplexes, the load-bearing wall(center) is the dividing part: studs every 16" to baseboards and ceiling.

This area vibrates the entire structure. Always, no hope,vno egg-shell baffles...nothing will silence the moving and vibrations thruout.

Good luck

PS. Yes you can build a "room within a room" for home too...g.luck

*Headphones, music, mediation, nature sounds, white noise, binaural beats etc...or..?

Move😱😎☮️

PPS: You know right you won't, can't be there long? The answer is not in how to quiet a place....but, how to not to make it an issue...and with your next-door...they won't cooperate

Move.

a reply to: scraedtosleep

Have you considered purchasing either a coffin or a gimp box?

Sleeping on the floor is like sleeping on a drum skin, it will carry the vibrations. If you have to sleep on a hard surface buy or make a solid bed base. But sit it on top of rubber pads. Bass is the worsed to eliminate, but getting off the floor for starters. You then have to solve the air bound noise. Sometimes this can be cured by strategically placed screens. That's all a hit and miss affair, trial and error. Unless you want to go for a professional solution costing a heck of a lot more.

a reply to: 19Bones79

Also get tubs, fill them with sand and out the legs of the table inside the tubs, on a thick carpet.


Might look crazy but you might just get some good sleep.

Crayzeed and Bones nailed my suggestions and for once I read to the end before replying!

You don’t sleep in an unusual way, I did the same thing for years as a soldier and for the same reasoning. My problem was a 100 man barracks block and soldiers being louts, however Cray’s solution worked for me.
Bones suggestion was my immediate thought now that I’m no longer a young grumpy digger with a constant back ache.
I’d probably play loud bass all day for a week or so and sleep at a friends house (on the floor doesn’t take up much room) then revisit the negotiations in a few days. See how the kettle likes the pot.
If no joy, move dude. You may be living next door to pricks.
a reply to: 19Bones79

a reply to: scraedtosleep

I just want to say I feel for you.
I have a radon system that was put on the wall that our headboard backs to.
The vibration were very minimal but enough to almost drive me insane.
We were able to get a new fan to the radon system put it and it totally solved the problem.
Not sure what I'm rambling on about, but just wanted to share that I feel your pain!!

For you the only suggestion I have is a very expensive one.
They make beds that are made of marble/jade other hard materials.
Not sure if it would be enough to stifle the vibrations though.

www.dhgate.com...

a reply to: scraedtosleep

I haven't tried this, but this guy's towel based panels look like they work pretty well

a reply to: 19Bones79

No way I could sleep with head phones on.

But I never considered sleeping on a table. That is a good idea thank you.

a reply to: chr0naut

I got some sound absorbing pads. The type used for washing machine. The neighbors and I are going to test them under their speakers tonight.

Are you saying they may not work because the speakers are to light? Or that it wont work because it's the sound waves that come out of the speaker and strike their floor that cause the vibration throughout the house?

If the later I also have sound blocking foam pads. Like 50 of them. Could they place them on there floor underneath the speaker? Or around the speaker ? Or on their wall and on my wall? Or maybe if I sleep on top of the pads?

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Like a can on a string. I may have better luck getting a table that can hold my weight and placing the ant vibration pads under the legs and then sleeping on that.

I wonder if there is such a thing as ant vibration mats that I could sleep on?

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I think what I'd suggest is to work a little harder on talking (nicely) to your neighbors. Explain your situation, and see if maybe you can negotiate some established time frames for them to do their thing and times to be quiet(er). I think one of the important things here is expectations. You shouldn't expect them to ever be completely silent, because this isn't realistic, but rather see if you can agree on some times when they can rock out (or whatever they do) and other times when they can respect your sleep.

That's plan b. I have some control over my work schedule which will help here.

The neighbors are being very cool. Even offered to just not listen to music. I can't ask that of people that are clearly music lovers. The dogs will never upset me. Can't get mad a people for dogs that are just walking around in a house. I just brought them up to demonstrate how much even the little noise next door can vibrate to me.

a reply to: MerkabaTribeEntity

Awesome. I gave them some ant vibration pads to try but another poster made it sound like those don't work unless there also weighed down.

But these spikes sound like they do what I was hoping the pads would do.