Wednesday, May 7, 2003

Additional layer of gypsum board is ideal for deadening sound in home 'media rooms'

After a tough day on the job or at school, what better way to relax than to retreat to the latest rage in residential amenities the "media room" to take in a first-run movie or a favorite TV show.

Featuring state-of-the-art projection and sound systems, the media room is replacing the recreation room as the gathering place of choice in a growing number of American homes. In fact, 19 percent of adults 18 or older said they may install a home theater system in the near future, according to one recent survey.

Typically, media rooms are multi-use rooms, set up much like a family or recreation room, with seating areas and a large-screen TV. In seeking to capture a true theater experience, homeowners are digging deep into their wallets to outfit their media rooms with the latest, pre-wired surround sound systems, which typically include at least three front and two rear speakers.

But as sound systems become more powerful and penetrating, homeowners are faced with a new challenge-keeping the sound from migrating to adjacent living areas. "It's no small feat," suggested Michael Gardner, a spokesperson for the Gypsum Association, which represents manufacturers of gypsum wallboard in the United States and Canada. "From a cost perspective, thoroughly soundproofing a media room is beyond the reach of most homeowners. And it's difficult to achieve structurally."

A more realistic goal is to at least deaden the sound using low-cost, conventional building methods and materials.

Perhaps the most cost-effective way to control sound emanating from a media room, according to Gardner, is to install a second layer of gypsum board over the room's existing walls. Gypsum board has excellent sound control qualities, is less expensive than other sound insulating materials, and is readily available at home centers and lumber yards.

When deadening sound with gypsum board, add a second layer of gypsum board that is thicker or thinner than the existing wallboard, but not the same thickness. "Gypsum board is a membrane that vibrates when struck by sound waves," Gardner explained, "and different thicknesses vibrate at different frequencies. Since the vibration helps to dissipate sound energy, using different board thicknesses increases the amount of sound energy dissipated. More importantly, as more sound is dissipated, less sound passes through the wall system into adjacent areas."

As an example, adding a layer of 5/8-inch gypsum board over an existing 1/2-inch gypsum board wall can significantly increase sound dissipation and reduce sound flow to adjacent areas.

Yet, when planning a media room, it is important to recognize that effective sound control is a two-way street. While homeowners want to contain sound within the media room, they also want to insulate the media room from exterior noise that can compromise the fidelity of a surround-sound system.

To keep unwanted sound out of the media room, the Gypsum Association suggests sealing gaps around electrical outlets, plumbing fixtures and doors and windows with flexible caulk. "Sound waves will find their way through penetration points in a room," Gardner stressed, "so sealing perimeter gaps is essential to creating an acoustically pleasant environment."

For more information on how controlling sound in a media room or elsewhere in the home, log on to www.gypsum.org. First click on the "Environmental" link on the association home page. Then click on "Gypsum Board-A Key to a Quieter Home!" highlighted in the fourth paragraph of the document entitled: "Environmental."

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