Sound Testing Explained
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Sound Insulation Testing Explained
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Chris Parker-Jones
The aim of our articles are to break down acoustic terms and concepts as simply as possible, without going too far into the mathematics and every nitty gritty technicality, that acousticians usually love to get stuck into.
So please, if you’re an architect, contractor, developer, planner… or really anyone who occasionally needs to dabble in acoustic design and assessments… then read on…
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Sound Testing to comply with Part E
There are many sets of Building Regulations requirements which a new or refurbished residential development must meet. One of these, is to achieve a minimum standard of sound insulation performance internally between dwellings. This is an important regulation, as we seek some level of sound privacy from our neighbours, ensuring we can live and sleep in peace.
The specific acoustic performance requirements for new builds and conversions are set within Approved Document E ‘resistance to the passage of sound’, as shown in the table. This relates to sound insulation internally, between residential properties which share a separating wall or floor. Standards for noise ingress from outside (i.e. road traffic) are not covered under ADE and the Building Regulations, with the local planning authority having more of an input into what they consider to be a suitable internal noise level target.
Requirement E1 – on-site airborne sound insulation performance targets for separating (party) walls and floors
|
Separating Element |
Airborne sound insulation DnT,w + Ctr dB (minimum values) |
Impact sound insulation L’nT,w dB (maximum values) |
|
Purpose built dwelling-houses and flats (new build) |
||
|
Walls |
45 |
– |
|
Floors and Stairs |
45 |
62 |
|
Dwelling-houses and flats formed by material change of use (refurbishment) |
||
|
Walls |
43 |
– |
|
Floors and Stairs |
43 |
64 |
|
Purpose built rooms for residential purposes (new build) |
||
|
Walls |
43 |
– |
|
Floors and Stairs |
43 |
62 |
|
Rooms for residential purposes formed by material change of use (refurbishment) |
||
|
Walls |
43 |
– |
|
Floors and Stairs |
43 |
62 |
|
Approved Document E classes ‘rooms for residential purposes’ means a room, or a suite of rooms, which is not a dwelling-house or a flat and which is used by one or more persons to live and sleep and includes a room in a hostel, a hotel, a boarding house, a hall of residence or a residential home, but does not include a room in a hospital or other similar establishment used for patient accommodation. |
||
As shown above, the criteria for refurbishments are slightly more lenient than for new builds. This recognises that it can be more difficult to soundproof an existing structure if it cannot replaced, compared to implementing a construction from scratch.
What is Airborne Sound Insulation and a DnT,w+Ctr?
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Principles of Sound Insulation
What effects sound insulation? What are the parameters in sound insulation? How can I get a high level of soundproofing? A technical in-depth look at the topic of internal sound insulation in buildings.
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