Is noise from your garage driving you and your family crazy?
Whether you’re just trying to create a hobby or are a serious carpenter, the truth is that noise from your garage will affect not only you but also those living upstairs. Below are some tips from Andrew Mat to help you prevent noise from affecting those above you.
Noise Reduction for your Garage Door
A screeching, clattering garage door can thwart a discreet arrival or getaway. Additionally, a noisy garage door makes it difficult to arrive or leave but also can be a big source of pain for your family and neighbors. If there’s anyone living above or next door, they will likely appreciate some relief from the constant noise.
Lubrication
As simple as it might sound, lubricating your door can play a vital role in dealing with excess garage door noise and vibrations and reduces metal to metal contact. Lack of proper lubrication makes the door vulnerable to rust.
So it’s advisable to lubricate all the moving parts of your garage door as part of your annual maintenance program. Additionally, you should use lubes recommended by the door manufacturer.
Opener replacement
We all know that chain driven garage doors are known for their reliability and durability. But despite this, they’re also known to be noisy especially after years of use. While you can reduce noise by keeping the chain properly lubricated, there’s only one way you can go to ensure that you deal with the noise problem.
You can replace your old chain-driven opener and a durable belt driven unit. This is because belt driven openers are quieter and produce less vibration compared to their counterparts.
But there are several factors you should keep in mind when comparing chain driven and belt-driven garage doors.
First, belt-driven openers are expensive, but they tend to have a shorter lifespan compared to the chain-driven openers. But when it comes to noise reduction, belt-driven openers are worth the investment.
Roller replacement
Almost all garage doors come with steel rollers. While steel rollers offer durability and are cheap, they are also very noisy. The noise from the clatter of these rollers especially on a steel track becomes unbearable over time especially when they develop flat spots due to wear and tear.
Replacing the existing steel rollers with nylon rollers can significantly help reduce noise. Compared to steel, nylon is quieter and is also durable. Additionally, some nylon rollers have sealed bearings and don’t require regular lubrication- so you won’t need to maintain them regularly.
DIY Garage Soundproofing
DIY soundproofing is much cheaper compared to hiring a professional, and you will be amazed by the results. Below are some of the ways you can soundproof your garage.
Room within a room
You can build a room within a room in simple steps. You will only need to hang three layers of walls inside your garage to make it impossible for sounds to escape from your garage.
First, hang drywall from the inside walls of your garage and add a layer of 4-inch fiberglass, then add a second layer of drywall and then a second layer of insulation. Lastly, finish the inside of the room with the third layer of drywall.
It’s important to frame the drywall using wooden pallets. Most warehouses give them away when they are no longer needed.
Hang some thick sheets
Your garage may already have poster, tapestries or any other material hanging from the wall. Hanging sound insulating sheets can play a big role in reducing noise pollution in your garage. Moving blankets are available in a variety of designs and shapes.
One manufacturer of sound insulating blankets estimates that the product can reduce up to 70% of high and mild noises generated in a room.
So depending on the size of your garage, this may be expensive compared to constructing walls but its much cheaper compared to a soundproof practice studio.
You can find out more about how to sound proofing works here.
Try resilient channels
Sound waves in a garage travel out when they hit the studs that offer support to the frame of a room. In garages with drywall, the sound waves pass through it and hit the wooden supports. Instead of adding multiple walls, you can try resilient channels between the frame of the outermost interior wall and the drywall.
Resilient channels are a type of metal beams that are placed parallel to the floor. They are spring loaded, and they hold in place the sheetrock to the studs. So these channels only affix the garage drywall to the wooden studs without the two coming into contact, and as a result, the drywall absorbs the sound energy and doesn’t transfer it to the wall frame.
Try combined methods
Combining different soundproofing methods can reduce noise that escapes from your garage. For example, resilient channels reduce up to 16/18 decibels while multiple walls prevent more than 26 decibels. A combination of these two methods can improve your noise-proofing by 30 decibels.
Hopefully that helps you to sound proof your garage to an acceptable level.