If you’re tired of hearing your noisy neighbors, soundproofing your apartment floor is the best thing to do. It’s obvious that an apartment is one of the noisiest places to settle. There is noise coming from couples arguing, babies crying, loud music playing, and the list goes on.
You can eliminate all these disturbing noises by learning how to soundproof the floor of your apartment. By doing so, you’ll have the ability to reduce vibration that’s created by daily noise, and also block out all unwanted noise.
In this article, we’ll be looking at the best way for you to make your apartment as quiet as possible. We’ll also be looking at all the products you’ll need to improve the acoustics of your home.
How to Soundproof a Floor in an Apartment
1. Use Interlocking Floor Mats
If you have a great memory, you may remember using puzzle-like mats on the floor when you were going to elementary school. These mats are actually used for soundproofing purposes, too, and are great for combating unwanted noise in your apartment.
If you want to avoid any hassle with something that’s quick and easy, then you can simply use these interlocking mats by laying the first one down onto the corner of your apartment floor and starting work from there. You should repeat the process until you’ve completely covered the floor’s surface.
Aside from being easy and quick, using interlocking mats is also one of the cheapest methods you might choose when it comes to soundproofing your floor.
The main disadvantage is that interlocking mats are not the best option in terms of blocking every single bit of noise. Even though these mats are quite effective, that doesn’t mean that they’ll work as total and complete sound blockers. For an optimum result, it’s best if you combine this method with others on this list.
2. Use an Acoustic Floor Underlayment
Another effective method you should consider using is acoustic floor underlayment. This involves a very thin layer of insulation that’s usually placed underneath the carpet to help provide an effective barrier that can prevent sound from traveling out of your home.
When applying an underlayment, it’s best if you do so on top of a bare vinyl floor or hardwood, if possible.
One of the best types of underlayment on the market for soundproofing your apartment floor is what’s known as laminated flooring underlayment. This is made with a vapor barrier and is 3 millimetres thick, making it great in terms of absorbing sound.
The installation process is pretty easy: All you have to do is simply unroll it on the floor and cover the floor’s entire surface. You can use a nail to secure the material to the edge of your floor, if necessary. You should cut off any extra material from the corners and use it in areas that may not be covered correctly.
3. Use Carpet Padding
Using carpet padding is one of the most common ways of padding floors; it’s extremely effective when it comes to soundproofing, and it also does a good job of providing thermal insulation.
Most apartments tend to come with carpeting, and if your apartment has it, then you can use carpet padding underneath your existing carpet. Although these carpets are very efficient in their own right, they work like magic when they’re layered underneath a traditional carpet.
You can easily install them by rolling out the material until it meets both ends of your floor, cutting it at the edges and then securing it with glue or nails. In order to get the job done, you’ll need a few tools, and due to the fairly heavy weight of the carpet, you may need a friend to help; this will make the installation process much easier.
There are many different types of carpet padding available on the market today, but the one I recommend getting is the Premium Grip Rug Pad. This type of pad is very durable and slip-resistant, which will make the application process go more smoothly.
4. Install Mass-Loaded Vinyl
This is considered one of the most effective materials available when it comes to soundproofing. You can achieve great results by simply installing Mass-Loaded Vinyl underneath your carpet!
It’s made of a dense, rubber-like material with adhesive on one side. It’s also a versatile soundproofing acoustic barrier that’s been specifically designed to reduce noise transmission through floors, walls and ceilings. It’s even used to reduce unwanted noise and improve acoustics in cars.
You can start the installation process by laying down the MLV and then placing rubber on top of it. Next, add a thick carpet on top of the two layers to combat the noise in your apartment. Sandwiching the three layers together should work quite well, because rubber is already a dense material. You can simply use a few nails to attach the MLV securely to the floor.
If you want to get the most out of your soundproofing, then I highly recommend checking out this Soundsulate 2 lb Mass Loaded Vinyl. Many people like it because it’s odorless, it’s thin and will certainly get the job done. If you’d like to learn more about this product, you can reach out to the retailer from which you purchase your MLV.
5. Use Green Glue
This is one of the best products out there (in my own opinion) when it comes to reducing noise and vibrations. This product contains a polymeric formula that works its magic when you apply it between two soundproofing materials.
Unlike other soundproofing materials on the market, this one is a bit difficult to install. You can use it on medium-density fibreboard (MDF), plywood, oriented strand board (OSB) and more.
Green glue has the ability to reduce unwanted noise by 70 to 90 percent, which I think is impressive, and you will certainly notice a significant difference. More specifically, it works by converting waves of sound that travel through the air into heat. Not only is it effective, but it’s also highly affordable.
Furthermore, it’s important to note that green glue is eco-friendly and non-hazardous. The only downside is that it smells a bit unpleasant, but this problem can be mitigated.
Learn more about Green Glue here.
6. Get Professional Help
If you aren’t a handy person or you’re just very busy, what you can do is hire a professional (or a group of professionals) to get your soundproofing job done for you. All you’ll need to do is save up some cash in order to purchase the necessary materials and pay the worker(s).
Before you make any changes to your apartment floor, you should make sure you’re able to make adjustments without infringing on anything that may cause conflict between you and your landlord.
In most cases, you should be fine, but I’ve lived in an apartment complex that had very strict rules. Therefore, the best advice is to contact your landlord before you even start looking for ways to soundproof your floors.
Additional Tips
While living in an apartment, you typically won’t have the opportunity to choose the type of flooring you like; basically, you’ll be stuck with whatever flooring the apartment already has. However, if you’re allowed to add your own flooring, this can play a huge role when it comes to combating noise.
For the base layer, the best thing to do would be to add hardwood or tile. This will make adding a soundproof layer or carpet relatively easy. For the top layer, you’ll want a thick, firm carpet that isn’t too spongy.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many different ways in which you can soundproof the floors of your apartment. Carpet padding, acoustic underlayment and interlocking mats are often excellent choices, especially when they’re combined with one another.
In order to reduce as much noise in your apartment as possible, try to make sure there are no gaps between your soundproof flooring and the walls. If you’re concerned about your budget, you can start your soundproofing project by just adding a thick carpet or rubber floor mat.
Even though the installation process is fairly easy, it is probably best if you ask a friend to help you, and if you’re too busy to do it on your own, keep in mind that you can hire a professional.
image: Kevin Jarrett