The noise of traffic is a constant hum for many Texans. Squealing brakes, roaring engines, loud music – not exactly pleasant background noise for your home. Long-term exposure to noise pollution can even shorten your lifespan. Fortunately, there’s a way to reduce traffic noise at home, as much as 95% depending on the vehicle. The road is here to stay – so you must make a change. That change is soundproofing.
Why Don’t Windows Block Traffic Noise?
Soundproofing a room is a holistic affair. Improving one area may bring some benefits, but soundwaves can easily enter a room through any gap. Windows are the worst offender of this – they leak a lot of noise, as they are generally built for energy efficiency rather than acoustics.
To prevent sound from passing through a window, you need three things:
Sufficient mass – such as thick panes of glass
Perfect sealing – making sure there are no gaps around the window
Air gaps – inside of a soundproofing solution, air gaps are good, as they help reduce the energy being transmitted
Old windows only have a single pane of glass. This means they lack mass and an air gap – and unless they’ve been cared for recently, they’re likely to have very poor sealing. Even modern windows may not have a sufficient air gap, and are likely not thick enough to make much of a difference anyway.
How to Block Out Traffic Noise in your Bedroom
The most efficient way to soundproof a window from traffic noise is with soundproof window inserts. These are like second windows that fit over your existing windows on the interior. Our soundproofing inserts are:
Light construction – renter and HOA friendly
Barely noticeable inside
Totally unnoticeable outside
Slim enough to still use your existing window treatments
Strong enough for up to 95% traffic noise reduction
Traffic noise is a complex blend of sounds from machines of all shapes and sizes. Our soundproof window inserts excel at blocking higher frequency sounds, and are generally good at blocking other frequencies.
Most vehicles on the road are small cars, SUVs, and crossovers, with the occasional pickup truck or minivan. Our inserts block between 75% and 95% of sound from these vehicles.
Highway Noise that is Difficult to Block
Other vehicles, however rare they are on the road, may pose challenges for soundproofing materials. Some of the loudest motorcycle engines can produce a sound that is as loud as a jet engine. Our inserts still block up to 75% of this sound.
Larger motorcycles, 18-wheelers, and heavy construction vehicles pose a different problem. While we reduce the traffic noise from these vehicles by up to 75% as well, the vibrations that they make create something called structural sound, which cannot be blocked by windows. This is especially true for elevated traffic, and may be more noticeable if your home is near a bridge or other structure that rumbles from the traffic.
Reduce Road Noise in your House
You’ve lived with the constant drone of traffic long enough. Submit our quick online form for a free estimate today. Once peace and quiet is your new normal, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.
The way people are doing their jobs is changing. Many companies are now allowing employees to work remotely. Workers are jumping at the chance to trade early morning commutes for a home office. However, it doesn’t take much time for these new work-from-home employees to discover a few problems with the new arrangement, most specifically learning to block out noise.
You may think your home is quiet, but you’ll discover how noisy it really is when you have to concentrate. Studies show that one of the biggest productivity killers is the inability to focus with constant interruptions, or block out noise. While muted continuous background sounds such as the kind found at a café may actually benefit you creatively, loud and sudden sounds do not.
So, before you agree to trade the corporate office for a home office, make sure you have a tranquil place to work and you can effectively block out noise.
How to Block Out Noise In Your Home Office
Choose the Ideal Room For Your Home Office
Although working from the kitchen table or lounging on the sofa in the living room may seem almost like a dream come true, they are horrible choices for places to use as a home office. To do your best work, you need to be far from the hub of activity and have the ability to leave your work where it is at the end of the day. That means being cloistered away in a spare bedroom or another unused space that is naturally quiet. If you live alone, you have more options, but you should still choose your work area wisely.
Create a Work Schedule That Fits Your Needs and Home Environment
Knowing where to work is only a tiny corner of the home office puzzle. But learning when to work is the key to unlocking the complete picture. Select working times when distractions are minimal. That may mean waiting to start your job until after the trash truck rolls through your neighborhood or having a lunch break when the nearby school is on recess.
How to Soundproof Your Windows
Just like doors, windows are one of the weakest links in your home when it comes to protecting against unwanted outside noise. Updating older single-pane windows is usually cost-prohibitive and isn’t as effective a solution as you may think. Hanging heavy curtains in front of windows can help cut down on sounds, but they also prevent light from entering and make your room feel claustrophobic. A much better solution to block out noise is to install soundproof window inserts. These inserts can prevent up to an average of 85% of outdoor noise from getting through without obstructing your view.
Sun & Sound Windows offers homeowners made-in-Texas quarter-inch lamented glass insert panels in various sizes and configurations. Customers can choose from single-piece, double-piece, or operational glass inserts that provide a Sound Transmission Class rating of up to 48 when installed next to a double-pane window. Installation is quick and easy, with the inserts sliding between the existing window and window treatment. Inserts are almost invisible from the outside and come in various frame colors to match interior décor. Several levels of tinting are available to help protect against the sun.
Outdoor sounds are just as intrusive when you are not at work, so why not get the same level of outside noise reduction for every room in your house? Enjoy uninterrupted time with your family and sleep better than ever before when you get soundproof window inserts installed on all of your home’s windows. Give us a call or get a free estimate online.
Don’t wake the baby! Newborns need up to 16 hours of sleep a day, and babies ages one to two need up to 14 hours. Failure to get enough sleep or quality sleep can increase infants’ and children’s risk of diabetes, obesity and depression. Learning how to soundproof a baby room or nursery will help protect them.
Outside noise can easily interrupt your baby’s sleep and negatively impact their development. Lawn equipment such as weed eaters can reach 96 decibels and planes can reach 100 decibels. These noises can cause hearing damage and impact children’s reading ability as well as interrupt sleep.
If you live in a noisy neighborhood with bustling traffic, barking dogs, or nearby trains or planes, you have options to keep your nursery peaceful so you children can get sufficient sleep.
See how to soundproof your baby room to prevent outside noise from waking up your child.
How to Soundproof a Baby Room From The Ground Up
High carpet dampens sound, while hardwood floors amplify it. If carpeting isn’t possible, fluffy or wooly rugs can help. Consider putting large furniture against the walls where the noise is most abundant, such as dressers, changing tables, and chairs. And of course – soundproof your windows.
Get Soundproof Glass Window Inserts and Stop the Noise
Outside noise can easily interrupt your baby’s sleep, and windows are famous for letting outside noise seep in.
Soundproof glass window inserts block up to 75% of low-pitched noises such as airplanes and bass music and 95% of high-pitched noises such as motorcycles and weed eaters.
They don’t change the look of your home, and we can install them in a day with no mess.
Soundproof glass window inserts block outside noise and are less costly than replacing your windows. As an added bonus, since they add layers to your windows, they reduce your energy bill.
Talk to our team today about creating cost-effective window inserts in nearly any custom size or shape. Get the baby room soundproofing you need fast and watch your baby – and you – get a better night’s sleep.
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