![]() Frequencyĭifferent sounds are blocked more effectively than others. Even the little space between a door and the floor can impact the overall rating. Think about windows and doors for sure, but also smaller things like air ducts and ventilation systems. Airborne sounds can travel through pretty small areas that are vulnerable. Vulnerable AreasĪ wall might mostly be soundproof, but it just takes a weak point or two for the STC rating to go down. Ratings will differ quite a bit between walls made of concrete or drywall, and even between concrete and drywall options of different thicknesses. The material and thickness of the actual wall have a huge impact on the STC rating. The different thickness of the drywall will certainly raise the STC rating of the drywall.ĭuring the examination process, there are three important factors to keep in mind when determining the STC rating of a wall. Here’s a video describing the difference between 1/2″ and 5/8″ drywall. Simply subtract the second number from the first number to get transmission loss. Make sure that the sound remains at the same frequency, and stays in the same place. The next step is to go to the other room and measure on the side of the wall. For the most accurate reading, take the measurement right up against the wall. The first reading is the sound in the same room as the sound source. After all, real-life performance is usually why people worry about it in the home or office.Īll that is really needed is a device that measures in decibels to take readings into different spots. The measuring process is fairly easy for people who want to do things on their own instead of going off of estimates. That can be good news for people who want to take care of everything themselves because they can virtually start from scratch. In other cases, there is so little soundproofing done already that the STC rating is very low. In some cases, there might be limited options that actually work. Only people who know the specifics can then take the next step towards picking out the right soundproofing material. Is the wall made of drywall, concrete, or something else? What is the spacing like with the studs on the wall, and what are they made of? Does the wall already have a resilient channel, or does one need to be added? Measuring the STC rating of drywall first means looking at the specifics. ![]() This is a pretty straightforward process, but it becomes trickier when walls are pretty much the same in thickness, but different material. Thicker walls have more mass, and that leads to a higher STC rating. An extremely thin wall is usually going to do a pretty poor job of blocking sound and therefore have a low STC rating. It is common knowledge that no two walls are exactly the same. This might seem a little difficult to do, but as long as a person has somewhat of an idea on how the ratings work, it is a pretty straightforward process. Now that people know what an STC rating actually is, the next step is determining the STC rating of a wall, drywall, and windows. Is the average amount of noise stopped at a total of 18 frequencies so people get an understanding of both high and low-frequency blocking? STC Rating Chart Determining STC Rating of Wall, Drywall, and Windows STC Rating of Drywall Since every product uses the same numbers and scale, it will allow people to understand the exact impact as much as possible. STC ratings are pretty much the only way to compare and contrast different products out there accurately. For people not familiar with the rating, it might be best to break it down by what a typical family might here at home, depending on the STC rating. It roughly measures the reduction in decibels to noise thanks to the material added. This provided a uniform way to compare different types of materials as easy as possible. STC ratings first popped up in the 1960s, as more and more people were looking to reduce sound transmission as much as possible between rooms at home, businesses, and more. ![]() However, it is still important to know how to determine the STC rating of a wall at home before and after a soundproofing technique is added. Almost always shortened to STC, it is the standard way to measure just how well certain materials are in regards to blocking sound.Ī lot of companies include STC rating numbers, so a person does not have to determine the rating themselves. ![]() It does not take long when shopping for a soundproofing project to come across a reference to a Sound Transmission Class rating.
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