Sound Isolation for new Construction or remodeling (Poor mans float)

This brief narrative is designed to inform people who are building new homes or completely remodeling their existing homes, about a very inexpensive way to get some good soundproofing using basic construction techniques. What we will discuss today is stud and joist assembly isolation. During construction one thing you will notice are bare studs and joists throughout the house (framing). If the contractor has his way, he may add some fiberglass insulation to the cavities, but that's about as far as it will go for soundproofing. One of the biggest culprits for sound transmission is the use of wooden studs and joists. They are commonly used in the majority of new housing developments. What we are suggesting is isolating the studs and the joists with American Isolation tape which just so happens to be 1 7/16" in width (the width of a stud or joist face) and it comes in 100 ft rolls. This is cheap insurance against structural sound transmission through the stud or floor joist assemblies. In my opinion, if all the stud faces and joist faces were lined with this remarkable product prior to the sheetrock being installled, this world would be a much quieter place indeed.
This is the same procedure known as the "Poor mans float". It is something that should be given serious consideration prior to sealing up walls, ceilings and floors with drywall, sub flooring or any wall or ceiling material such as Homasote, Soundboard, or Hardy backer board (cement board).
The isolation tape is a bright green and was designed for this express purpose. Using this tape on all the stud and joist facings is economical and very effective. It is not the same as a full on float using RSIC-1 or Americalips and metal furring channels, but the results will be much better than simply screwing the sheetrock directly into the studs or joists. As far as I'm concerned, this is a no brainer for any new construction or remodel where there are room to room party walls.
One last note, this tape can also be doubled up and only placed on every other stud with the drywall screwed only onto the taped studs or joists. If you think about what I am saying here, doubling the tape on every other stud and only screwing the wall board into that taped studs, would actually give you staggered stud without actually staggering. Pretty neat huh? The less contact the wall or ceiling board has with the wooden structure, the better protection you will have from structural sound transmission. Thanks for reading and learning together, we welcome your opinions and comments.

As Always,

Dr. Bob

e-mail: dr.bob@soundproofingamerica.com
Call toll free (877) 530-0139

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