Semi detatched houses noise from next door.

[jimbo84]

Thought I’d draw from the broad range of knowledge/experience on here.

We currently live in a 1900-1910 built terraced, it may aswell have no walls they’re that poor at stopping sound, that is no exageration either.

I’ve done it up which involved a bit of soundproofing which improved things but it’s still bad. I’ve lived in flats in the past which were all bad for stopping sound transmission. Grew up in a 1930s approx semi built from accrington brick, pretty good at soundproofing but not great (mum still lives there).

We’ve been looking at moving. There’s a nice estate near us but they are new(ish) builds, built around 2011/13, about 50 of them, Not done by one of the big developers, a private builder according to the estate agent’s speal.

Question is, Are houses of this age good for resisting sound between them or no better than the semis/terraced of the past?

Admitedly I’m a little over sensitive to noise from neighbours due to past experiences and not expecting to not be able to hear anything but until I can afford my own island (with large workshop) I was wondering what the newer ones are like?

 

[steviec_lj]

It’ll be as bad if not worse than what you’re in now.

Rented a new build back in 2011ish. You could hear the neighbors TV, walking up the stairs, toilet flush, and the bed squeaks

Lasted 4 months before we moved out

 

[jimbo84]

Cheers Steve, it sounds similar to how we are now.

 

[jimbo84]

I was hoping that with sound regs they’d may be better.

At least with a semi it’s only from one side and not both like a terraced.

 

[julianf]

When we re-did our bedroom, i put up some of that high density plasterboard. Nothing wrong with the old plaster, but, whilst the room was in disaray, i thought i may as well.

It (and blocking up all the holes / fire bridges under the floor) made a massive difference, for not a lot of cost, both financially, and room space. Well worth doing.

Photos -

 

[colnerov]

So, no squeaky bed noises getting out of there then?

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I looked at an isolating sound bar system which basically aims to stop the direct transmission of sound waves....there was also a high density rubber system. I even looked at lead lined plasterboard (the stuff they use to isolate X-ray rooms in hospitals!).

In the end I decided that the cost + loss of room wasn't worth the trouble...I came to the conclusion that the only sure solution would be to buy a detached house!

 

[stuvy]

We’re in a detached and when I rented a room off a mate it was mid terrace 2 up 2 down and had no endnof heated debates with the neighbour over there stupid dogs barking. You could hear her say stuff like are you having a barking half hour

 

[maz0]

If your sensitive to noise then just buy a detached, or forever be at the mercy of your neighbours manners.

 

[optima21]

it all depends on the construction of the property, my house was built from bricks in 1948, the only time I ever hear any noise is when my neigbour is screaming at the football on tv when someone has scored.

 

[hunter27]

We have this trouble with our elderly neighbours (semi detached), we do get on with them okay but he is in a wheel chair now so they fitted laminate floors fitted everywhere and as he is deaf as a post their TV is on very LOUD for around 17 hours a day (they only go to bed around 2AM.

They had a new boiler fitted a few years ago that backs on to our bedroom wall that also runs to 2AM!!!

In our lounge and dining room we battened the dividing wall, lined with a layer of 15mm acoustic plaster board then 5mm acoustic rubber sheet and another layer of 15mm acoustic plasterboard on that. I also refitted their boiler on rubber mounts.
It has improved things a little bit but not much. My wife would move tomorrow its just me and my garages/workshop that is the fly in the ointment.
Pete

 

[daleyd]

Our first house was a late 80's early 90's semi, with the stairs running up the partition wall. It was an absolute nightmare as you could hear every time someone went up and down the stairs, as well as hearing just about everything else - the first people that lived next door were a Chinese couple and their kids, it was terrible as we couldn't even understand what they were arguing about.

I think the people that moved in afterwards were champion Flamenco dancers or something as that's what it sounded like they were practicing every time they went up/down the stairs...

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I was going to use these....they are called resilient bars. Basically the way they work is to isolate the plasterboard wall from the main house wall and therefore reduce the sound transmission through the wall....you do lose some of your room though!

https://www.british-gypsum.com/products/gypframe-rb1-resilent-bar?tab0=0

I seem to remember you basically need a dense material against the wall....either acoustic rubber or a heavy plasterboard.....then the resilient bars and then hang your plasterboard off the bars. In fill between the bars with sound absorbing material....like rockwool.

I never actually got around to doing it but I did a lot of reading....in the end the renters decided to move....they used to have parties with 25 people where they would clap and dance in unison....can you imagine that racket at midnight!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I think we just need a new law....if you get 3 noise complaints upheld against you then it's compulsory for you to fit sound insulation 1 foot thick to your side of the dividing wall....that would make people more considerate!

 

[Farside]

it all depends on the construction of the property, my house was built from bricks in 1948, the only time I ever hear any noise is when my neigbour is screaming at the football on tv

Ditto. I had a mid-terrace built around 1890. The end terrace next door was an office, so no noise from there anyway, and the only time my other neighbour complained was shortly after I moved in I was banging nails into the stairs, which ran up the party wall. In four years, I never heard anything from them, nor him from me after that. Normal activities were not transmitted at all, yet the construction didn't seem all that special, just a double-thick brick wall between the properties, as far as I know.

when someone has scored.

Not even then.

 

[fixerupper]

Up here in the mountains of eastern Crete I live a semi detached house , the other side is a half acre empty plot. When I first bought the place I dry lined the party wall with 2x2 timber and hi density foam board and then T&G over that I thought is was a good idea 'cos I was doing up the place using power tools , playing music while working ..and nextdoor had two teenage kids who had the TV on all day ....I got on fine with the Mum and Dad I was having a glass of something with them one evening the first summer I was there and they tell me they actually live full time at the other end Crete and only come this end to visit elderly relatives ...Since that summer more than ten years ago I have only seen them a handful of times ...``was it something I said ?

 

[rtbcomp]

...
They had a new boiler fitted a few years ago that backs on to our bedroom wall that also runs to 2AM!!!
...
Pete

They may be contravening party wall regulations if they put it up without referring to you first.

I quite surprised about problems with Victorian terraces, I'm looking at this sort of property myself. If I consider semi-detached or end-terrace I make sure there's a bedroom away from the party wall.

 

[fixerupper]

The house we had in the UK before we moved here was a three story stone built victorian terrace ,we had Musicians one side and Bikers the other... never had any problems with noise....

 

[roofman]

Roofman living in detached homes since 1989 for all the above reasons and because i am just as noisy

 

[jimbo84]

Thanks to everyone for their opinions.

A detached would be ideal but limits choices round here.

I used some of those resilient bars and they’re pretty good. The sound proofing mainly consisted of building thick stud walls in the alcoves on the walls that had chimney breasts and battening and boarding the other walls, all with rockwool insulation in then rockwool shoved inbetween the joists at the walls under the upstairs floor. Helped quite a bit but still bad. Used the soundblock plaster board on stud walls and dot and dabbed direct to the brick in the bathroom and wall in the back bedroom where space was too tight to batten and insulate. The soundbock board is totally useless where it’s dot and dabbed find it’s best when isolated from the wall via studding or resilient bars.

We’re not moving due to sound alone but it’s something we’d like to try and avoid issues in any new place we move to although to be fair it’d have to be pretty bad to be any worse.