Noise reducing materials for a quieter home
Invest in products with great acoustic performance to absorb unwanted sound
Good acoustic design and low noise levels can bring multiple benefits. Whether it’s a better night’s sleep, being able to focus when working from home, or just a quiet space in which to relax, noise reduction and quiet appliances can turn your home into a peaceful sanctuary or, when needs be, a productive workplace.
In a poll of 2,000 UK adults, noise reduction campaigner Quiet Mark found that 82% would like to make their home appliances quieter and 79% said the noise level of a product was a factor when buying it.
The Quiet Mark Acoustic Academy provides a free-to-use online guide to expertly verified solutions for every room in the house, making it easy to find hundreds of brilliantly designed products such as sound absorbing building materials, noise-reduction windows, acoustic panels and much more besides.
In partnership with Quiet Mark
Noise reducing ceilings
Ceilings have a significant impact on how sound affects a space. They can help control noise reflections to aid speech intelligibility, as well as absorbing sound attenuation.
‘Good room acoustics, like great lighting, will improve your experience in almost any building, including the home,’ says Martin Rawlins, head of UK sales at Baswa Acoustic AG. ‘This is why interior acoustics are no longer considered a luxury, but a basic element of human-centric design.’
Produced in Switzerland, Baswa products team high-performance sound absorption with a selection of natural marble plaster finishes. The Baswa Phon Acoustic Plaster System, shown below, and its new Natural Acoustic Plaster System are both Quiet Mark certified.
‘Baswa is most often used as an acoustic ceiling system, but can equally be applied to walls, and even over curves,’ says Martin. ‘The finishes can be tinted to match any colour and we’ve even curated a new range of beautiful hand-applied textures to inspire your creativity.’
BASWA is the Swiss pioneer of seamless acoustic ceilings. Photo: Benjamin Brolet
Noise absorbing plaster
The Armourcoat Acoustic Plaster System also helps to absorb noise and control sound levels in a room. The smooth mineral surface can be seamlessly applied over large flat or curved surfaces such as ceilings and walls to reduce reverberation time (RT) – the time required for the sound to decay in a closed space. It has excellent sound absorption, achieving a top Noise Reduction Coefficient so that you can hear others clearly.
The invisible Armourcoat Acoustic Plaster System helps to balance RT. Photo: Jonathan Banks
Acoustic furniture
BuzziSpace produces inspiring acoustic furniture and panels for open-plan areas in both homes and work places. Its tables, chairs, acoustic panels and accessories create quiet and calm spaces for happy and healthy working.
For one of the least intrusive noise reduction measures, try BuzziSpace’s BuzziProp Acoustic Pendant Lighting. With its wide diameter, the cylindrical design traps sound waves to bounce back-and-forth within its circular body, decreasing noise and optimising acoustic comfort, while delivering a warm ambient light.
To learn more about noise reduction materials and to measure RT in your own room, use the BuzziSpace RT60 App, available for iPhone and iPad via the App Store.
BuzziJet Acoustic Pendant Lighting by BuzziSpace
Acoustic windows
The new generation of KF520 UPVC windows from Internorm is a perfect combination of innovative design and technical know-how. They offer sound reduction up to 46dB, and are Quiet Mark-certified. With a glass sash and a slimline frame, the design evokes the look of fixed windows, and they can let more natural light into your home.
‘Noise is all around us and, as more homes are squeezed into the tightest of spaces, residents are often exposed to increased noise pollution from outside as well as inside the home,’ says Andreas Simmer, managing director at Internorm UK. ‘The company has been manufacturing triple-glazed windows and doors since 1979, recognising that high-performance designs will provide outstanding thermal efficiency, enhanced security and also greatly improve a home’s acoustic performance. Creating quieter, more relaxing living spaces contributes to improving our overall wellbeing and to getting a restful night’s sleep.’
‘Unless you live right next to a busy road or airport, acoustic performance might not always be the main reason for choosing windows. But it is often the one aspect mentioned by our customers as a surprise benefit of selecting Internorm designs. So whether you live in a busy urban area or a rural setting, reducing the noise with triple glazing brings quality of life benefits to your home.’
KF520 UPVC noise reduction windows from Internorm
Noise reducing curtains and blinds
Efficient and quiet, Silent Gliss motorised roller blinds and curtain tracks feature virtually silent operation with programmable intermediate stops and a built-in safety stop. The company’s wide range of systems offers shading solutions for all types and sizes of windows and glazed areas.
‘With an increasing preference for hard surfaces on the floors and walls, we are at risk of experiencing noise overload,’ says Sam Shervill, marketing manager at Silent Gliss UK. ‘Curtains and blinds improve room acoustics by providing a soft, sound-absorbing surface. When designing window treatments with acoustic properties there are two key elements: hardware and fabric.
From the Silent Gliss patented two-component gliders with a soft, quiet inner layer, to a paint formula that minimises friction – even the brushless, silent motors used for the automated systems – each element is carefully designed to contribute to the overall acoustic performance of our systems.’
‘Adding a layer of fabric at a window instantly reduces noise reverberation, thereby improving speech intelligibility,’ says Sam. ‘Curtains offer the highest acoustic benefit due to the larger surface area, but even a roller blind will have a noticeable effect.’
Silent Gliss motorised curtain tracks
Find out more
For more solutions to unwanted noise, visit Quiet Mark’s Acoustics Academy at quietmark.com. You can also find out more about the importance of managing sound with the intriguing Quiet Mark podcast.
