Comfort & Efficiency
provides excellent acoustic performance."
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"Isover's mineral wool inherently |
Specific solutions You can find practical and economical solutions to almost all noise problems in the built environment. Isover offers specific acoustical systems and products made from mineral wool - the safest, most versatile, cost-effective and user- friendly sound control material ever created. |
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We live in a noisy world. And we are exposed to sound we don't want, need or benefit from 24/7. Isover helps create an environment where our daily lives are free from unwanted sound. Noise from outdoor sources (traffic, planes, barking dogs and neighbor's voices ...) violently attacks our hearing and invades our homes.
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The problem of noise in the built environment
Noise can confuse and impede speech communication. It can be dangerous for us as we walk or drive along city streets. It can also be a physical health hazard. Exposure to high noise levels can cause permanent hearing loss. Noise in the classroom impedes the learning process and threatens our children's educational experience. |
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What is sound? Sound is the perception of vibrations stimulating the ear. Sound is a form of energy travelling away from a vibrating object. |
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How we hear sound Sounds at some frequencies are perceived as louder by the human ear than sounds at certain other frequencies, even when they have the same dB level. This proves two interesting facts about how we hear. 1. The lower the frequency, the less sensitive the human ear is to it, especially sounds below 100 Hz. 2. The human ear is most sensitive to frequencies between 1000 and 4000 Hz.
Steady sound, changing a little or not at all, such as noise produced by a fan. We can become so accustomed to steady sound that we almost cease to hear it after a while, unless it is too loud to ignore. Intermittent sound, occurring more less randomly over a period of time, such as a low flying airplane. Intermittent sounds can be more annoying than steady sounds because they repeatedly interrupt periods of relative quietness. Sudden or impulse sound, such as a gunshot, occurring unexpectedly and usually startling or even frightening the listener. If loud enough, such sounds can cause hearing loss. |
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Noise is unwanted sound Excessive noise is an unacceptable barrier to human well-being and comfort. - Noise produces adverse health effects. - Noise creates permanent stress during |
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There are solutions You don't have to suffer the distracting, tiring and unhealthy consequences of noise. There are practical and economical solutions to almost all noise problems in the built environment. If you'd like to find specific solutions to specific noise problems you need to: Understand the basic physics of acoustics and how noise (unwanted sound) is produced, transmitted and controlled. Get to know the basics of noise control and how to approach the problem from three standpoints: the source of the noise; the path it travels and the point of reception. Discover how to apply, in both new and renovated constructions, the acoustical products and systems that control noise. And learn about mineral wool products that contribute to the creation of acoustically comfortable, productive and healthy environments. Isover's web site has been designed for architects, engineers, contractors, building owners and everyone concerned with solving noise control problems in all types of buildings. It includes information on how to solve specific noise control problems using Isover's acoustical systems and products. Isover's mineral wool products include glass wool and stone wool solutions - the safest, most versatile, cost- effective and user friendly sound control materials ever created. |
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Three ways of noise control There are three basic ways of reducing sound, whether it be at the source, the listener's location, or along the path it travels from the source to the receiver.
2. Block the transmission of the sound waves 3. Absorb the sound waves with a light |
Principles of noise control
Source - Path - Receiver
Sound travels along a path from the source to the receiver. Thus noise control involves three steps: acoustical treatment at the source of noise; acoustical treatment of the path it travels along (everything between the source and the receiver) and acoustical treatment at the receiver end, where the listener is.
The solution to a specific noise control situation often involves considering the problem from one, two or all three of these aspects. However it is almost always best to start at the source. That's where the most effective solutions to noise control are likely to be achieved easily and at the lowest costs.
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Controlling noise at the source Before designing acoustical treatment to reduce noise at the source, you should consider the following : 1. Moving the source to a more distant location or to another area, where its noise will not reach an objectionable level for the listener. 2. Adjusting or modifying the source for quieter operation. If for example the source of noise is a piece of machinery, such as a fan or an engine, it could be operated at a lower speed. 3. Repairing or servicing the noise source. It may be something simple like lubricating gears, tensioning drive belts or tightening loose and vibrating screws or bolts. 4. Mounting the noise source onto a resilient base (such as springs or soft pads) to isolate vibration and thus reduce the structure- borne sound arriving at the listener's location. 5. Replacing the sound source with a quieter one. Modern appliances generally operate much more quietly than older models. If these measures are not practical or, if attempted, fail to give you satisfactory results, the noise source should be enclosed within a housing structure with high sound transmission loss properties (good sound insulation). If an enclosure, with a high sound transmission loss value, is lined with a material with high sound absorption value, the overall sound transmission loss value (sound reduction value) will be increased and the overall noise reduction improved. Obviously, if the noise source is outdoors, in the form of traffic, aircraft, a power lawnmower or any other source over which we have no control, we cannot move, adjust, repair, service, or replace it. All we can do is try to reduce the noise along its path. Or we can improve the situation at the receiver's end, by building or retrofitting high sound transmission loss into the exterior walls and roofs of our homes, offices, and public buildings. It should be emphasized that it is far less costly to design noise control into a structure at the beginning than to retrofit after the building has been constructed. Controlling noise along its path |
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Airborne sound radiates from a source directly into and travels through the air. The sound of traffic, music or voices in the next room or office travels to our ear as airborne sound. Airborne sound between two rooms can be reduced by separating walls and ceilings with high performing sound insulation. |
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Airborne sound inside a room can be reduced by sound insulating and absorbing screens and by putting absorbing material onto ceilings and walls to reduce reflections from hard surfaces. |
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Structure-borne sound travels along a path from a source to the receiver (listener). Sound waves can cause walls, floors and other structures to vibrate. This motion travels through the structure and is re-radiated in the form of noise. The only way to reduce structure-borne noise along its path is to put vibration breaks into the structure (e.g. disconnecting the floors and walls). |
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Sound absorption is the most efficient way to adapt the acoustical quality of a room to its use. The acoustical correction of a room allows you to decrease the sound pressure level of the room and to improve comfort and speach intelligibility. |
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Controlling noise at the receiver's end The first and most practical location for successful noise control is at the source. Other practical solutions to noise control are often those involving treatment of the path, which usually involves multiple components - direct sound, reflected sound and flanking transmission. |
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Temporary noise control Direct ear protection (ear plugs or ear muffs) is often used to protect workers' ears when source and path noise control are not possible. However such measures are often considered as temporary. In most cases permanent noise reduction solutions are installed through effective sound insulation of rooms. |
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Where we need good noise control in buildings 1. Exterior noise coming from road traffic, trains and airplanes. |
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What good acoustics means In a room with good acoustics - Good sound insulation - Noise is strongly dampened by mineral wool. |
Three steps to good sound control
Sound control problems are often very complex. It is often difficult to locate the source and detect the transmission paths of sound. This is what Isover recommends you do if you want to find solutions to your noise problems.
1. Locate the source of noise
The first step in noise control is to investigate the real noise source. Try to move the source further away from the receiver. Adjust or repair the source if it is a piece of noisy equipment, or replace it. If none of these solutions work an acoustically efficient enclosure will have to be designed. Once the true source has been identified, the next step is to measure the noise.
2. Measure the noise
A sound level meter is used to measure the noise level at several locations: at the source; along its path and at the receiver's or listener's end. Sound level meter readings will not only provide sound pressure levels (loudness) at various locations but will also show which frequencies are most offensive to the listener. The data will be helpful when it comes to selecting acoustical materials with sound absorption and/or sound reduction properties best suited to the particular application.
3. Design the solution
Once the noise source has been located, diagnosed and measured, the solution can be designed. If source reduction is not practical, possible or sufficient to lower the sound pressure level at the receiver's position, controlling or reducing the noise along its path, or at the receiver's end should be considered. This means that solving the noise problem may involve acoustic treatment at more than one location.
Designing a solution to a noise problem may involve considering acoustical treatments that provide both sound absorption and sound insulation (sound transmission loss) properties.
Consider taking some valuable advice from a professional Acoustical Consultant. You'll solve your noise problems, save time and money, increase your productivity and restore your comfort.
Efficient solutions
ISOVER offers you a wide range of effective and economically efficient solutions. Isover has ready-to-use products and systems for almost all sound control problems in buildings such as airborne noise, impact noise and sound absorption.
Airborne noise
Airborne noise radiates from a source directly into and travels through the air. The sound from traffic passing our homes, music or voices from the next room or office and a low flying airplane travels to our ears as airborne sound. Isover offers solutions to airborne noise coming from outside through exterior walls or roofs and to airborne noise coming from inside buildings through interior walls, corridors, ventilation systems etc.
Solutions to structure-borne noise
Structure-borne noise (impact noise) travels through solid material usually in direct mechanical contact with the sound source, or from an impact on the material. Examples include footsteps or objects falling on the floor upstairs, a knock on the door or vibrations from loud speakers on the floor. All structure-borne sound must eventually become airborne sound in order for us to hear it. In most noise control situations both airborne and structure-borne sound must be taken into consideration. Isover offers solutions that interrupt or reduce the transmission of structure-borne noise through floors and walls.
Solutions for sound absorption
As sound is a form of energy, sound absorption is the ability of a material to transform acoustical energy into some other form of energy, usually heat. Mineral wool, such as glass wool and stone wool, is an open porous material and an excellent sound absorber. It offers a wide range of possibilities to reduce sound pressure levels and unwanted reflections in a room. Mineral wool is ideal for designing good room acoustics to create your perfect working and living environment.
Comfort and efficiency !