Expanding foam

[ozwinner]

Hello Gentlemens.

Here is an idea I have in my head.......................
I need to sound insulate between two bedrooms that are already there.
The walls have plaster board on them leaveing a 100mm cavity.
Two thoughts come to mind, rip off the plaster, install the insulation, then replaster, or..............putting in expanding foam that comes in a pressure can.
You know the stuff, Space Invader and the like.
I could drill a series of holes and squart in the foam.
I saw a simular thing done in England to insulate the cavity in brickwork.
You drill holes up the wall and inject the foam from the bottom
( bottom of the wall, you weirdos ), once the foam reaches the next row of holes you stop, when it is dry/set you continue.
Now the things I need to know.
Is the expanded foam flamable when set?
Which in your opion is the easiest?
Was Michael Jackson realy married to the Presley Kid, if so, WHY?
I also thought of putting a second skin of plaster board on the wall, will that help?
The only reason I am thinking of doing this, is because my son is on the computer in the next room and I can hear him pounding away at the keys, yes, he has a soft touch key board.
Oh and now he has a girl stay over now and again, also pounding away.

Cheers, Al

[Bob Willson]

I worked for an engineering firm that used foam to insulate refrigeration coils. The stuff they used came as a two part mix and would certainly have been much cheaper than buying little cans of foam. (These cans are horrendously expensive)

You will also need to be certain that the walls are well anchored as the foam exerts a considerable amount of pressue. It also becomes quite hot whilst the chemical processes are taking place.

Yes, it is still flammable, even when set.

The second skin will certainly help, but not nearly as much as the foam. The second skin would also benefit considerably from having a second air space to add extra insulation. ie fixed to more battens rather than straight on to the existing wall.

Maybe putting the skin of plaster over your son would be the best way to achieve peace and quiet.

[echnidna]

Al,
You will probably end up with distorted plasterboard because of the pressure the foam creates. It is very hard to control. One mistake and you have a big job to fix it.

You could drill holes and pour bean-bag beans into the cavity thru a funnel. You would then have a few smallish holes to patch up.
You would need to have a hole between each pair of studs above and below the row of noggins.

If you go with the canned foam just use a real little bit at a time.

[jackiew]

You can get some ideas from ... obviously they are pushing their own products

http://www.acoustop.com

http://www.insulationsolutions.com.au

http://www.jameshardie.com.au/buildi..._sub.asp?id=17

you have to ask yourself whether the foam is going to give out any gasses which are going to make you sick. Foam insulation ( for heat not noise ) in the uk got a really bad reputation. Plus if you spray it in you can't really guarantee how good the coverage is ... ok it comes out of the line of holes but are there going to be gaps that you can't see ... plus as already pointed out the stuff puts out quite a bit of pressure and from my own experience the wretched stuff keeps on expanding well past the point when you expected it to stop ( And you might need to do a bit of experimentation ... just cos it fills gaps will it actually deaden the noise ... you don't want to spend a fortune on the stuff only to find it doesn't work.

The other thing to be aware of is that sound doesn't travel just through the walls ... if you've got a wooden floor with a space underneath, or a roof space over, or a shared chimney breast between the rooms then sound will travel that way as well.

You could always encourage him to stay round the girlfriends instead.

btw Al some of us aren't gentlemens ( and I suspect some of the men aren't either )

[ozwinner]

Originally posted by jackiew

btw Al some of us aren't gentlemens ( and I suspect some of the men aren't either )

Yeah I know,
I was doing Con the fruiter.
Hello Gentlemens, and how are you today?
From the Skitshow.

Cheers, Mrs Doughtfire

[jackiew]

... and yet another cultural reference passes straight over my head without being recognised ... :confused:

[ozwinner]

It was a comedy show with this fake Greek fruiter, called, funnily enough Con. His opening line was................. Hello Gentlemens and how are you today, in this realy fake accent.
Everyone was a gentlemens.

Give it time Jackie, it gets easier with time, Ive been here mmmmmmmm, bloody hell, well the last time I lived in Manchester was in 1980.
Time flys when your haveing fun.

Cheers, Al the Mancuniun.

[q9]

Install a one way mirror in the wall instead. I bet all late night noise stops thereafter.

[Cliff Rogers]

G'day.

Cheap way out... chuck son out...

If he won't go, knock the wall down, then you yell at him everytime he turns on the light or makes a noise.... he'll leave.

[journeyman Mick]

Al,
The expanda foam is an expensive option and if you go for the two pack mix will be slightly cheaper but a whole lot messier. I believe that loose polystyrene beads (bean bag filling) would work better anyway as the particles are not firmly bonded, making a less continuous path for vibration to travel through. If you want to go to the trouble and expense of extra sheeting I would suggest a second wall built 10mm in front of the existing. From memory I think there is a plasterboard available which is specifically for sound control.

Mick

[MrFixIt]

Originally posted by ozwinner
I need to sound insulate between two bedrooms that are already there.
The walls have plaster board on them leaveing a 100mm cavity.
Two thoughts come to mind, rip off the plaster, install the insulation, then replaster, or..............putting in expanding foam that comes in a pressure can.

Hi Al

How about, as a third thought? contact one of the local blow-in ceiling insulation companies and have them come and blow-in some of the material they use in the ceiling.

We had it done in the ceiling of our rental property and when I went to check the quality of their work, talking in the roof space was like talking in a soundproof room.

Oops, I was assumimg here that there were TWO walls, On re-reading your message I see that you mean ONE (dividing) wall that is a timber frame wall. Hmmm? Well it (the blow in stuff) still could work, though the application may be a little difficult. A few small (well medium?) holes toward the top of each "cavity" created by the studs and nogins?

Another alternative that could work sufficiently well for you, would be to apply some "carpet" type material or partition material on the boys side of the wall.

Note! Too good a job of soundproofing may cause the boy to start pounding the girl instead of the keyboard

Regards

Peter

[ivanavitch]

If there is anything more embarassing than a mother hearing her son go for it in the next room.. it's a son hearing his mother.

Explain the birds and the bees. When little birds are ready to nest, they get their own nest. A beehive has only one queen.

John Scott

[soundman]

Moove him into the garden shed & call it the love shack!!!!

[gemi_babe]

Hi Al,

I was wondering if you have had a result with your question?

I have been thinking about ripping off the fibro sheeting in my bathroom to insulate, but if you have a solution that has worked, I'm keen to hear it.

cheers,
Gemi

[ozwinner]

Hi

I was talking to a sound insulation expert, and he suggested another skin of plasterboard is as good as sound proofing as you can expect to get.
So I have done nothing at this stage.

Al