We recently wrote a post for BrickUnderground.com on our experience soundproofing the floors on the third floor rental unit.
SOUNDPROOFING FLOORS: A BROWNSTONER’S STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE
by Angela Tiffin and Andrew Nichols | 11/24/14 – 11:59 AM
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
- 2 x 8 stock lumber
- ¾ BC plywood
- sound insulation
- subfloor construction adhesive
- coarse thread wood screws
- sound dampening underlayment
- finish floating flooring system
Check out the full post on BrickUnderground.com.
Brownstone Cyclone 
I’m curious, did the roxul safe n’ sound, plywood subfloor, and floating laminate hardwood do the trick for sound abatement? For both footsteps and for airborne sounds like TV, talking, etc. Also, what is below the roxul – drywall attached to the bottom of the floor joists?
Thanks!
It has worked to a degree. Airborne sounds like TV and talking are completely abated. The footsteps are lessoned but not completely. If someone is wearing heels or drops something we hear it pretty loud. We also put rubber pads under the washing machine feet the get no noise from that.
And yes the roxul sits snuggly between the joists with just the drywall and pressure against the joists supporting it. If you’re planning to do a similar installation I recommend putting in some insulation supports. They are basically just little metal straps which hold up the insulation. I didn’t know about them when I did the installation but they take some or all of the load the roxul puts on the ceiling.
Thanks for the update, and the extra installation tip. I guess foot fall noise is difficult to manage… I wonder how much thicker underlayment you would need beyond the ‘step above’ you use!
I think the only way to eliminate that is to attach the ceiling to noise dampening springs. If it is are attached directly to the joists there will be some vibrations.