TECHNICAL FEATURE | SOUND REDUCTION AND MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENCES
A QUIETER PLACE How to reduce noise in multi-family residences
As population density increases in urban centers, growing numbers of people are living in multi-family residences. Although these multi-story buildings solve many urban planning issues, they are not without their own challenges. Residents often complain about sound transmission from their upstairs neighbors. MAPEI has developed several solutions for mitigating such noise. We sat down with Jeff Johnson, MAPEI’s Business Manager for Floor Covering Installation Systems, to discuss some of the options. What new technologies or developments in adhesives and installation products are suited to installations in multifamily buildings? In terms of adhesives, there is not much new with a specific focus on multi-family applications. What does seem to be more important these days is sound control as the housing market swings away from single-family residences to more multifamily/apartment living conditions. The ceramic tile market has had to deal with acoustic dampening for years, but now we are seeing the need for sound control under 6 RM North America 31 / 2020
LVT as that flooring material continues to take market share and customer preference. When you deal with acoustic dampening, this can sometimes be addressed by a single-step adhesive application but most commonly involves some form of sound mat. Generally speaking, double-stick-type sound mat installations will have better ability to reduce sound transmissions over single-step adhesive installations. MAPEI has recently introduced new installation materials for acoustic dampening in the form of Mapesonic™ RM and Mapecontact™ SRT. Mapesonic RM is a proprietary reground rubber membrane that is provided in several thicknesses useful for a wide variety of flooring types. Mapecontact SRT is a high-moistureresistant, sound-reducing, double-sided foam-core tape that provides immediate utilization of the floor once installed and excellent sound reduction. What different requirements, if any, do multi-family building installations warrant from the installation products used (compared with another commercial or residential project, for instance)?
