Sound and heat insulation - blog

The ground insulation

How well a house is built and insulated often only becomes apparent after moving in. Those who skimp on the interior finishing of the floor will inevitably pay the price when other tenants move into the house. Because the level of noise in a house is crucial for long-term living quality. Footfall noise can become a burden in the long run, as the resulting noise level should not be underestimated. And what efficient thermal insulation means for heating costs is shown in black and white on every bill.

Possible problems that may occur:

• Footsteps, chairs being moved, loud music and conversations are transmitted to lower or adjacent rooms if the impact sound insulation is insufficient. This works by the body-borne sound being introduced into the building structure and transmitted as airborne sound into the rooms below or next to it.
• Another problem could be that tiled floors are often perceived as "cold to the touch" by users. Especially if there is no underfloor heating or heated rooms beneath the flooring, the floor cools down quickly.

The solution:

• The impact sound insulation mat is a mat only 1.3 mm thick for reducing impact noise in rooms with ceramic floor coverings. In addition to improving room acoustics, the mat reduces the feeling of cold feet without impairing the effect of underfloor heating. The 4-layer construction with a combination of top and bottom fleece, a special quartz sand/EVA mixture and a high-strength special fabric opens up a wide range of applications in residential, commercial and industrial areas.

How should insulation be done?

Ideally, the work should be carried out when a new floor covering is to be laid anyway or if you want to carry out a renovation. Which insulation material is the right one for the interior construction of floors depends on the requirements of the building and the floor used. Our sound and heat insulation mat from DURAL is ideally suited for use in residential, commercial and industrial areas due to its high-quality composition.

What do walking/room noise and impact noise mean?

Walking on hard floors like parquet or laminate almost always creates a walking noise. If you have a carpet as a base, it "absorbs" a large part of the sound and walking noises are hardly or not at all audible. Therefore, footfall noise is the sound that can be heard in the same room.

Impact noise refers to the sound that is perceived as body-borne sound in rooms below or adjacent to the floor when the floor is used. Body-borne sound is the sound that propagates in a solid body. Impact noise is therefore the noise that is perceived in the room below.

Therefore, impact sound insulation primarily ensures that neighbors are not disturbed. Minimizing walking/room noise, on the other hand, is only a comfort factor that serves only to increase living comfort (the noise of one's own steps is perceived less by oneself).

Impact sound insulation for tiles

For the generation of impact noise, the floor covering is of primary interest. Soft floors, such as carpets, absorb a large amount of impact noise, while hard floors, such as tiles, cause a very high and very noticeable impact noise when walked on, if not dampened.

With tiles, which usually transmit impact noise even more easily than other materials, good sound insulation is essential, because you will notice that the sound produced is louder than with other floors, even when stepping on the tile.

Whether you have a new building or want to renovate, our soundproofing mat can also be used for retrofitting floor coverings in older buildings. Ensure that the impact sound insulation is evenly distributed throughout the entire house – if certain rooms are better insulated and others worse, the insulation cannot achieve its full effect.

A tip from us: Pay attention to the different types of tiles when you buy them, because there are already big differences in terms of impact sound insulation.

Regulations for noise protection

For all new buildings, there is the DIN 4109 standard, which regulates all necessary and mandatory soundproofing measures in the construction sector. The older the building, the more difficult it is to meet the strict standards, and even in new buildings, the execution of the prescribed soundproofing is often inadequate from a construction point of view.

In addition to legal regulations, measures within the apartment are also necessary to ensure sufficient sound insulation. To prevent disturbing neighbors, work is done in the area of the floor with so-called impact and airborne sound insulation.

Our sound and thermal insulation mat from DURAL

The The DURAL impact sound insulation mat is designed for indoor use and can be used on a variety of substrates such as wood, concrete, screed, old tile coverings and the like. The good thermal conductivity and absorption of length changes allow installation both over underfloor heating systems and with surface supplementary heating systems installed above the mat. Due to its low thickness, it is ideal for use in renovations where low installation heights are required. The mat is ideally suited for the application of removable coverings made of ceramic tiles and natural stone. AE screeds can be tiled from a residual moisture content of 3%, which can significantly reduce construction time.

Characteristics

The combination of light and soft layers with heavy and hard layers is the basis for the diverse properties of the impact sound insulation mat.

• Soundproofed to the substrate.
• Impact noise reduction of up to -14dB
• Improving room acoustics
• Good thermal conductivity, ideal for underfloor heating.
• Polyester fleece – Quartz sand/EVA mixture - Polypropylene fabric, Polyester fleece
• Stress-relieving and pressure-stable
• Only 1.3 mm thin
• Free of PVC and Halogens
• Difficult to ignite / Not easily flammable

The properties for impact sound insulation are certified with a test certificate from the Material Research and Testing Institute Leipzig/Germany.

You can find instructions on how to lay the mat in the product description.

Notes:

In general, the generally accepted rules of technology must be observed!

For all products/materials: The suitability for mechanical and chemical stress must be carefully checked in each individual case before laying the mat. Protect material from prolonged exposure to sunlight.

If you should have any further questions, we will gladly help you!

Best of luck!

the team from Everything for Tiles