You could be one of the many people who get complaints from their neighbors about throwing an indoor party with a massive sound system, or just playing your favorite music loud. Your neighbors may wonder why you have to set up a sound system so loud for a birthday party, why you like to turn up the volume when listening to music, or why your band always likes to practice late at night, etc. They wonder why you don’t use headphones, or host the party somewhere else instead of your house so it doesn’t disturb their sleep or relaxation at home. They may understand better if you are a teenager, but what if you are not a teenager or are the parents of your teenage sons or daughters? Your neighbors expect you to respect them, and they may not be able to tolerate loud music coming from your house. They might even call the police and you probably don’t want that to happen. However, you or your teens don’t want to give up loud music just because of a neighbor’s complaint. There is something you can do about it, which is installing soundproofing foam that will allow you to blast your music without disturbing the neighbors.
If you need to soundproof your music studio for band or singing rehearsals, you’ll need a decent quality of foam, as you want the best acoustics in the studio. You can look for these foams by browsing the internet or simply by going to stereo stores as they usually have many options of sound deadening foams with different prices. If you simply want to soundproof your house so that if you have a party the noise stays in, or if you want to block noise from outside your house, you will need a different foam than what is used in a studio. The thickness of the foam also depends on the amount of sound reduction you need. If you just want to reduce traffic noise outside your house, you don’t need a very thick foam. On the other hand, if you need a type of foam that can completely block out noise from any direction so you can host an indoor party without creating a nuisance in your neighborhood; you’re going to need a much thicker foam. Since the price of foam for studios and homes is usually not cheap, you will have to be willing to pay a reasonable price.
However, if you’re not willing to spend a lot of money on soundproofing, or simply can’t afford it, you can make your own soundproofing using cheap materials. Fibrous paper pulp or foamed plastic egg cartons, for example, have been widely used as an inexpensive alternative to soundproofing. You can start collecting fibrous or foamy egg cartons, as they can work as basic soundproofing. Basically, the bottoms of these egg cartons are similar to acoustic foam. They will absorb and break the reflection of sound from flat surfaces. You can install the foam by tying the foam bottoms together and install them on the walls and ceiling to work as a sound barrier. You can glue each foam square one by one or connect them with masking tape. The result will be a stringy or foamy egg carton cover that is installed in a way that can be installed and removed with relative ease.
As another alternative to acoustic foam, you can also use mattress or furniture foam. It works well as soundproofing, similar to egg cartons. Rolled memory foam mattresses are also more affordable. These unrolled mattresses will absorb and deaden sound. This will probably be more effective than egg cartons since the foam is thicker. The use of these mattresses will also benefit you in terms of size, lightness and compactness. You can easily install them on the wall and ceiling as they are soundproof and installation is easier than egg boxes. In addition to memory foam rolled mattresses, it’s also a good idea to use regular old mattresses, especially if you have old, unused mattresses that you have no idea what to do with or how to dispose of. Such mattresses can be obtained at thrift stores like Goodwill. Just lean them against walls and even the floor and they will absorb and deaden sound. Since it can be difficult to fit them to the ceiling due to their increased weight, you may want to use other forms of soundproofing alternatives for that part of the room, such as carpeting. If you run out of old mattresses or memory foam rolled mattresses, as you may not have enough to cover one side of a wall, you can always mix it up with other soundproofing alternatives like egg cartoons or rugs. Carpet can also be used as inexpensive soundproofing, although its effectiveness depends on the thickness and type of carpet. Shag-type rugs can absorb sound better than a thick weave like you’d find in an office. Carpet padding, typically installed under some types of carpet, may actually be better than carpeting and will be less expensive. You can combine rugs with old mattresses or other soundproofing foams, with the rug installed on the floor and ceiling, and the mattress materials installed on the walls. In fact, you can also use various fabric items to get the job done, such as blankets, quilts, or curtains, and the thicker and heavier they are, the better. Although these may not work as well for soundproofing, they can still get the job done quite well. A perfect solution would be a curtain from an old theater, but such heavy curtains are not easily found. Basically any solid, smooth exposed surface will accentuate and reflect sound back into the room echoing and repeating. Parallel walls make things worse, but this is not easily changed. Therefore, if you cover these surfaces with soft materials such as those described above, they will absorb and muffle sound.
In general, with these suggestions you can start your own DIY project by creating your own soundproofing. The project will only cost a little money or possibly none at all. In fact, you can have a little fun doing the project. However, if you have the money to buy decent sound deadening foam, then you can start shopping for it, at least to compare prices. With the knowledge of what type of foam you are going to need, you will get something that really suits your needs best.