How to Quiet a Noisy House

“Home inspectors often overlook them, and building codes rarely address them, but a home’s moans and groans can drive you crazy. Here’s how to silence some of the noise.

 

You don’t need to suffer from misophonia to be bothered by sounds in your house. While the squeak of an old staircase or thud of a solid door closing may have their charm, unwanted noise can easily become a source of frustration.

 

“There are all kinds of noises that people typically call me about,” said Alan Fierstein, an acoustic consultant and owner of Acoustilog, in Manhattan. “I got a list of about 35 types right here,” he said before rattling off clamor ranging from air-conditioners and street noise to washers and dryers. Professionals like Mr. Fierstein can diagnose and recommend solutions to household noise that can be carried out by contractors. But fortunately many common noise issues have simpler D.I.Y. fixes.

 

Sound is measured in decibels using a logarithmic scale, so relatively small changes can make a noticeable difference. Consider this: A vacuum cleaner at 70 decibels is typically perceived as about twice as loud as a normal conversation at 60 decibels. Context matters, too. A dripping faucet that fades into the background during the day can become maddening at night. Experts like Randall Rehfuss, a Los Angeles-based consultant who specializes in acoustics and vibration with Thornton Tomasetti, said most people notice a change in noise levels of about 3 decibels. Measuring those changes, before and after an upgrade, is easy with one of the many free smartphone apps.

 

Here are some common sources of noise and ways to lower the volume.

 

Outside noise

 

Street noise can come from several sources, like passing traffic, lawn equipment, barking dogs or trash pickup. Velour blackout curtains are an easy D.I.Y. fix. “Typically, your windows are going to be the weak point for sound entry in your wall assembly,” said Mr. Rehfuss. Heavy, velour blackout curtains are fuzzy, to trap sound, and have enough mass to block it from passing into the room.

 

Look for curtains weighing 8 to 16 ounces per square yard. Keep in mind that some panels weigh 10 pounds or more, which might require sturdier hardware, and they’ll also block a fair amount of natural light.

 

Room-to-Room Noise

 

Thunderous footsteps

 

It’s no surprise that covering a hardwood floor with a rug can help with a noisy room, but the key to preventing that sound from reaching the living space below is the padding underneath the rug. “The carpet has more fibers to it, and so it helps the sound within that room feel a little bit more controlled, but for sound isolation, the padding underneath dampens when somebody’s walking or jumping,” said Mr. Rehfuss. Thicker is better, but anything around half-inch thick may create awkward transitions from floor to rug. Opt for carpet padding designed for sound control with a density of about 8 pounds per cubic foot.

 

Overheard voices

 

When it comes to overhearing speaker phone conversations or particularly operatic shower performances, your doors might be the culprit. Hollow-core bedroom doors are inexpensive and, when painted, can look just as good as solid ones, but they lack the mass needed to block sound. If your doorway is a standard size — typically 80 inches tall and 28 to 36 inches wide — and the opening is square (with corners that are 90 degrees), you can replace the existing door with one made from solid wood or medium-density fiberboard (M.D.F.). You, or a handyman, will likely need to transfer the hinge locations from the existing door, chisel matching mortises into the new slab, and, if it’s particularly heavy, add a third hinge for extra support. Door-hanging kits can make cutting accurate hinge mortises and drilling the lockset holes (where the handle and latch go) easier.

 

You can also reduce sound leakage by sealing interior doors as you would exterior ones to stop drafts. After closing and latching the door, give it a wiggle. If it moves back and forth, it’s also letting sound escape. You don’t need a specialty acoustic seal. The peel-and-stick weatherstripping sold at home centers works well, Mr. Rehfuss said, because its neoprene or neoprene-blend foam compresses tightly against the door stop when the door closes. Many door stops — the wood band that the door’s face presses against when closed — are about half an inch thick, so choose a gasket of about the same size. Adding a door sweep also prevents sound from escaping.

 

If the problem persists, it’s likely the fault of thin walls, which are typically left uninsulated, allowing noise to pass from room to room. You could add batt insulation, but it requires opening the wall. If you’re comfortable hanging drywall, products like QuietRock, and other acoustic drywall can help, according to Scott Harvey, acoustical engineer and president of Phoenix Noise & Vibration, based in Frederick, Md. Install it in the room where the noise originates or in the one receiving the collateral damage.

 

Plumbing racket

 

Noisy pipes

 

Unless your home’s main waste line is cast iron, there’s a chance you hear water rushing through the pipes whenever someone upstairs flushes the toilet. While unearthing a waste line buried inside a wall isn’t practical, exposed pipes — like those in a basement you plan to finish or a laundry room next to a playroom — can be made quieter. Mr. Harvey recommends wrapping the pipe with fiberglass insulation followed by mass-loaded vinyl, a dense, flexible material sold in rolls that absorbs sound and helps dampen vibrations. Versions with the fiberglass insulation already attached are also available, saving you a step.

 

Bathroom plumbing can be a common path for sound, generally. If there are large openings where pipes enter the room — like beneath a vanity or behind the shower’s trim plates — fill the gap with batt insulation first, then seal the space with acoustic (or smoke-and-sound) sealant, which comes in a tube and stays flexible instead of hardening and cracking.

 

Walloping washing machines

 

When a washing machine’s fill valve snaps shut after the tub fills, it can send a surge of energy back through the water supply lines, causing chatter and banging. Installing a water hammer arrestor on both the hot and cold water lines can resolve the rattle. The device threads between your home’s water supply and the washing machine’s flexible hoses and uses an air-filled chamber to absorb the vibration before it reaches the pipes. If your washer is on the main floor, the spin cycle can also send vibrations through the framing. Placing anti-vibration pads under each foot helps reduce noise and movement.

 

If you can’t beat the noise, mask it

 

If you can’t reduce an offending noise — such as one coming from a neighboring apartment — you can try to mask it with a slightly louder, less distracting sound. “For most smart home speakers you can just say ‘play pink noise,’ or ‘play white noise,’ and adjust it to 40 or 45 decibels,” Mr. Rehfuss said. He suggests keeping the masking sound about five decibels louder than the intruding noise, but no more than 45 decibels, or else the noise risks becoming an annoyance of its own.

 

There are several “colors” of noise, with white and pink cited as the most common for masking conversations. White noise covers all frequencies evenly, while pink noise has more low-frequency energy, giving it a deeper, more soothing sound. Brown noise, which is even deeper, can help mask mechanical sounds like HVAC equipment, while blue noise is better suited for higher-frequency sounds. Ultimately, the right choice is the one you can tolerate at a volume about five decibels louder than the noise you’re trying to cover.

 

Position the speaker between you and the noise source, but closer to the source itself. Masking has its limits, however. If your neighbor goes on vacation and a low-battery smoke alarm starts chirping, your best bet is to invest in a comfortable pair of noise canceling earbuds.” [1]

 

1. How to Quiet a Noisy House. Vaglica, Sal.  New York Times (Online) New York Times Company. Jul 10, 2026.