What material to choose for soundproofing the floor under the screed

Modern soundproofing materials

The sound insulation of the floor under the screed used by builders is diverse. Particularly popular:

• Expanded polystyrene (international name - EPS). This modernized foam with a porous structure and different densities throughout the canvas perfectly absorbs sound. When purchasing sheets, you should look at the date of manufacture: it is suitable for installation on the floor six months after release.
• Mineral wool. Traditionally used as an insulating material. It has a low density, remains unchanged for a long time. Vapor permeability also remains one of the advantages of cotton wool. From the stone series, the best choice would be the basalt composition - an eco-friendly insulator that is available in sheets (slabs) and rolls. Glass wool is a budget material, but the installation is done with protective gloves.
• Foamed polyurethane - will not save you from impact sound, but has shown itself well in other situations. The air bubbles in the material absorb vibrations.
• Perlite and expanded clay. Bulk compositions are obtained by loosening and swelling. Popular in the formation of the floor in buildings built in the middle of the last century with high ceilings. Insulation indicators are average.

Sometimes it is enough to use chipboard in combination with sawdust. An innovative soundproofing brand is being actively promoted: elastic panels made of elastic material with the promising name "Shumanet". This option is available in a thickness of 3 mm.

There are other roll materials: for example, "Vibrostek-V300" is ideal for mounting a "floating screed. The strips fit perfectly under the linoleum and are fixed with construction or stationery tape. Isoplat is suitable for children's rooms. Popular "Teksound", representing the combination of the properties of rubber and cork.

Options for soundproofing the floor under the screed

If you decide to carry out a major overhaul with the replacement of the screed, it is necessary to soundproof the floor in the apartment under the screed. Call the masters from the company "Smooth Paul". Our experts will conduct a full study, identify all the features of the apartment and house, floors, offer the best set of materials.

Sometimes, in addition to noise isolation, it is additionally necessary to pre-level the floors, due to large differences, to make moisture and heat insulation. This is especially true for apartments on the ground and first floors, when located above the entrance groups, arched spans, etc.

There are universal materials that combine several insulating characteristics, for example, from sound and humidity. Separate waterproofing will be required in rooms where there is a potential threat of flooding (kitchen, bathroom, utility room with washing machines, dishwashers, etc.). Sometimes they order it even if a person with health problems lives in the apartment (memory lapses, forgetfulness).

It is rarely possible to choose the best option on your own, but we will give some practical advice. They will help you if you want to delve into the topic and explore the building materials market.

Modern manufacturers offer a wide range of materials - fibrous, layered, loose, granular, foamed, cellular. Among the most popular, we highlight several options.

• Mineral slabs or mineral wool (stone or basalt, glass wool, slag wool) with different structure and density. It is carried out from glass melt, rocks, blast-furnace slag. Its disadvantages are hygroscopicity (absorbs moisture and loses its properties) and lack of fire resistance.Due to the fact that the material is classified as harmful (dust from the fiber and volatile components of organic substances (hydrocarbon vapors) that make up the composition affect the respiratory tract, skin, eyes), not so long ago, ecowool was developed that is safe for human health, but even it has the 5th, the lowest hazard class. The plate is endowed with both high heat and sound absorption characteristics (excellent insulation against airborne noise, high-frequency sounds). Additional positive characteristics are increased structural rigidity and an affordable price.
• Thermosound insulation (TZI) is a thin, stable, eco-friendly material. It consists of elastic, vapor-permeable, heat-insulating and sound-absorbing layers - needle-punched fiberglass located between layers of polypropylene (spunbond completely prevents fiberglass from penetrating outside). Masters love VBI for its versatility, resistance to all kinds of noise, including sharp impacts. It is suitable for insulation of external and internal structures, any surfaces, for sound insulation during the installation of underfloor heating, suspended ceilings, interior partitions. TZI is applied at the equipment of floating couplers. The material is especially ideal for monolithic and prefabricated reinforced concrete floors between floors. It is easy to install, easy to cut, does not require special installation and operation conditions, does not change its properties when squeezed.
• Shumoplast is a ready-to-use, environmentally friendly mixture of elastic material granules, rubber, acrylic binder. Such a mixture makes it possible to lay communications directly into the insulating layer. The coating is designed for a "quenching" effect when equipping the base of a floating screed. It does not require preliminary alignment of the base and mixing of components. They are already connected in the right proportions. Masters recognize this material as the best for use in large areas and complex configurations, very simple and "fast" in installation. Shumoplast combines two types of protection at once - noise and hydro. Due to its features, it hides local irregularities on the floor surfaces with a difference of up to 15 mm. Serves for a long time without losing the starting properties.

Varieties of sound insulation

For insulation of premises, a wide range of materials is used that differ in technical characteristics and insulation index. These parameters depend on the structure and thickness of the sound insulation.

Acoustic materials

Products in this category are manufactured according to standard technology, have proven themselves well in combination with semi-dry screeds 3-6 centimeters thick.

Here are the following names:

• Acuflex;
• Shumanet;
• Shumoplast;
• Noise stop.

The isolation index varies between 24-26 dBa.

Soundproof

This is a plastic sound insulation that isolates the interior from airborne and structural noise, well withstands significant surface loads without material deformation.

Materials differ in structure and components that make up the composition.

Manufacturers of elastic sound insulation offer the following options:

• needle-punched;
• rubber;
• bituminous;
• foamed;
• rubber;
• cork.

The advantage of such sound insulation is multifunctionality: some varieties protect the screed not only from noise, but also from moisture.

sound-absorbing

Such insulation always has a porous structure, but the cells of the material are not hermetically closed.

Traditional floor soundproofing methods

To muffle the sound in many houses, carpets have long been used, then the now popular carpet on various bases appeared. This "soft floor" will help "remove" the echo, absorb the sounds coming from outside. Its advantages: ease of use and low loss of room height. But this option is less effective than the installation of capital layers.External coatings wear out quickly, require frequent replacement, constant care.

Progress dictates its own rules: additional protection is possible even at the stage of creating a floor.

The most common types of soundproofing are:

• "Floating" modification with concrete coating. Such sound insulation under the floor screed will be a budgetary and excellent basis for consumers who expect to gain additional strength or thermal conductivity (for example, when installing a water-heated floor).
• The presence of gaskets, if the finish coating is laminate, hard linoleum, hard parquet.

Innovative "floating" floors without connection with the base and the upper layer. It is also realistic to purchase panels of a special design for effective soundproofing of floor screeds: honeycombs with fine quartz are located between layers of durable cardboard. Thanks to this thoughtful composition, the sound dissipates and fades away. Also interesting is the "Shumoplast" mixture with fast polymerization.

For wooden floors or when using drywall, laminate, chipboard, it is possible to use a soundproof layer of cork underlay or a thin insulating membrane.

Sand-cement screed with sound insulation

Application area

This
technology is mainly used in the reconstruction of apartments of the secondary
housing stock, located in houses with interfloor ceilings made of monolithic
concrete or hollow core slabs. It is also used during repair and finishing
works in new buildings, which are rented in the "gray" version.

Advantages

High
moisture resistance allows the use of a sand-cement screed with sound insulation in bathrooms, however
in practice, floors in such rooms do not need soundproofing, which reduces
this advantage to a minimum.

The relative cheapness of the sand-cement mixture.

Flaws

Large
labor and time costs for the manufacture of the structure. After pouring the slab
drying of the mixture and the initial curing takes at least a week. V
throughout this period, it is necessary to keep the surface moist, during
avoid cracking. This problem is solved by using semi-dry
screed, which is not inferior in reliability, but is poured in 1 day, and dries 2
day.

High
the mass of the structure creates an additional load on the interfloor ceilings - not
suitable for wooden and frame houses.

Usage
"wet" processes places high demands on the correct laying of hydro-noise insulation for the floor under
screed, because in the event of an error, the cost of correcting it at times
outweigh the initial installation costs.

At
floor soundproofing
apartment from airborne noise under the screed can be laid the following materials:

Material	Thickness	Density	∆L,w	Price
Rockwool Floor BATTS	25	115 kg/m³	37 dB	200 ₽
Termozvukoizol	14	162 kg/m³	29 dB	350 ₽
Noise stop K2	20	105 kg/m³	32 dB	280 ₽
Noise stop C2	20	70 kg/m³	39 dB	270 ₽

V
apartments with low ceilings, owners often try to save space,
used for soundproofing
under the screed the thinnest materials for hydro soundproofing and insisting on pouring
sand-cement mixture with a layer of minimum allowable thickness - 40 mm. In this
case, the screed must be reinforced. And you need to understand what neighbors you are from
you will save shock noises with the help of a membrane, but from their loud conversations or
music, this option will not protect.

Material	Thickness	Density	∆L, w	Price
Shumanet-100Hydro	5 mm	680 kg/m³	24 dB	340 ₽
Soundproof	5 mm	400 kg/m³	23 dB	200 ₽
TechnoNIKOL	5 mm	440 kg/m³	26 dB	260 ₽

Installation

Laying
sand-cement screed consists of the following steps:

1. Foundation preparation. All protruding irregularities that can severely deform or damage the sound-absorbing layer are removed from the surface of the interfloor overlap. Large fragments are collected manually, small fragments and dust are collected using an industrial vacuum cleaner.

2. The walls around the perimeter of the room are glued with a damper tape at the level of the poured screed, taking into account the floor covering being laid.

3. The sound insulation of the floor is laid under the screed, the materials for which are selected based on the required coefficient Rw of the structure being formed.

4. The sound-absorbing layer is covered with waterproofing. When using a polyethylene film, the strips are laid with an overlap of about 200 mm and an entry onto the walls exceeding the level of the poured sand-cement mixture. If roll sound insulation of the floor under the screed is used to form a moisture-proof layer, then, in order to save material, it can be laid end-to-end with mandatory gluing of the seams with wide adhesive tape.

5. Beacons are installed on the waterproofing, along which the thickness is formed and the horizontal level of the future screed is provided. Lighthouses are made of sand-cement mixture and are mounds of a given height, 100 - 150 mm long, which are located at a distance of 250 - 300 mm from each other.

6. After the beacons grab, the sand-cement mixture is poured and leveled. The thickness of the mortar layer must be at least 40 mm. To strengthen the screed, it is reinforced with a polymer or metal mesh, and is also treated with a vibrator to remove air bubbles.

7. When the solution sets and gains strength sufficient to support the weight of a person, the surface is covered with plastic wrap to prevent moisture from evaporating too quickly, after which it is aged for a week or more (depending on the ambient temperature).

8. The surface of the finished screed is treated with hydrophobic impregnation and leveled with a special mixture.

9. When used as parquet or laminate flooring, a rolled substrate can be laid on the screed, which will muffle the sound of footsteps, ensuring comfort in the room.

Semi-dry floor screed in Moscow

The GarantPol company carries out its labor activity on a semi-dry screed in Moscow. Our company employs masters with experience since 2011. During its existence, our company has earned a reputation as one of those that you can trust and rely on completely, having passed the burden of a semi-dry floor screed from your shoulders to ours. Since we are a guarantee that your floor screed will be made in accordance with the established technology and using the highest category of materials. This, in turn, will give you perfectly smooth and reliable floors, ready for the final coat. You can order a semi-dry and dry floor screed from us, the price is low - 480 rubles / m².

What you get by contacting our company for a semi-dry floor screed in Moscow:

– we focus on an individual approach to each client, which is expressed when determining the price of a semi-dry screed in Moscow;

– you get the best price per meter of semi-dry floor screed in Moscow;

– we make a semi-dry screed in Moscow and the region from 1 sq.m.;

— a team of semi-dry screed specialists in Moscow and the Moscow region.

- the price per meter for a floor screed in our organization is low - 480 rubles / m².

What will happen after signing up for a consultation with our company on a semi-dry screed in Moscow:

– you will receive a phone call from our manager, who will advise you on all issues, as well as learn from you the characteristics of the object, and calculate the preliminary price of a semi-dry floor screed in Moscow;

– if you are satisfied with the price of a semi-dry floor screed per meter in Moscow, you discuss the date and time of arrival at your site of our specialist – measurer. Who will calculate for you the final price per m2 of semi-dry screed in Moscow, the amount indicated by the measurer will be final and unchanged. In the event that you are satisfied with the cost of the screed, then you discuss the date of arrival of the team for laying the semi-dry floor screed in Moscow and the region.Ordering a semi-dry floor screed from us means saving time and money, and most importantly without losing quality.

In addition, the measurer of our company can give you recommendations for laying wires, in case they will pass through the floor. Thus, you will get the most optimal option for laying wires. What will give the minimum thickness of the future screed, and this in turn will lead to minimization of its cost. And you will get an inexpensive semi-dry screed in Moscow.

– after which, on the agreed date, our team will arrive at the facility to lay a semi-dry screed in Moscow and the Moscow region. Where, upon arrival, work will begin on the manufacture of the mortar and its installation at the facility. At the end of the work, you get a perfectly flat floor, on which you can already walk 24 hours after the end of the work, but you can walk in shoes without heels and if your weight does not exceed 100 kg.

GarantPol is a semi-dry screed company in Moscow, we value each of our clients, therefore we guarantee the high quality of work, the material used and the service! You can order any type of screed from us, including cement-sand floor screed and mechanized floor screed, the price per m2 is also low.

Order a floor screed at a low price from us and see for yourself!

Noise insulation with and without floor screed, floating floors features of product selection from reliable manufacturers and material laying technology

When building houses of modern series, and even when building according to exclusive projects, they often save on materials in order to reduce the overall estimate. As a result of such savings, the owners have to carry out minor, and in some cases major repairs in the future, change everything that was done under the construction contract, up to the screed.

Realizing that the developer is not always interested in a good finish of the premises, many buyers choose a project where apartments are rented out with bare walls, floors and ceilings.

In this case, you can carry out a major overhaul on your own, provide high-quality sound insulation not only in your apartment, but also for interfloor ceilings.

Table 1 Comparison table between semi-dry and "wet" screed

The situation is no better in the secondary market. The houses of the Soviet series, for the most part, were equipped not with insulating materials, but with construction waste. In rare cases, there was soundproofing, but it either initially turned out to be ineffective, or had long since collapsed from old age.

Bottom line: residents of all apartments suffer from outside noise, except for the last floors, where no one walks from above, no one stomps, no one drops anything on the floor, no one makes “eternal” repairs. There are "sins" there, but this is a separate issue.

Professional soundproofing of the floor is one of the leading elements that improve the quality of life in any high-rise building.

It is especially important to find a technological and efficient solution in apartments where they live:

• stomping, jumping, playing ball, crying little children;
• young people who love loud music and night parties;
• tenants with poor hearing, turning on TVs, radios at full volume;
• owners who equipped a home theater;
• dogs or other animals that do not understand the need to "behave";
• people who hold confidential events at home that exclude the risks of outsiders (negotiations with clients / partners, psychotherapy sessions, legal consultations, discussion of inventions, etc.).

In order to avoid conflicts with neighbors, constant nervous showdowns, calling police patrols in the middle of the night, divulging secret information, be sure to make soundproofing the floor under the screed. This is the most effective method if you choose the right insulating material and technology.

Semi-dry cement screed with sound insulation

Semi-dry screed and options for heat and sound insulation of the floor using different options for the layer to achieve heat and sound insulation of floors, which at the moment in 2018 are very diverse.

Some materials are used to facilitate the screed with a large thickness, for example, using a dense material like foam you will not achieve high floor sound insulation characteristics (impact noise will be well transmitted through a dense material) but penoplex will achieve high performance in terms of thermal insulation of the floor, and facilitating the screed with a significant thickness of 9 cm. Penoplex is also indispensable for installing water-heated floors + a semi-dry screed.

For floor soundproofing porous, shock-absorbing layers such as sound-proof layers, mineral wool, noise stop, sound insulation, basalt wool, foamed polymer materials are ideal.

For floor insulation dense materials, foam plastic, polystyrene, basalt dense materials are ideal. Universal materials - expanded clay, polystyrene granules, slag, vermiculite and the like.

The procedure for working with penoplex:

1. Installation of foam boards the floor slab is preliminarily prepared, cracks, holes are sealed with mounting foam. Deepenings of more than 1 cm are covered with sand and leveled so that the foam lays rigidly. It is also possible to fix penoplex on "fungi"
2. Film and steel mesh A technical film of at least 120 microns (preferably reinforced) is spread over the foam plastic; a steel mesh with a cell of 50 * 50 mm with a bar thickness of 4 mm is laid on top of the film, the mesh is fastened with a knitting wire, and is lifted 2 cm from the foam plastic with plastic spacers specialized for this.
3. Along walls, columns and other rigid structures edging tape is installed from foamed polyethylene with a thickness of 0.5 cm - this stage is necessary to prevent lifting, cracking of the screed during expansion during the curing process.
4. The next step is to make preparation of a semi-dry solution - the ready-made sand-cement composition M300 or 3 parts of sand and 1 part of cement is poured into the mortar mixer, 12 mm fiber is added, water is added (the amount of water is minimal) the mortar is considered ready when it is completely moistened, and when it is compressed in a fist, no moisture is released and it forms stable lump.
5. Then the mixture is laid in a path and beacons are formed they are rubbed, compacting the mixture and, controlling the level with laser levels, they are pulled to the required length, parallel to the previously formed beacon, another guide beacon is formed, after which it is filled with mortar between them and pulled out by the rule as the mixture is pulled out, it is compacted.
6. After the semi-dry screed is fully extended into the room, the master, putting on special concrete shoes on his feet so as not to damage the screed and leave no marks on it, proceeds to final grinding, for this, a concrete trowel is used, a flat steel disk is installed on it - this process allows you to eliminate small defects in the surface of the screed, eliminate potholes and clog the screed, bringing it to a perfectly smooth surface, thereby preventing the process of rapid evaporation of the remaining moisture of the semi-dry screed (moisture in screed is necessary for uniform gradual drying and strength gain.
7. After grinding / grouting the screed technological seams are cut to prevent possible chaotic cracking of the screed. If “tension” is formed in the screed and it starts to crack, then the crack will pass in the place where the minimum thickness is technically formed at the seam, after the semi-dry screed has completely “ripened”, these seams can be filled with sand-cement composition.

ThermoZvukoIzol TZI Standard 14 mm

If you need floor soundproofing. Soundproofing floors with thermal soundproofing is an excellent solution, impact noise reduction of more than 30 dB is an example of a semi-dry screed for thermal soundproofing.

• The cost of materials for soundproofing

350 rubles per 1m2 (2018) The cost of soundproofing

150 rubles per 1m2 (without materials) The cost of a semi-dry screed 60 mm

from 650 rubles per 1m2 (with materials) turnkey total:

9 dB

Construction thickness - from 70 mm
Maximum load on the screed - 300 kg / per M2

Where to begin

Start with the choice of materials and the design of the subfloor. In most cases, interfloor ceilings, due to their massiveness, meet the requirements of SNiP for protection against airborne noise. The insulation index of hollow core slabs with a thickness of 220 mm and monolithic vibropressed slabs with a thickness of 160 mm have a Rw value of at least the standard 52 dB. But in practice, this is not enough to create acoustic comfort. It is desirable that this index be above (or at least not below) 60 dB. In order to compensate for this difference due to the construction of the subfloor, an increase of 7-9 dB is needed as an additional insulation index (ΔRw). This will improve the sound insulation of the floor and vice versa - the residents of the lower floor from your noise.

Important! Any design based on thin roll materials will not be effective enough against airborne noise. Real protection is possible if the bottom layer of the floor system is at least 10 mm

And this is subject to the normative insulation index Rw of the overlap.

Roll sound insulation will save you from structural noise

But such measures are not always necessary. For private single-family houses and internal floors of apartments on two levels, the requirements of SNiP are “softer”, and the lifestyle is controlled by the owners. Even better are the operating conditions of the apartments on the first floor - no one lives downstairs. In these cases, you can limit yourself to impact noise insulation only.

Impact noise is no longer characterized by an insulation index, but by a reduced noise level index (Lnw), which should not exceed 60 dB. And in this case, the massiveness of the overlap does not matter much. The same hollow core slab with a thickness of 220 mm will have an Lnw value of more than 75 dB (at least 15 dB worse than the norm), and a monolithic floor of 140 mm - 80 dB (20 dB worse). In these cases, an additional "elastic" layer of material should be laid, having an impact sound reduction index Δ Lnw of more than 20 dB. And such rolled materials must necessarily go out on the walls along the perimeter so that the subfloor does not have a rigid connection with the building envelope (floating floor technology).

Important! The damping layer is also lined in the form of sleeves around columns, water pipes and sewerage.

And of course, the primary task during construction or repair is to eliminate the “bridges” of noise that may be in the ceiling or at its joints. These are the gaps between the slabs or between the wooden flooring boards along the beams (depending on the floor material).

Dry screed

Is
is a structure in which the screed plate is formed by two layers of GVLV or
GVLV + GKL, OSB, plywood.

Application area

It can be used in any type of premises with normal humidity, including those where cosmetic repairs have already been made and therefore the use of "wet" or dusty processes is undesirable. The best option for soundproofing a floor under a screed in an apartment with a low ceiling height.

Advantages

High
installation speed - for one work shift (8 hours) a team of two people
makes a screed on an area up to 20 m2, after which you can immediately proceed
for flooring installation.

Relatively
low weight - the design does not create a large additional load on
interfloor floors.

High
coefficient Rw, the ability to effectively attenuate both
airborne and impact noise.

The small thickness of the soundproofing of the floor in the apartment under the screed - depending on the selected materials, the total height of the finished structure can be 40 - 45 mm.

Flaws

Low
moisture resistance - not suitable for rooms with high humidity.

Relatively
low resistance to strong mechanical stress - when dropped on the floor
massive objects (e.g. gymnastic weights) the screed may be damaged,
leading to the need to replace broken or deformed sheets.

materials

An important advantage of this design is the wide range of available material combinations. When installing soundproofing under the screed, the customer and the contractor jointly decide which sound-absorbing plates are better to use, how to make vibration decoupling around the perimeter, etc. Among professionals, the products of the following brands have earned a good reputation:

Fiberglass and mineral boards

Material	Thickness	Density	∆L, w	Price
Rockwool Floor BATTS	25	115 kg/m³	37 dB	200 ₽
Termozvukoizol	14	162 kg/m³	29 dB	350 ₽
Noise stop K2	20	105 kg/m³	32 dB	280 ₽
Noise stop C2	20	70 kg/m³	39 dB	270 ₽

After choosing materials for soundproofing, it is important not to make a mistake with what to use on the screed itself. The following solutions are recommended here:

Material	Thickness	Price
OSB board	9 mm	300 ₽
Knauf superpol 20 mm	20 mm	510 ₽

Installation

In order to avoid damage during operation of the sound insulation layer, before starting the installation of the prefabricated floor screed, the surface of the interfloor ceiling must be cleaned of sagging, debris and dust. Then the work is performed in the following sequence:

1. Several soundproofing plates are cut into strips 8-10 mm thick, which are laid along the perimeter of the room, providing vibration decoupling between the screed and the walls.

2. A layer of sound-absorbing material is laid on the interfloor overlap. Mineral wool slabs are placed tightly, without gaps and deformations.

3. If necessary, the Rw of the structure can be increased by adding a membrane roll soundproofing of the floor, which is laid on the mineral wool directly under the screed.

4. Installation of OSB screed:

   1. The sheets are cut and stacked in two layers so that the top level boards overlap the joints on the bottom level.

   2. The connection of two layers is carried out by self-tapping screws, the length of which is selected so as to ensure reliable fastening, but at the same time not damage the materials of the soundproofing substrate.

5. Screed from Knauf Superpol panels:

   1. First, protrusions on the edges adjacent to the walls are cut off from the panels.

   2. The butt joints of the parts are smeared with glue to ensure a reliable connection.

   3. Prepared sheets are laid on a soundproof substrate and fastened with self-tapping screws for GVLV.

   4. The seams between the parts are sealed with putty.

6. After laying the decorative flooring, the protruding parts of the vibration decoupling strips are cut off with a construction knife.