Quieting Your Vacation Home

With a large group or multiple families, a vacation home can be noisy. Whether it is a lake home, beach home or mountain home, to fully relax while on vacation we must control the noise.

This article will look at how you can do that within an existing home, and in a new home you might be constructing.

What Are We Actually Controlling?

1. Sounds “In The Air” - Airborne sound like talking, TV, etc. Measured with an “STC” rating, higher the better.

2. Sounds “Via Impact” - Walking on floors, dropping items, slamming doors. Measured with an “IIC” rating, again higher the better.

What Are The Main Ways To Control Sound?

1. Block the air. Air seal between rooms. Don’t provide a place for the sound frequencies in the air to travel room to room.

2. Add mass. The heavier walls, floors, doors, ceilings the better.

3. Add absorption. Add things that tend to “absorb” sound frequencies.

4. Add separation. For example separate the wall finishes from the wall framing with special building products.

What Can We Do In An Existing Home?

1. Install acoustical panels or walls. These help “absorb” sound.

   1. Panels can be bought in all sizes, shapes and colors. The more the better.

   2. Walls are a really neat way to go because you end up with a durable decorative wall that usually never needs to be painted again.

2. Use more carpet within the home, with the thickest padding available.

3. Fix wood floor squeaks by securing the sub-floor to the floor framing. Add additional sub-floor material such as cement board or extra plywood.

4. Replace doors with specialized sound deadening doors, or solid core doors.

What Can We Do In A New Construction Home?

This is where you can have some fun with this. You can really quiet down a new construction home if you pay special attention to the details.

• Install 2”+ concrete floors over all floors. This requires stronger floor framing, but this really reduces impact noise transfer.

• Hydronic HVAC. Instead of using forced air HVAC systems, you use in-floor or radiator style radiant heat/cooling. These systems can be tied to very efficient heat pumps and/or gas boilers.

• Using doors with soft close hinges, jamb bumpers and weatherstripping.

• Building “double stud” walls within the homes interior. These walls have a few inches of separation creating an air gap which heavily slows down air.

• Sealing all (and we mean all) gaps between rooms with caulking or special sound deadening paste.

• Using heavy (thick) or multiple layers of drywall throughout the home.

• Using resilient metal channels to connect drywall to stud walls.

• Finally, using a heavy insulation such as mineral wool within all walls to add mass and better control airborne sound.

If you have never been in a space or a home with these features done well, you are missing out. High end sound studio’s use many of these features.

You can create a dramatically quieter vacation home with the ideas outlined here. You’ll be amazed at how much you don’t hear others in the home!

Current Mortgage Rate

The current average 30 year fixed rate on a home mortgage is 6.85.

A few tips to save on your next mortgage:

1. Mortgage lenders are desperate for business right now. Look for specials and deals.

2. Ask for cheaper closing costs.

3. Buy the rate dips if you can.

Alaska Homes For Sale

Here are a few examples of some amazing homes from the US state of Alaska.

1. Massive Vacation Home Near Anchorage

   17,000 square feet of living space. A few minutes drive from an airport. Asking about $9.5 million. Accommodates 30 guests. Check out the amazing Peter Pan Neverland replicated play areas!

   Check The Home Out Here

1. Remote Zodiak Island Getaway - The Olive Retreat

   Talk about remote. On an island, on a mountain, and yet minutes from the airport! The most amazing Alaska waterfront and mountain views you could want. 2 acres, 4,600 square feet, and 4 bed / 6 bath. Asking about $4 million.

The content of this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Always perform your own due diligence before making any financial decisions. There are no sponsors of this newsletter.