Auralex Sheetblok

Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2003 11:22 am

Do any of you have any experience with Auralex Sheetblok? I'm wondering how its specs translate into the real world. How much does it really add to the STC?

I am thinking of using it on the inside studio wall between the studs and the drywall.

Here is the wall layering Idea so far:

Outside to Inside:
90 year-old redwood siding
Rough-cut Redwood 2x4 on 16" center
R-11 stuffed between the studs
Sheetblok on studs
single layer 5/8" drywall.

Thinking of same for the ceiling.

Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2003 12:49 pm

Hello Johnny Tooloud,

If you use the sheetblock properly it does work well.

OK, Let's describe properly. As with any studio wall construction, all of the components need to be sealed. The smallest of unsealed areas can result in poor performance and a waste of much time, effort and expense.

With sheetblock you are basically dealing with a supported Vinyl fabric. The fabric comes in 48" or 60" widths and is quite exspensive.

This means that you would have to seal each seam with a suitable tape or adhesive. Sheet block or any other limp mass fabric designed for the purpose of reducing sound transmission has a density of 1 pound per square foot or greater.
I believe this referenced to the density of lead, and has been used in the past to assist in sound transmission reduction.

I am not trying to discourage it's use, just trying to make you plan for it's installation in the construction process.

This being said the larger the area the more material you will use and the more seams you will have to address.

In the past I have made several Vinyl panels from Supported PVC by layering it together and welding the layers sealed via Dielectric Heat Sealing which is a process using a machine that generates RF energy to an electrode and welds the plastic together in a few seconds. The machine has an output between 300 watts and 1KW per square inch of sealing area of the electrode being used, dependent upon the thickness(dielectric constant) of the material being welded.

I made the panels in a manor to have the edges fold at set stud spacing so I could glue the panel to the side of the studs and butt an additional stud up tight to it.

Don't try it at home. I manufacture many products using these materials, from Liquid Containment Bags, Waterbed Matresses, Swiming Pool Liners and many other products. I have almost 20 years in the industry and have the facility and enough scrap material to experiment with to do this.

I would take vinyl that was 1.5 to 2.5 ounces per square foot and weld together 10 or so layers. making the density the same as the sheetblock or similar products.

I installed my version or the equivilant of sheetblock(same density) on a wall between my control room and my daughters bedroom. Added another layer of 1/2" drywall. The sound transmision above 250 Hz was cut by about45% to 50% and below 250 Hz 20% maybe 25%. This test was by ear not a db meter.

There are other things you may be able to pick up for a lot less $$$ which could work as good. Vinyl flooring is one of the things you can find cheap and if you can get the right density or layer it to make up the density it would yield similar results.

I hope this helps a little. This is from my experience, I'm sure there are several other folks out there who will share thier input.

Good Day

Mike :w:

Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2003 1:15 pm

Mike,

Thanks much for the thoughtful and authoratative reply.

--Ethan

Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2003 1:39 pm

I have another angle. If you need to isolate the sheetrock from the studs, the cutting small strips and adhering them to the studs, and not covering the whole room with it would be ok.

If it were me, I would use Z channels on your studs, then do a layer of MDF, then wallboard. This way you will have the cavity of the studs filled with rockwool, and then an air gap between that and the MDF.

Sheetblock and wallboard alone for reducing sound tranmission is not going to do you much good. You need more air, and isolation from the structure.

Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2003 11:50 am

Thanks. I'll report back when it is all done. Gonna be a few months. We're tearing out all the old stuff right now.

--JTL

Posted: Sun May 04, 2003 7:50 pm

I just spent a year working on my studio and I had to figure out how to soundproof it as well. Here's what I did, FWIW.

I pulled off the existing paneling and put sound control insulation from Lowes's in all the walls. It was basically encapsulated R-19. Next, I put one layer of 1/2" Sound Board, also known as "pressed sheath." This is also available at Lowe's or Home Depot and is $5.47 for a 4x8 sheet. It's like pressed cardboard and it's very messy to cut. On top of that I put one layer of sheetrock.

To help cut the sound more, I built two walls - one across the front, one across the right side - that provide another barrier to the outside to cut the volume from the live room. These areas help GREATLY, as well as providing a storage areas for my gear. If you don't have room to do this, I strongly reccommend that you at least consider double doors to the outside and making boxes to cover any windows you have. I got rid of all the windows in my studio because they were too hard to keep quiet. I did compromise by leaving a window unit because I have to breathe, but I cool the room down early and seal the unit during practice with an airtight cover when we have to be extra quiet.

The results have been pretty good. You can't hear the vocals or guitars outside and at my property line at all. You can hear the drums and bass a slight bit outside but it's within legal limits.

Overall it took me 3 times more money than i expected and 3 times longer than i expected to soundproof the studio.

Good Luck!

Posted: Wed May 14, 2003 8:35 pm

Hey,

Found a better source than Auralex for leaded vinyl. It's the same stuff . . . I checked the acoustic data.

Acoustics First in Richmond, VA will drop ship the product to you at $7.88/ linear ft. (it's 54" wide). So one linear ft. would be 4.5 square feet. The shipping is pricey as it is heavy.

But Auralex is ripping people off . . . AF has the best price I've found.

Hope this helps,
Mike

Posted: Thu May 15, 2003 6:14 am

That's what I was going to say. For people in other parts of the country, the stuff is actually made by The Proudfoot Company, and they refer to it as 1#/sf loaded vinyl.

Quote:

Originally posted by mchimes:
Hey,

Found a better source than Auralex for leaded vinyl. It's the same stuff . . . I checked the acoustic data.

Acoustics First in Richmond, VA will drop ship the product to you at $7.88/ linear ft. (it's 54" wide). So one linear ft. would be 4.5 square feet. The shipping is pricey as it is heavy.

But Auralex is ripping people off . . . AF has the best price I've found.

Hope this helps,
Mike

Posted: Thu May 15, 2003 9:26 am

Has anybody here ever tried using different kinds of roofing material between layers of sheetrock?

Posted: Thu May 15, 2003 11:33 am

Yo Jazzman,

What part of Philly you from. I was raised and spent the first 35 years of my life in Overbrook/West Philly.

My first stop everytime I go though Philly is Jim's Steaks. Very Happy

Quote:

Has anybody here ever tried using different kinds of roofing material between layers of sheetrock?

The roofing vinyl is a similar product. The density is what counts. The Sheetblok is only 1/8" thick and has a density of 1#/SQ. FT.

I'm not sure what the density of the roofing vinyl is but thats easy enough to figure out.

weight in #'s/sq.ft = Density in #'s

When they say "Loaded" or "Limp Mass" I believe they are refering to the composition of the filler which is used in between the laminatations which are on both sides of the nylon or poly type scrim reinforcement.

Many of these types of fabrics contain a clay mixture along with the PVC and plasticizers which can be very dense.

Hope this helps,

Mike

Send me some pretzals :s:

Posted: Fri May 16, 2003 7:50 am

Yo Mike, my wife and I had our wedding reception at Overbrook Country Club.

Regarding vinyl barrier, I found a material that may be useful in some cases. It's lighter, but it's self-adhesive, and you just pull off the paper backing and slap it on. It's called GAF Libery Base, a roofing material that goes under the shingles. It's only 1/16" and weighs .4 pounds per square foot, but it may be handy between a couple layers of sheetrock as a way of introducing a different medium to change the speed of sound passing through it, and to serve as a damper like in the ASC wall-damp system. It's not made of vinyl but of some sort of bituminous stuff, like asphalt. If they use this stuff as an Ice and Water shield in roofs, it's waterproof, and if it's waterproof, it can help make the wall air-tight. Regular vinyl would add to much weight to my ceiling, which is planned as 2 layers of 5/8" sheetrock. But since this is lighter, it may just do the trick to help deaden the whole thing.

Lee

Posted: Fri May 16, 2003 7:58 am

Oops, typo. That's GAF Libery Base.

Posted: Fri May 16, 2003 7:59 am

What the heck is wrong with my "t"?!?

Liberty Base. GAF Liberty Base.

Posted: Fri May 16, 2003 8:20 am

Another correction. This Liberty Base self-adhering membrane is actually 1/12 of an inch thick, so it's even thicker than that ASC material.

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