13 January Handling Noise in Your Commercial Building January 13, 2021 By sma Property Maintenance, Property Management apartment, building renovation, interior maintenance, multi-family, safety 0 HANDLING NOISE IN YOUR COMMERCIAL BUILDING January 13, 2021 | Maintenance, Management | safety, interior maintenance, building renovation, multi-family, apartment No matter where your building is located, you may face noise problems. Whether it’s cars racing by outside or a tenant’s loud TV inside, sound could potentially infiltrate every room. Persistent noise can be annoying, and your tenants will surely let you know how it’s impacting them. The best thing to do is to act quickly to address any complaints. Here’s how to go about addressing what could become a persistent noise problem: Find the cause of the noise. The key to curbing noise issues in your commercial property is to figure out the source of the problem. Anything from an old window to inadequate drywall installation could be the culprit, so it can take some investigating to pinpoint the location. To cover all your bases, walk through your building and take note of places where sound seems to come in louder. Replace and seal doors and windows. If you find out that your windows or doors are leaking air, there’s a great chance they’re also “leaking” noise. Replacing the weather strips is a quick and easy way to do a little soundproofing and weatherproofing in one go. You should also replace old doors and windows in your building. Small cracks and gaps in the frame can contribute to higher noise levels inside a unit. While older finishings may look nice, they can create a variety of problems. Add more insulation. If you own an older building, there’s no guarantee that any walls, let alone shared walls, are insulated well or at all. Ask a professional about the best insulation for noise control. Your contractor can drill small holes through shared walls and blow loose-fill material between studs for the best results. You could choose to construct decoupled walls to add a more resistant path, but this would be a large-scale project. Install an underlayment. Adding an underlayment beneath hardwood floors can help absorb loud footsteps and movement. This may be a bit of a last resort since it’s a large-scale job that will require tenant compliance, but even a thin resilient underlayment can help accomplish great results for a concrete subfloor. Look at hallways and stairs as another area to decrease noise levels. Replace any thinning carpet to improve noise-cancellation on every level. Even something as simple as laying down a few rugs can make a large difference. Control common areas. Spaces like lounges and weight rooms are high producers of sound. With smaller buildings, these are likely located in the basement underneath everyone. A way to reduce noise here is by hanging padding on the walls. Tapestries and acoustic paneling not only look nice, but trap and absorb soundwaves. Space a few around the room to ensure even coverage and decoration. Check your mechanical equipment. Noisier than the loudest tenant you have is your mechanical equipment. Commercial buildings have different mechanical components, and having them run together compounds the sound. Along with soundproofing your equipment room, check that everything is running smoothly. A misaligned fan or overheated machine can easily start to make noise and progress over time. You should also get repairs done as needed to not only prevent such noises, but prolong the life of your equipment. Hire an acoustic professional. To fully understand how different tones play off your building, look at hiring an acoustic professional. They can perform simulations and make a map of the areas that need the most attention. These professionals can also assist you in planning how to divide up spaces. They will inform you of the best layout and which materials you should incorporate. Get everyone involved. Perhaps the best way to keep your tenants happy is to get them involved. Send out emails or put up posters that define certain times as quiet hours. If you do have a large common space or workout area, post specific hours for when people can be inside. Don’t forget to enforce these rules as well to be considerate of all your tenants. Simply raising tenant awareness can go a long way toward accomplishing a more enjoyable environment for everyone. While you can’t control every bump or knock in your building, instituting small practices will go a long way. Have your building checked by NPI. National Property Inspections can help identify issues with your multi-family property. Call 402-333-9807 ex. 30 to get in touch with your local inspector. Comments are closed.