Nothing kills your concentration like a noisy neighbor, thin walls in an apartment, or just a high-traffic neighborhood.
No matter what the cause of the noise is in your house, you can deal with it in the simplest, most inexpensive, and most convenient way.
So if you landed here thinking, does carpet absorb sound, then you are going to find all the necessary information in this easy-to-read guide.
Does Carpet Absorb Sound?
If you are looking for solid ways to reduce noise in your house, then you might be wondering does carpet reduce sound? The answer, in short, is yes, carpet absorbs sound.
In fact, carpet can reduce airborne noise by 35%, and if used with an underlay, it can reduce noise by 50% to 70%, thanks to the porous and fibrous nature of carpet.
How Does Carpet Help in Absorbing Noise?
Noise in a room can be caused due to external factors such as traffic noise or noise from the outside or from floor impact noise such as noise caused by footfalls, objects dropping, chairs scraping on the floor, and similar things.
Carpets absorb sound using their padding and fibers.
So when the sound waves hit the carpet surface, they get scattered and absorbed by individual carpet fibers. The padding and fibers of the carpet trap sound wave and prevent them from traveling through the carpet.
As a result higher, pitched sounds get absorbed faster than lower-pitched sounds.
If a similar thing were to happen in a room with no carpet and just solid brick walls or hard floors, then a different thing would happen.
A hard surface reflects sound rather than absorbing it, and so you might have noticed how your voice echoes when you speak in an empty room with just hard walls and flooring.
The hard surface of the walls is not porous enough to absorb the sound waves, and as a result, the sound wave bounces back into the room, creating an echo.
What Type of Noise Can Carpet Reduce?
Carpets can help in reducing both outside noise and impact noise that, includes sound from movements and footsteps such as skipping rope on carpet, sound of music, electrical equipment, water pipes, etc.
In fact, carpet absorbs airborne noise ten times more than any other type of flooring.
How To Buy The Best Carpet for Sound Absorption?
Although there are plenty of factors that could affect the sound absorption capacity of a carpet, here are the three most common factors to consider:
Material of Carpet
It is a no-brainer that the material of your carpet is the most important factor to consider when buying a carpet for sound absorption.
Many experts believe that wool carpets are the best when it comes to sound absorption. This is because wool carpets are highly fibrous in nature, which allows them to absorb more sound per square inch.
So if you want more sound absorption, then you should be looking for a fibrous carpet or, better, a wool carpet.
Surface Construction
The surface construction in a carpet refers to if the fibers are apart or clustered or simply how the surface of the carpet appears.
So if the fibers in a carpet are clustered, then it will reflect the sound more. This is the reason why you should buy a carpet that has a ruffled texture or a softer surface.
Soundproof Carpet Underlay
Carpet is not the only thing that offers sound absorption; when it is coupled with carpet underlay, you can enjoy the maximum benefit.
For maximum results, You should buy carpet underlay for sound absorption should be fibrous such as a wool underlay.
However, carpet underlay made of dense or hard material such as vinyl should be avoided.
How To Buy The Best Underlay For Soundproofing?
Sound-absorbing carpet underlay or Soundproof carpet underlay can help immensely in absorbing noise in a room.
So there are different types of soundproof carpet underlay that you can choose from, including crumb, PU (polyurethane) foam, sponge rubber, felt, wool, or combination.
You can buy the underlay of your choice. However, PU underlay is the most popular choice among buyers. It is made from recycled foam, comes in a variety of sizes, can be recycled, and offers excellent performance.
Even felt is a great eco-friendly option which is made from recycled synthetics and wool. Felt not only absorbs sound but also offers thermal insulation to keep you warm.
Wool underlay also does a great job of absorbing noise because of its fibers, and when used with a wool carpet, it gives out the maximum results.
Tips To Soundproof Your Room
Here are a few simple tips to reduce noise in your room and make it more soundproof:
- Add more pillows or use blankets: The soft material of the cushion and fibrous nature of blankets trap sound waves and allow you to reduce noise in your home.
- Utilize books: The thick pages of books do a good job of absorbing sound, so if you have many books lying around, then you can use them to reduce noise.
- Use a door sweep: A door sweep is a rubber piece that is mounted on the bottom of the door to reduce the gap between the door and the floor and the amount of noise that gets through.
- Fabrics to the rescue: If you have wall hangings or decorative rugs, then hanging them in your room can help in sound absorption to reduce noise.
Wrapping Up
Installing carpets is a great way to reduce noise within the house and cut off noise from the outside.
Using a combination of a soft carpet with underlay will help you in achieving the maximum results.
Make sure you consider the above-mentioned points before buying the ideal carpet for reducing noise and benefit to the maximum extent.
FAQ
Are houses with carpets quieter?
Yes, since carpets are great at absorbing noise, houses with carpets are quieter.
Which is better for soundproofing laminate or carpet?
Laminates can only reduce noise by 1 to 6 decibels, whereas carpets can reduce noise by 25 to 34 decibels, so carpets are better for soundproofing.
Will a thicker carpet padding lessen more noise?
The thicker your carpet pad, the better its absorption. Hence it will be able to muffle noise much more.
Daleyza knows a lot about carpets! She has worked with carpets for over 7 years and can help with things like putting them in, keeping them clean, and replacing them. She really likes carpets and spends most of her time learning about new ways to work with them. When she’s not learning about carpets, she enjoys reading books. She’s really good at helping people choose the right carpet for their homes and making sure they’re happy with it. If you want to know more about carpets, Daleyza is the person to talk to!