Noise Pollution

Often overlooked the environmental impact is an important consideration when choosing insulation.

20
Feb
2016

Hotels Working Towards Solving The Problem Of Room Noise

Staying in a noisy hotel isn’t fun and most of us will have experienced how unpleasant it is at some point in our lives. Now it looks like some of the biggest hotel operators are striving to make noise from corridors a thing of the past with a new solution they hope will radically reduce cut down noise levels.

While this new ‘solution’ to the noise problem in some hotel corridors hasn’t been introduced into the UK, Holiday Inn have launched a special sliding internal door which it hopes will make life a little more peaceful for its guests in the US.

Unfortunately it didn’t include this extra piece of soundproofing in the first four of its UK hotels with new look rooms in January of this year. The door has been unsurprisingly named ‘the acoustic door’ and is placed at room entrances which separate bedroom and living areas from the corridors.

Disappointingly for people who like peace and quiet in the UK and Europe, IHG, the company that owns Holiday have said they have no plans to install their acoustic doors in any new or renovated rooms in Europe according to reports.

Instead they hope that guests will be content with ‘padded noise reducing headboards’ although it is difficult to see how a padded headboard will do anything to reduce noise from noisy corridors.

Other chains currently looking into innovative ways to tackle the effects of noise include Hyatt, Marriott, and Ritz Carlton.

Posted by admin in Metropolitan Insulation, Soundproofing
20
Nov
2015

How to Achieve A Better Sound Experience In At Home

There have been some tremendous strides taken in the development of digital technology in recent years – not least in technology that is available in the home. It is now possible with the right insulation to not only have a dedicated theatre or music room or even a recording studio (assuming of course that you have the space to accommodate one!)

So if you do happen to like the idea of turning your home into a centre of entertainment and musical excellence then you will need to consider a few elements to make the dream a reality. The first one is your location in the house.

There isn’t much point setting up in a place that is hard to get to or that doesn’t have enough room to fit all of your equipment. You may also be spending a lot of time in the room perfecting your art so you also want that room to be reasonably comfortable and warm.

Sound insulation is also just as important. Windows should be double glazed to keep out noise and keep in heat. The door too should be well-insulated to prevent sound leakage. Adding carpet can also help prevent echoes as can acoustic panels.

If you want to find out more about sound proofing and insulation please contact one of our advisors.

Posted by admin in Home Insulation, Soundproofing, Thermal Insulation
04
Nov
2015

Airport Noise Complaints Down Near Manchester

Noise complaints have gone down significantly near Manchester airport, even if some residents have gone to extremes in their battle for some peace and quiet. The drop in complaints could be down to a range of measures taken to reduce noise in home around the airport including insulation grants.

The number of noise complaints from people living near Manchester airport fell from 1,509 in 2013/14 to 860 complaints in 2014/15. Apart from making planes quieter as they reach the runway (no easy task) the only other way to stop noise disturbing people living near an airport is sound insulation.

£371,540 was sent out in grants to 108 householders in 2013/14 which may have gone some way to reducing the impact of noise and complaints. However this didn’t appear enough to stop one disgruntled Manchester resident who complained 729 times in a year according to the Manchester Evening News.

This meant that the individual took it upon himself to complain twice a day for 12 months. Is complaints would no doubt have been heard even if it isn’t clear whether he gained any special treatment as a result.

If you happen to live on a noisy flightpath, why not ask about the availability of grants to fund the cost of sound insulation? It may be the quickest way to living a quiet life.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
10
Sep
2015

Noise Pollution Hotspots

A programme on ITV this month highlighted Britain’s noise pollution hotsposts and what the government is doing (or not doing) about the situation in the UK.

The UK government is pressing ahead with major improvements to transport infrastructure costing £411 billion including high speed train lines, new airport runways and roads, but it appears little thought has gone into how people will be insulated from all the extra noise this will bring.

Many studies have shown the effects of noise on health, yet the programme on ITV’s Tonight titled Britain’s Noise Nuisance highlighted a worrying lack of measures taken to combat noise even in existing noise hotspots in the UK.

The government’s decision to carry on regardless is unlikely to calm those affected and looks set to bring plenty of opposition in the coming years.
The affects on the body of exposure to noise include an increased heart rate and higher blood pressure and this can be detrimental to health, particularly in those people who are already suffering from heart disease.

In some cases noise can even be a factor in the deaths of some people. 10,000 deaths are said to have been caused by noise in Europe as a whole each year as well as 43,000 hospital admissions.

Posted by admin in Home Insulation, Soundproofing
20
Aug
2015

Will Steeper Airport Approaches Reduce Noise Pollution?

This is what a trial on the Heathrow airport’s flight path aims to find out as they will begin asking pilots to make steeper approaches top reduce the amount of noise they make and its impact on nearby residents.

Living near a busy airport like Heathrow is particularly difficult for anyone who wants to live a quiet life. The airport is currently the 4th busiest in the world and there are no signs that the amount of traffic passing to and from its runways will be reduced in our lifetime.

We are often asked to provide insulation services to residents who live near airports. On solution to reduce noise and possible damage is to ensure roofs and tiles are sealed properly as can be found amongst our case studies.

This trial by the Civil Aviation Authority could be an important step to reducing noise at source. Prevention can often be better than having to find a cure, however it is unlikely that simply have planes come in to land on a steeper trajectory will reduce noise levels by a huge amount.

The international standard for approaches is currently 3 degrees and the new trial will have planes approaching at 3 ½ degrees to see what the effect on noise will be. The trial will continue until March 2016.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing
16
Mar
2015

Wind Turbine Noise Pollution Study

Metropolitan Insulation are only too aware of the problems facing people living next to wind turbine farms in the UK at the moment. These farms seem to be popping up everywhere and more and more of them are coming inland and impacting on our countryside.

Whilst there are many environmental advantages for Wind Farms and there are plentiful arguments for and against their continued development, it cannot be denied that there are concerns when it comes to the noise pollution that comes from these wind turbines.

This is why the recent news that the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is commissioning a study to look into the acoustics of wind turbines known as Amplitude Modulation (AM) is very welcome indeed. It is hoping to define a threshold for an appropriate noise level produced by the turbines. The review is set to finish this Spring and will add to the current Good Practice Guidance and the AM working group available here.

The Institute of Acoustics (IOA) issued a statement from William Egan, Institute President in regards to the assessment of wind farm noise;

“In doing so, our aim is to enable members of the public to have a full understanding of our work in this field during the past few years, what we are currently engaged in doing and the area of our responsibilities. We draw particular attention within the statement to the fact that we as an Institute are not involved in the setting of noise limits, which we strongly believe is a matter for the Government to decide.”

The full statement can be read here.

If wind farm noise is affecting your living conditions or you have a concern about noise pollution caused by wind turbines in your area, Metropolitan insulation can provide guidance and solutions relevant to your situation. Please call us on 0800 028 4042 to talk to one of our friendly advisors.

Posted by admin in Building Trade, Soundproofing
20
Jul
2014

Noise Pollution Near Airports

New research suggests that living next to an airport can be bad for your health. The noise pollution created by the constant air traffic exposes vulnerable people such as the elderly to excess stress and worry.

The report by the Harvard School of Public Health has found that those elderly people affected are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.

The report was published in the British Medical Journal and is the first to expose a link between noise pollution and hospitalisation. Another report by the Imperial College of London found than 3.6 million residents in close proximity to Heathrow Airport were at a higher risk of stoke, and developing coronary heart disease.

Residents had a 3.5% higher chance of hospital admission due to heart problems, when aircraft noise rose to 10 decibels higher than the average.

Co-author of the study Jonathan Levy states;

Our study was not meant to evaluate interventions, but I think there are clearly things that can be done to reduce exposures to aircraft noise, such as soundproofing of homes that are close to airports, measure that can be taken by (the) FAA or others to reduce noise of their aircrafts,” Levy said. “This certainly could be a beneficial health measure.

Posted by admin in Soundproofing