At some point or another, everyone experiences noise pollution. Perhaps, you may even be plagued with disruptive noise levels on a daily basis – coming from a busy street with heavy traffic, the cries and yells of children, construction work, or loud neighbours. Soundproofing is a valuable skill to learn, even if you do not plan to become an expert.
There are cheap hacks you could utilize without spending a ton of money on home renovation or getting the services of a professional handyman.
Can Soundproofing Really Be Effective?
In reality, soundproofing is a complex – and somewhat overused – term that gets thrown about. To be strict, soundproofing means preventing most (if not all) unwanted sounds from travelling from one point to another. Soundproofing prevents sounds outside your apartment from entering your home office.
Unfortunately, to achieve complete, air-tight soundproofing, it will require the expertise of a professional. If you try to do it yourself, a total soundproofing home/office project can cost you lots of money, and most people will find the learning curve to be steep.
Not everyone has the permission to do renovation work, especially if they are renting or stuck in a temporary living arrangement. If DIY projects that involve drilling and permanent fixtures rock your boat, that is fantastic. Otherwise you would want to check out cheaper (and less time consuming) alternatives for soundproofing.
Cheaper soundproofing methods are far from perfect, but they are worth it when you lack the skills or logistics for more complex projects. Any amount of sound reduction can contribute to a more peaceful home, office, and state of mind.
If you search the Internet, you will find hacks such as placing furniture (adding mass) against your wall, hanging tapestries on walls, blocking your windows with curtains, and using a rug to block the gap in your door.
However, what if your sofa or bookcase fails to cover every inch of your wall, allowing sound vibrations to sneak through? What if your door has a hollow core that easily allows sounds to pass through?
Many methods are typically classified as “soundproofing”, but they only work to a smaller extent. They work in the form of absorbing, not blocking, a small amount of sound that has already entered your apartment. The downside is that these common methods will fall short, if you have a neighbour who blasts music or does construction in his home.
There are three common ways to tackle unwanted noises that leak into your apartment:
- Prevent the unwanted sounds from entering by shutting doors and windows, and sealing gaps and cracks
- Absorb the unwanted sounds that enters the room (by using furniture and items designed for such purpose)
- Cancel out the unwanted noise by introducing a background sound of your own
The first method of soundproofing is to close up gaps and cracks, so that air – which carries sound – cannot pass through. But first, you must identify the source of the sound in order to address it.
Take a few minutes to walk around your apartment. What exactly is the sound’s entry point? Do you have a crack in your wall? Does the street traffic noise enter through your window? To stop the sound waves from entering the apartment, two common places to tackle are your doors and windows – they are the common entry points. Instead of wasting time and energy to work on your entire apartment, you might find it more effective to concentrate 80% of your efforts on soundproofing a specific door or window.
If you fail to block sound from entering completely, the next method is to absorb the unwanted noises that have entered your room. You could use old furniture to do this or obtain larger furniture to do the trick.
A common soundproofing method is to add mass (to your doors, walls, windows, floor, and ceiling). This is why blankets, rugs, carpets, pillows, mattresses, and bookcases are recommended.
The thicker the furniture, the better they are at absorbing sound waves. Hard surfaces reflect sounds, but tactically positioned furniture can diffuse or absorb these sounds. When placed at the entry points of sound waves, such furniture can dampen sounds once they enter your room.
The last method is to cancel out the unwanted noise that enters your room. This can be done by introducing a background sound of your own, such as white noise or music that suits your work or restful needs.
Cheap Soundproofing Methods that Work
If you are constrained by your logistics or skill level, you can first approach soundproofing via simple fixes. Simple hacks will help block, absorb, or cancel out sound to an extent. Here are 10 examples of items that work to reduce the noise levels in your room.
| Item | Uses / How it Works | Costs |
| Existing heavy furniture in your home | Block or absorb unwanted sounds by adding mass against walls and entry points of sounds | Free |
| Old blankets, curtains, rugs, or carpets | Absorb unwanted sounds in your room | Free |
| Weatherstripping roll | Block unwanted sounds by sealing the gaps around doors and windows | Less than $15 |
| Draft Stopper | Block unwanted sounds when laid across the gaps around windows and under doors | Less than $20 |
| Heavy curtains | Absorb unwanted sounds in your room (hang them across a window) | Less than $50 |
| Moving Blankets | Absorb unwanted sounds in your room | Less than $100; Depends on the blanket and the number of blankets within the pack |
| White noise sound machine | Cancel out unwanted sounds by drowning them out with white noise, such as rain and waves | Typically $20-40 |
| Noise cancelling headphones | Block out unwanted sounds when you wear them | Can cost a few hundred dollars |
| Solid Hardwood Door | Block unwanted sounds by reducing sound penetration through the door | Depends on the door; can cost up to a few hundred dollars |
Know that more expensive solutions do not equate to more effectiveness.
For instance, many people do not like the look of hanging blankets or carpeting over their walls, and may instead opt for acoustic wall panels. Sure, acoustic panels may look fancy when fixed to your wall, but they do not effectively reduce sound transfer. Rather, these panels absorb the sounds that have already entered your room via the wall. Know that they do not provide sufficient soundproofing, unless you install them on your entire wall (from top to bottom). This will burn quite a deep hole in your wallet, if you have to cover a larger wall surface area.
Ultimately, if you are going down the DIY route, you must have a good grasp of what you are doing.
Let’s dive into these methods, so that you can find the most effective hack(s) to solve your noise problem.
1. Rearrange your furniture (if you have large pieces)
Redesigning the layout of your furniture does not mean pushing your sofa or bookcase against the wall.
After identifying the source of the unwanted sounds, you need to place your furniture at the right spots to absorb these sounds.
Consider that your sofa might only block out a third of your wall, and your bookcase might be too small to block out your wall. If your furniture does not block the entry points of sounds effectively, your efforts will likely be futile.
Rearranging your furniture is only worthwhile if you have larger furniture items that can be positioned tactically, or if noise is entering through a small wall that you can easily block out. Examples of large furniture items are bookcases, wardrobes, couches, unused desks, and thick mattresses.
2. Use Old Blankets, Curtains, or Rugs
Chances are that every household has old blankets, curtains, or rugs lying around. The thicker your items, the more effective they will be in dampening the noises that enter your room. Thicker furniture can absorb noises floating around on the inside.
If you have them, gather them for the following purposes:
- Place them over the sources of noise, such as your door, window, or wall
- Stuff them into openings, such as the gap under your door
If function is more important than aesthetics, you can hang an old blanket on the wall. Otherwise, decorate your wall via canvas paintings or tapestries – but know that they should cover as much wall area as needed.
If the neighbour living on the floor beneath you is the source of noise, laying out carpets and thick rugs on the floor can help.
If you are hanging a thick blanket on your front door, you might need to use adhesive tape, glue, and finishing nails — some DIY work is involved.
3. Soundproof Doors and Windows to Seal Cracks and Gaps
Not everyone has a door with a solid core that keeps sound out. However, everyone can do the basics of sealing cracks and gaps. If a shut door fails to keep sound out, sealing cracks and gaps is something worth trying.
Even if your door has a solid core, there may be a gap underneath your door. You can block the gap with a thick rug (you could also use an old blanket). Otherwise, use a draft stopper, which is designed to keep out cold air from entering your room and can be installed under your door. Since sound is transferred via air, a draft stopper can keep sound out.
Another common way that doors let in outside noise is through the gaps between the door and its frame. Most doors are designed imperfectly, such that when shut, there is not a perfect fit between the door and the frame. This imperfect fit allows air and sound to pass through.
In this case, weatherstripping is a useful solution, since its purpose is to block the transmission of water and air. By sealing the gaps around your doors and windows, rain is prevented from entering your apartment, and interior air (from heating, air conditioning) is prevented from escaping.
If you buy weatherstripping that is self-adhesive, simply peel off the tape and fix it onto the edges of your door or windows. Weatherstripping is a relatively cheap method to block out sound, and it will work — unless the core of your door is simply too hollow to keep out sound.
4. Use Heavy Curtains
You may have a window that lets in unwanted sounds. Instead of upgrading your window entirely which can be expensive, you can upgrade your curtains. This is inexpensive as upgrading your curtains will likely cost you less than $50.
Use heavy curtains to hang over your windows and absorb the sound that enters. The thicker and heavier the curtains, the more effective they will be at absorbing sound vibrations. This is why heavy duty blackout curtains are a good idea.
A set of heavy curtains can reduce the echo within your room. Since sounds reflect off hard surfaces, you may notice that rooms with heavy curtains present feel quieter.
Besides muffling noises, heavy curtains can also help to block out sunlight. This is particularly useful if you need an afternoon nap. However, good lighting is essential for a productive working environment. If you are working in your bedroom or office, using light-blocking curtains may mean that you would have to switch on your lights during the day. Do invest in better quality lighting.
5. Use Heavy Moving Blankets
Moving blankets are used to wrap around fragile and large pieces of furniture when moving. Besides its main purpose, moving blankets have become a somewhat popular soundproofing solution.
Moving blankets work like the heavy curtains over your windows. Moving blankets can absorb the sound reverberations and echoes in your room.
Once again, the thicker the blanket, the more effective it would be in dampening noise.
Moving blankets are particularly versatile, since they can be wrapped around your walls, windows, or doors.
If your door has a weak core, you can hang a moving blanket on it to absorb the sounds using a curtain rod. Alternatively, you can use glue to attach your blanket to your door or fix the blanket permanently to your door with nails.
If you do not mind sacrificing the appearance of your wall, you can glue moving blankets to it or use nails to attach them.
6. Use White Noise to Drown Out Annoying Sounds
Besides blocking or absorbing sounds, you can try to cancel out the sounds that have entered your room.
White noise is a constant background noise that drowns out other sounds, but it is non-disruptive by nature. Examples of white noise include the sounds of rain, a whirring fan, or a humming air conditioner.
The most inexpensive method is to plug in your headphones and find a “white noise” video or playlist on YouTube. There are also white noise applications you can download on your phone.
Another way to drown out white noise is to use a sound machine. A white noise sound machine is specifically built to produce a variety of background sounds, such as rain, waves, chirping birds, and other nature sounds. It is used to promote relaxation and better sleep, but it can also enhance productivity by drowning out the distracting sounds in the background.
If your fan or air conditioning does not produce enough white noise, a white noise sound machine can drown out the unwanted sounds you hear.
7. Use Noise Cancelling Headphones
Another way to drown out sounds in your immediate environment is the use of active noise cancelling headphones.
Active noise cancelling headphones are on the pricier side, but they work really well and are quite hassle free. It does not require installation, skill, or any other logistics. What is amazing is that a good pair of headphones can open up the possibility of working in places that were previously too noisy to work in.
You can essentially work in multiple areas of your apartment or office, be it in the kitchen, family room, or the walkway — as long as you are not bothered by people.
Thankfully, you can find noise cancelling headphones in the market for less than $100. These headphones are high in quality and well-reviewed.
8. Replace Your Door
Lastly, you may want to replace your door. This may be the most expensive hack of all, but a solid-core hardwood door solves the problem of a hollow core door that does nothing to stop sound from penetrating.
You may have determined that your door is the sound leaking culprit. If you have sealed up cracks and gaps (as mentioned above), what you are left with is the option of replacing your door.
A solid hardwood door is known to reduce sound penetration considerably.
Summary
Soundproofing projects generally require a good degree of DIY skills and money, and they may have to be carried out by a professional. If you have the resources, you could invest your money (or time) to create a complete, air-tight, and professionally built soundproof environment.
Otherwise, we have covered some basic ways of quieting your space. Many of these methods can be done quite cheaply, and often with little time involved.
If you are unsure where to start, simply identify the source(s) of your noise. Then, pick one (or more) of the methods in this article. Either block noise from entering your space, absorb noises in your immediate environment, or cancel out those noises. Have fun!