Insulating my room at DVinfo.net

Kathy Smith · August 17th, 2016, 01:20 PM

I have a space at work which is located right next to a server room (very tiny, I think there are just 2 servers there) but the room is more noisy than a normal room. I can't really do any construction but I was wondering if there was anything I can do to maybe insulate the doors at least between my office and the server room? Or maybe even do something to the wall that separates me from that room. Any ideas?

Oren Arieli · August 17th, 2016, 04:10 PM

If you're handy with a hammer, saw and nails, you can easily build a frame that will hold panels of rockwool insulation. Covered with some cheap fabric, they look quite decent. I had to build 6 for a rather lively office and it helped greatly with slap echo. I'm not sure it would solve your sound-bleeding problem, if its coming through the entirety of the wall. Having another air-surface barrier is one option. It can range from hanging heavy-duty sound blankets to having another layer of drywall installed with some insulation in between. I guess it all depends on your budget, and how quiet you need to get the room.

Richard Crowley · August 17th, 2016, 06:30 PM

The absorbing solution suggested by Mr. Arieli is what you need if you have a problem with the room sounding "boxy" or reverberent. But that kind of insulation won't block sound coming from outside the room.

The only thing that will BLOCK sound is MASS or DISTANCE (which is just MASS using air). To block sound coming through the wall, you can build a double-wall to break the mechanical coupling between the noisy side and the quiet side. And/or you can simply add mass to the wall by adding multiple sheets of dry-wall (sheetrock) and/or mass material like sheet lead, etc.

To block noise through doors, you can first make sure the gaps are well filled. Often the same kind products used for "weather-stripping" on exterior doors could help block sound coming through the gaps. Note that the gap at the bottom of the door is typically a huge hole for sound. Some people use long, tubular sand bags to cover the gap at the bottom of the door.

The other way doors leak sound is because they are hollow-core (vs solid). So you should consider whether it is worth replacing the present door with a solid-core.

Jon Fairhurst · August 17th, 2016, 06:53 PM

What Richard says.

Fortunately, a server room doesn't make much low frequency sound. It's easier to block highs than lows.

Regarding the rock wool idea. you might put it and/or fiberglass insulation in the server room itself, rather than in the studio. The idea is for the material to absorb the sound and turn it into heat before it hits the wall and is transmitted through it.

The other thing you can do is potentially refurbish the loudest computers to use quieter fans, power supplies, SSDs, etc.Here's a good resource: silentpcreview.com | Everything about Silent / Quiet Computers

Then again, you can make like Spinal Tap and turn your monitors up to eleven, but I don't recommend it.:)

Bruce Dempsey · August 18th, 2016, 02:36 AM

EVA FOAM for your floor will suck up lots of sound
It comes in 2' x 2' interlocking squares and there are 4 squares in a pack for less than 20 dollars
very easy to lay no skill required and the will make for a quieter room for you they can be found in many stores and of course : https://www.walmart.com/c/kp/eva-foam
hope this helps a bit

Rainer Listing · August 18th, 2016, 05:47 PM

All the above will help, but I think we might need a bit more information. Are you an employee? If so, you possibly shouldn't be doing this on your own. Explain to your employer you need quiet to do your job. Who runs the server? If they aren't connected to you, their escaping nuisance noise is causing you damage, and it really should be up to them to correct it.

Pete Cofrancesco · August 19th, 2016, 12:06 PM

A simpler solution is to wear headphones.

Rick Reineke · August 20th, 2016, 03:46 PM

"A simpler solution is to wear headphones"
Yes, and Waves has a plug-in specifically for mixing on HPs. Nx Virtual Mix Room + Nx Head Tracker.

Greg Miller · August 27th, 2016, 04:39 AM

Real high-density rack-mounted servers (as opposed to PCs running server software) can be extremely loud, and do not lend themselves readily to retrofitting of fans, etc.

You might try lining the interior walls and ceiling of the server room with one of the products below. This would not really require "construction" per se, just having someone on the building maintenance staff hang the product on the walls. Also, be sure the door is solid core, not hollow core (as suggested above), and line the interior side of the door with the same product.

Go to this page: McMaster-Carr
and scroll down to Sound Absorber-Barriers.

Of course use appropriate gasketing around the perimeter of the door. Be sure the crack under the door is minimal dimension; better yet, use a rubber or felt sweep and an appropriate threshold, to seal the bottom completely.

Andrew Smith · August 27th, 2016, 06:38 AM

Anyone seen Kathy lately?

Andrew

Kathy Smith · October 4th, 2016, 12:17 PM

Thank you so much everyone and I'm sorry I disappeared for so long. I've been away and then forgot to replay back. What I ended up doing for now was asking the server people to turn off everything that was unnecessary and that did, which did cut the noise level in half. I asked the facilities people to insulate the door and they did so the noise from the server room is much better. The would not do any other alterations and I'm not allowed to do them myself. Things are better but not perfect. It's pretty quiet now unless AC kicks in but I can't do anything about it. Anyway, thank you for your help. I will see if I can do more in the future.

August 17th, 2016, 01:20 PM	#1
Kathy Smith Major Player Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: NY, NY USA Posts: 519	Insulating my room I have a space at work which is located right next to a server room (very tiny, I think there are just 2 servers there) but the room is more noisy than a normal room. I can't really do any construction but I was wondering if there was anything I can do to maybe insulate the doors at least between my office and the server room? Or maybe even do something to the wall that separates me from that room. Any ideas?

August 17th, 2016, 04:10 PM	#2
Oren Arieli Major Player Join Date: May 2007 Location: San Jose, California Posts: 919	Re: Insulating my room If you're handy with a hammer, saw and nails, you can easily build a frame that will hold panels of rockwool insulation. Covered with some cheap fabric, they look quite decent. I had to build 6 for a rather lively office and it helped greatly with slap echo. I'm not sure it would solve your sound-bleeding problem, if its coming through the entirety of the wall. Having another air-surface barrier is one option. It can range from hanging heavy-duty sound blankets to having another layer of drywall installed with some insulation in between. I guess it all depends on your budget, and how quiet you need to get the room.

August 17th, 2016, 06:30 PM	#3
Richard Crowley Trustee Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 1,238	Re: Insulating my room The absorbing solution suggested by Mr. Arieli is what you need if you have a problem with the room sounding "boxy" or reverberent. But that kind of insulation won't block sound coming from outside the room. The only thing that will BLOCK sound is MASS or DISTANCE (which is just MASS using air). To block sound coming through the wall, you can build a double-wall to break the mechanical coupling between the noisy side and the quiet side. And/or you can simply add mass to the wall by adding multiple sheets of dry-wall (sheetrock) and/or mass material like sheet lead, etc. To block noise through doors, you can first make sure the gaps are well filled. Often the same kind products used for "weather-stripping" on exterior doors could help block sound coming through the gaps. Note that the gap at the bottom of the door is typically a huge hole for sound. Some people use long, tubular sand bags to cover the gap at the bottom of the door. The other way doors leak sound is because they are hollow-core (vs solid). So you should consider whether it is worth replacing the present door with a solid-core.

August 17th, 2016, 06:53 PM	#4
Jon Fairhurst Inner Circle Join Date: May 2006 Location: Camas, WA, USA Posts: 5,513	Re: Insulating my room What Richard says. Fortunately, a server room doesn't make much low frequency sound. It's easier to block highs than lows. Regarding the rock wool idea. you might put it and/or fiberglass insulation in the server room itself, rather than in the studio. The idea is for the material to absorb the sound and turn it into heat before it hits the wall and is transmitted through it. The other thing you can do is potentially refurbish the loudest computers to use quieter fans, power supplies, SSDs, etc.Here's a good resource: silentpcreview.com \| Everything about Silent / Quiet Computers Then again, you can make like Spinal Tap and turn your monitors up to eleven, but I don't recommend it.:) __________________ Jon Fairhurst

August 18th, 2016, 02:36 AM	#5
Bruce Dempsey Major Player Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Atlantic Coast Canada Posts: 599	Re: Insulating my room EVA FOAM for your floor will suck up lots of sound It comes in 2' x 2' interlocking squares and there are 4 squares in a pack for less than 20 dollars very easy to lay no skill required and the will make for a quieter room for you they can be found in many stores and of course : https://www.walmart.com/c/kp/eva-foam hope this helps a bit

August 18th, 2016, 05:47 PM	#6
Rainer Listing Major Player Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Nowra, Australia Posts: 440	Re: Insulating my room All the above will help, but I think we might need a bit more information. Are you an employee? If so, you possibly shouldn't be doing this on your own. Explain to your employer you need quiet to do your job. Who runs the server? If they aren't connected to you, their escaping nuisance noise is causing you damage, and it really should be up to them to correct it.

August 19th, 2016, 12:06 PM	#7
Pete Cofrancesco Inner Circle Join Date: May 2004 Location: USA Posts: 3,005	Re: Insulating my room A simpler solution is to wear headphones.

August 20th, 2016, 03:46 PM	#8
Rick Reineke Inner Circle Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: New York Posts: 2,039	Re: Insulating my room "A simpler solution is to wear headphones" Yes, and Waves has a plug-in specifically for mixing on HPs. Nx Virtual Mix Room + Nx Head Tracker.

August 27th, 2016, 04:39 AM	#9
Greg Miller Trustee Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 1,791	Re: Insulating my room Real high-density rack-mounted servers (as opposed to PCs running server software) can be extremely loud, and do not lend themselves readily to retrofitting of fans, etc. You might try lining the interior walls and ceiling of the server room with one of the products below. This would not really require "construction" per se, just having someone on the building maintenance staff hang the product on the walls. Also, be sure the door is solid core, not hollow core (as suggested above), and line the interior side of the door with the same product. Go to this page: McMaster-Carr and scroll down to Sound Absorber-Barriers. Of course use appropriate gasketing around the perimeter of the door. Be sure the crack under the door is minimal dimension; better yet, use a rubber or felt sweep and an appropriate threshold, to seal the bottom completely.

August 27th, 2016, 06:38 AM	#10
Andrew Smith Equal Opportunity Offender Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 3,065	Re: Insulating my room Anyone seen Kathy lately? Andrew

October 4th, 2016, 12:17 PM	#11
Kathy Smith Major Player Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: NY, NY USA Posts: 519	Re: Insulating my room Thank you so much everyone and I'm sorry I disappeared for so long. I've been away and then forgot to replay back. What I ended up doing for now was asking the server people to turn off everything that was unnecessary and that did, which did cut the noise level in half. I asked the facilities people to insulate the door and they did so the noise from the server room is much better. The would not do any other alterations and I'm not allowed to do them myself. Things are better but not perfect. It's pretty quiet now unless AC kicks in but I can't do anything about it. Anyway, thank you for your help. I will see if I can do more in the future.