Do Soundproof Panels Work in Apartments? What Renters Get

Soundproof panels work in apartments for echo, not for neighbor noise. A 2 in. fiberglass panel soaks up nearly all the mid-range sound that hits it (NRC 1.00 for Owens Corning 703 (opens in a new tab)), but it weighs only about 0.5 lb/sq ft (3.0 lb/cu ft x 2 / 12), and blocking sound takes weight.

For scale, a full layer of 5/8 in. drywall weighs more than four times as much, and it only took an insulated wall from STC 34 to 37 in USG's lab tests (opens in a new tab). A panel adds less than that.

Vertical STC scale from 30 to 50: at STC 30 loud speech next door is fairly well understood, at 35 audible but not intelligible, at 45 barely audible and the field code minimum, at 50 not audible and the lab code minimum; a 3 point bracket shows what one extra drywall layer added — Speech levels come from Johns Manville (opens in a new tab); code minimums come from LADBS on IBC Section 1206 (opens in a new tab).

Watch out: if you can make out words through a wall built to the STC 50 code, sound is probably sneaking around it, under the entry door or through the outlets. One unsealed 1/8 in. gap 1 ft long drops a wall from STC 46 to 36 in PABCO's guide (opens in a new tab).

So as a renter, you'll get more out of a door sweep, gaskets and outlet putty pads (all of which come off at move-out) than out of panels. The step-by-step method is in how to block noise from a shared wall, deposit-safe products are in soundproof panels for apartments, and the soundproof panels guide covers which panel to buy for echo. There are more answers in the soundproof panels FAQ.

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