How To Soundproof A House Or Apartment For Babies And Toddlers

Setting your baby up in a nursery is kind of like moving in next to a drunk. They soil themselves with blissful disregard, nod off during perfectly civilized conversations about Elmo, and shout all night for no apparent reason. They also might take exception to you watching Game of Thrones at full volume during their nap. Therefore, you’d be wise to learn how to soundproof an apartment for a baby. ASAP.

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If your living situation includes a lot of shared walls, it’s possible your neighbors are less excited about the new arrival of that adorable little Bukowski than you and your partner. While you may selfishly want to keep the kid from hearing the great battles of Westeros, Kramer across the hall is also within crying distance, and he wants serenity now. Fortunately, some basic soundproofing can keep things calm and quiet in your apartment for baby and everyone else.

How To Muffle Or Silence Noisy Appliances

Start by moving noisy appliances away from any walls that are shared with the nursery. Dishwashers, washing machines, and even refrigerators produce a constant hum that can create a hazy background din that forces you to talk louder and crank the TV. If you can’t move the appliances, consider upgrading to quieter models — the peace and energy savings will be worth it, and you can always claim it’s for the baby’s hygiene! If all that is impossible, consider at least soundproofing the laundry room, which has the two noisiest appliances in your joint.

How to Soundproof a Laundry Room

With a relatively minimal investment, walls can be turned into more robust sound-blockers using acoustic paneling. Not incidentally, this makes your laundry room the perfect place for that drum kit you swore you’d buy one day.

Speaker Placement for a Soundproof Apartment

Other fairly inexpensive ways to make sure babe and the neighbors don’t tell you to keep it down during the Battle of the Blackwater include getting your speakers off the ground and sitting a tad closer to your center speaker if you use the surround. Those things, respectively, keep your speakers from transferring vibrations through the walls and allow you to hear the important stuff way better, like how Jon Snow is actually a Targaryen. Just kidding. Maybe.

Hiring a Professional To Soundproof an Apartment or House

Of course, if you really want to make things super duper quiet, you can go full-on DIY Network renovation style. A professional soundproofer in New York City does the job right, primarily by creating small, empty insulating spaces in the walls and pairing that with a mass-loaded vinyl barrier, which sounds like something that could’ve held the gate. Or the door. Prepare to raid the college fund, though – a pro can charge up to $8,000 per 100 square feet of wall.

But that’s alright. Because the more everyone sleeps, the harder you can work … to finally make it to Season 6.