Heavy curtains and soundproofing

tonyhiggins

Hi folks, I've moved into a new place that has a big glass door onto a small balcony over a busy road. I'm looking at tackling it for two reasons, heat loss (still a bit chilly!) and noise. The curtains are only ok anyway so I reckon I'll try to replace them with some very heavy ones. Can anyone recommend somewhere in Galway to get em at a good price?

Also, that'd help with the noise also I'm sure but I'm looking at other options too which are more of a long shot, like mass loaded vinyl which doesn't seem that available in Ireland. Anyone ever seen it in Galway, or other soundproofing materials?

Drywall will work too apparently, cutting into the shape of the window frame to fit into it, but I don't know where to get that either!

Barring that, I'm going to go for some MDF or something combined with foam cut to size to fit into the window frame..

tonyhiggins

Thick foam would be good too..

snubbleste

Are you renting? Did you ask the landlord?

tonyhiggins

It's rented, and it's an agency..

snubbleste

Did you ask the agency then..?

You could try second-hand furniture shops like StVdeP on Merchants Road.

biko

If door opens up you can put draft seal strips around the edges, this works wonders for noise and draft.
You'd probably be better off in DIY forum.

witnessrenegade

How noisey and cold is the house that you are willing to get drywall to cover a window over? What part of Galway is it in if you don't mind me asking? Would like to make sure I don't move into a flat around their if they are that badly built!
Theirs a Curtain and Blind store in the Liosban Industrial Estate, you could ask them could they make you up heavy curtains

tonyhiggins

Well, maybe I should have said - it's not a permanent solution. I want to make them so that they're removable, fit snugly into the windows with handles on em so that they can be easily taken out.. I make music too so it's a room solution also - I'll be doing some acoustic treatment of the whole room, this is part of it. It's on the Lower Salthill road, it's a very nice room apart from the sound!

I might try these folks http://www.efoam.ie/acoustic.html . But the easiest, quickest Galway based solution to try first is to get some curtains I reckon..

Das Kitty

Well we got some medium weight curtains for our front door and the difference in noise and heat is amazing. My Mum has light curtains on her door and it make a huge difference too.

I got mine in the sale in Anthony Ryan's in January.

Another option (if it's for sleeping you need the noise reduced) is wax earplugs, they're fantastic yokes.

padraig71

I would have a look at Thomann - they do stage backdrops of heavy fabric that might be useful if you hung it over some kind of frame. I'm not sure that the acoustic foam you've linked to is intended to stop noise coming in from outside so much as to control reverb within a space, but in any case you could probably find a cheaper DIY solution. Sounds like what you need is more like a baffle that they use in studios - if so, you could probably make one easily enough if you do a bit of googling. Also try searching the 'Sound on Sound' archive online, they often have stuff about improving home studios, e.g. http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar06/articles/studiosos.htm. Good luck with it.

witnessrenegade

If your making music cover the room in egg cartons, Blink 182 did it when they were starting off and recorded their first album at home in a room covered in egg cartons!:D

wet-paint

Hey Tony, I found heavy blankets in Ryans Homestore for twenty bucks a pop, which worked grand as curtains, as my front door is a heat sump, and I needed some way to keep the heat from leaching out the thin glass.

tonyhiggins

Sound! I'll check them out, where in the shop were they?

wet-paint

Upstairs in the corner on the right in front of the top of the stairs.

tonyhiggins

Ah nuts, I was looking downstairs, quite pricey there.

Anyway, followed a recommendation here to contact the letting agency and I think they're going to sort me with em. Still yet to test any other soundproofing options like putting plants etc on the balcony and things like that