AcoustiWood Fence Blocks Residential Noise
Outdoor soundproofing and noise control are very different beasts than their indoor counterparts.
The situations, problems and solutions that arise in outdoor circumstances often require larger-scale projects and are sometimes much more complicated than those that arise indoors.
These factors usually result in expensive slow-moving projects.
This case study, however, explores a project that used the AcoustiWood Fence System, which is an Acoustical Solutions product that cuts down on both time and money.
Application Introduction
When administrators at a large youth organization's regional headquarters in Virginia decided it was time to expand their on-site youth services, circumstances were almost ideal.
Not only had a two-story home adjacent to the organization's offices recently gone up for sale, but there was also plenty of back yard space on the newly available property to install an in-ground pool.
The fact that the adjacent land was located in a neighborhood, however, did create one possible hiccup. There were multiple homes sitting very close to what would probably turn out to be some very noisy summer days in that big back yard.
Local government informed the organization that if any of the neighbors complained about noise, a sound barrier would have to be erected around the pool area.
Well ... the neighbors complained.
Within a month of the new pool's construction the first complaints had already been made about noise levels.
Treatment Provided
After learning about the problem this organization faced, Jack Kay, Acoustical Solutions' environmental sales engineer, knew exactly what product was perfect for the project, the AcoustiWood Fence System.
The county's proffer/mandate, however, strongly suggested that a different type of sound barrier be used.
In knowing Acoustical Solutions' AcoustiWood Fence System would perform just as well, but would be far less expensive, Jack drew up his AcoustiWood ideas for the acoustic treatment.
Naturally, the organization's administrators were very happy to learn about the more economical AcoustiWood, which ended up saving them about 40 percent of what they would have paid for the county's sound barrier suggestion.
The AcoustiWood Fence System is a lightweight wooden post-and-panel system developed specifically to reduce noise levels for residential and commercial areas.
The fence installed was 90 ft. long and 8 ft. high.
AcoustiWood's benefits include the following:
- Panels can be attached to existing fences or screen walls and finished in a number of ways such as "dog ear", lattice, vinyl, metals, or stucco.
- The system reduces noise from commercial and residential HVAC equipment, chillers, pool pumps, industrial machinery, transformers, kennels, construction operations, and roadways. It can also be easily made into a temporary barriers for either short or long term projects
- Unfinished panels are lightweight, starting as low as 3.25 lbs. psf.
- Lighter weight and easy installation lowers costs and the simple straightforward design allows for easy repair and replacement if needed.
Preliminary field test results show reductions of as much as 26 dBa with excellent results in the lower frequency range usually only found in high priced systems! Panels can be reconfigured to produce higher or lower STC requirements and value engineering for your project.
For more information on this application, contact Jack Kay.
