Floor & wall finishes
Acoustic vinyl flooring solutions for housing
Kenny Miller of Gerflor argues that vinyl flooring is the right acoustic solution for the housing sector
U
nwanted sound can have a detrimental effect on people’s health and well-being especially when living where constant nuisance noise can be acute.
In residential environments nuisance noise is usually more bothersome to
occupants of homes where impact sound travels from one dwelling to another, especially from rooms above to spaces below. This has been exacerbated by the building of more flats and multi-storey apartments, the conversion of older, single dwellings into multi-occupancy homes, and the trend for extending homes to include three or more floors. The greater use of hard floorings such as wood, stone, and wood laminates
over carpets and cushioned floorings in homes has also contributed to higher levels of disturbance caused by impact sound on upper floors to rooms below. Impact sound transmission is a form of structure-borne sound made by the impact of an object on another, generating sound transmission. Impact
sound can be transmitted through the floor construction to the room below, commonly by footsteps. Sound insulation levels are measured using a decibel (db) scale, which involves logarithmic units to measure airborne and impact sound. Pioneering vinyl flooring manufacturers have therefore responded to the
need to control impact sound by introducing residential acoustic vinyls with sound insulation levels as high as 19db. These floorings are now playing a vital role in minimising impact sound within homes, both in multi-occupancy and single dwellings, and in the private and public sector. As acoustic, residential floorings can mimic wood, wood laminate, and stone
floorings so successfully and look and perform better than ever before, they provide a quieter and more practical solution where sound-proofing is required, especially in buildings that have been converted into flats and apartments. The UK’s Building Regulations 2003 Part E: Resistance to the Passage of
www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMM November 2018 | 39
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