Acoustics...Drywall Ceiling or Suspended

14 years ago

From a purely 'sound' aspect, which method will supress the most noise from permiating upstairs from a basement. Note we already have fg insulation in the rafters between the two floors. Hardwood is upstair and some carpet.

1) A typical suspended ceiling with ceiling tile.

2) A drywall ceiling secured directly to the rafters.

3) Cut drywall placed in the suspended ceiling.

I suspect the regular suspended ceiling is the answer but many here drywall their ceilings in their basements so I am unsure. I also heard that if you drywall you should leave a space; ie do not attach the drywall directly to the rafters but rather to fur strips first thus leaving some space...this is suppose to help sound permiation. Is this true? If so, then (other than asthetics) why not just put the drywall in the suspended ceiling...it cheaper and requires no spackling, sanding, mess, etc etc....and is cheaper than ceiling tile.

Thanks!

Comments (4)

worthy
14 years ago
None of those methods are of much use.

For the lowest cost upgrade, use drywall on resilient metal channel. Firring strips are useless.

Next steps up--constrained-layer drywall such as Quietrock; or Green Glue noiseproofing compound, which works best with two layers of drywall.
andrelaplume2
Original Author
14 years ago
what is resilient metal channel?
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worthy
14 years ago
See link below for a picture and excellent description of how the channel works and how it should be installed. I've put it in a number of times with mixed results that come, no doubt, from the varying care of the installers. Just one mistake can short-circuit a wall.

I've used constrained layer drywall and was satisfied with the result. A lot easier to install than the channel. Green Glue yields similar test results to the drywall products. Both QR and Green Glue publish independent data with test results.

Here is a link that might be useful: Resilient Channels - How metal absorbs sound waves
kuschman03
14 years ago
I would say it kind of depends on what you are trying to accomplish in your basement. If its just going to be storage and you wont ever be down there, that's one thing. If its something where you may be spending some time at some point it may be important to have at least look a little bit decent. I would say look into Ceilume Ceiling Tiles. You can use their tiles which have an NRC rating of anywhere from 25-35% and also you could use something like a rigid insulation on top of that.

Check out the following link for what other people have done with Basements:

http://www.ceilume.com/gallery/results.cfm?catid_16=2

I used their tiles and am so thrilled with both the customer service and the results of my new basement I am spreading the word.

I was sold on their free samples, I thought it would cost money like almost every other ceiling tile company I checked out, but they sent them absolutely 100% free. Here's a link to the sample page for you:

http://www.ceilume.com/ceilingtile_browsefreesamples.cfm

Hope this helps, just remember that your basement can be used for a lot more than just storage, i converted mine into an extra living room and my kids LOVE IT!