How To Reduce Road Noise In House

If you live in a noisy neighborhood or urban areas you probably want to learn how to reduce road noise in house right? Just like you, I live in a noisy neighborhood and traffic noise can be quite irritating.

I’ve been doing DIY soundproofing for years and I’ve been able to implement some of the methods I will describe in the next few paragraphs below. Let’s get started, shall we?

Ways on How to Block Road Noise from House

There are different methods one can use to prevent road noise from making entry into their houses. First you can either decide to reduce road noise by erecting different types of traffic noise barriers and secondly you can choose to soundproof your house. Whatever approach you use, you’ll be able to note some significant decrease in outside noises.

1. Soundproof your windows

Sound travels easily through the gaps on your windows and that how traffic noise easily makes its way to your house. In sound insulating your windows, you have a variety of options.

• You can either replace the existing window with a soundproof one or you can soundproof your existing window.

But because I know that replacing a window with a soundproofed window can be expensive and that most of us live in rented units where it’s impossible to do such major renovations, I have come up with some DIY hacks that will ensure that you able to reduce unwanted sounds coming through your windows.

Noise reducing curtains

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Soundproofed curtains are designed using heavy dampening material that blocks out unwanted sounds. These are not your ordinary curtains you will find on the market.

I have written a detailed guide of some of my recommended noise reducing curtains in this article. While my list includes 10 different curtains, here is my recommended soundproofed curtain you can get today.

The curtains needs to extend all the way to the floor and the width should be relatively longer than the actual window size.

2. Sound Insulate the door

You can either replace existing door with a noise proofed door or try some hacks and to prevent unwanted noises coming through the door. But since replacing the existing door can be a hassle, expensive and at times impossible when living in a rented unit, there are some alternatives you can try. You should seal all the gaps on the door.

You can use door sweeps (check my recommended list) to seal the gap that exist between the door and the floor.

Additionally, you can use Keliiyo Window Seal Strip for both Windows and Doors to seal any gap that found on your windows and doors. Besides serving you a primary role of preventing unwanted noises making way into your house, this product also comes with bonus benefits as its great for preventing dust, wind, cold, insects and protects your window or door from abrasion.

(Check user reviews and more photos)

3.  Try Traffic Barriers

When I talk of traffic barriers, I refer to something that you set up outside your house, it could be a fence, a hedge, metallic panels, and so forth. So let’s have a look at some of traffic barriers and how they reduce road noise in house.

a)    Noise reducing fences

These are fences built with the primary goal to reduce noise. They’re often dense, tall and provide all year round coverage.

Soundproofing fences are typically designed from some sort of plastic composite or layered wood.

Compared to a brick wall, they are cheaper, are easier to set up and are stylish. If you’re serious about reducing road noise in your house, garden or backyard, then noise reducing fences is one of the most viable option.

b)     Build a brick wall

One of the most effective road noise reducing barriers is a brick wall. While it can be an expensive venture to build a brick wall you will benefits from its efficiency for many years to come. Since they’re designed thick, they don’t transfer sound through vibrations.

You can build a brick wall as tall as you would like but make sure you confirm with local construction authorities before erecting one to ensure you comply with the set rules and regulations.

c)      Wooden Fencing

While a wooden fence wont offer the efficiency of a brick wall, it’s a cheap alternative that’s provide all year round soundproofing benefits. But for soundproofing purposes, you should make sure that the wooden bars that make up the fence are tightly packed and that no gaps exist.

The wall should be 2 meters tall.

d)     Hedging

Planting a thick hedge can do a good job in dampening the unwanted noises from a busy road. A hedge also adds aesthetic value to your garden and also serves as home to different kinds of creatures.

Evergreen shrubs are recommended because they not only provide dense coverage from ground level but also because they provide all year round coverage.

The only downside with hedges is that they can take forever to grow to a height where they’ll offer “enough” soundproofing benefits. So the best option would be to pair it with a soundproofing fence until the hedge has grown to a level where it can block unwanted sounds.

4. Try white noise

a) White noise machine

Road noise is loud and annoying. Investing in a white noise machine can help you mask out traffic noise. Here are some of recommended white noise machines you can try them out today. While you will need to place a white noise machine in your house, there are some other white noise ideas you can try them in your garden. See them below.

b) Water fountains

There’s nothing more soothing than the sound of running water. A water fountain can transform your noisy garden to an oasis of calm. While you might require an expert to install one for you, setting a water fountain is easy unless you’re afraid of a spade.

Final thoughts on how to block road noise from house

There goes different methods on how to reduce road noise in house. While there might be other different methods you can apply, above are the most effective approaches you can try today. They are cheap and reliable and you don’t need to hire an expert because they are all simple DIY hacks.