What is a good STC rating for walls?

What is a good STC rating for walls?

For multi-family construction, the minimum IBC code is STC=50. However STC=60+ is recommended for party walls in higher quality construction such as hotels, townhomes, condos, and certainly quality home theaters. The FHA recommendations for Luxury Grade 1 dwellings are also 55 to 60.

Which wall assembly has the best STC rating?

In wood-frame construction, the most effective wall in terms of acoustical performance is a double stud wall. As shown in Figure 3, this wall can achieve a rating of approximately STC 63 when insulated with batt insulation and covered with two layers of gypsum wallboard on the outside faces of the studs.

How do you get STC 50 walls?

Summary: Increasing STC Ratings Use common rules of thumb, including moving to lighter gauge studs and spacing studs further apart. Then consider adding soundproof membranes and other soundproofing materials to improve your wall STC to 50, 55, or beyond.

What is an STC 50 wall?

A sound blocking level of STC 50 means that a listener in a quiet room would need to exert effort to hear raised speech levels in adjacent rooms, and the speech would not be understandable or disruptive.

What is the STC rating of 2 layers of 5/8 drywall?

between 30-34
With two sheets total, of 5/8” drywall utilizing standard insulation we often see STC ratings ranging between 30-34. With two total sheets of ½” drywall (common for residential interior walls) we usually see an STC rating of around 33.

Is an STC rating of 50 good?

STC rating of 38-42 is considered good soundproofing for residential. STC rating of 50-65 is professional, commercial soundproofing for recording studios, etc. These terms and definitions are related to Sound Transmission Class and will help provide the full picture of how sound is measured. dBa – A-weighted decibels.

What is the STC rating of QuietRock?

QuietRock 545 on a single stud wall has an STC rating of 56.

What is the best STC rating?

Sound Transmission Class (STC):

Is STC 60 good?

Understanding STC (Sound Transmission Class) An STC rating of 20 is considered very poor while a rating of 60 is considered excellent . For example, if you were in a room where a wall joining an adjacent room had an STC rating of 20 you would be able to hear someone speaking at a low volume through that wall.

What does STC 60 mean?

Loud speech audible, music easily heard. STC 52-55. Loud speech audible if straining to listen, music can be heard and may still be disturbing. STC 57-60. Loud speech essentially inaudible, music can be heard faintly but bass may still be disturbing.

What STC rating do I need?

Things to note: STC rating of 25 is what can be easily heard. STC rating of 38-42 is considered good soundproofing for residential. STC rating of 50-65 is professional, commercial soundproofing for recording studios, etc.

Does QuietRock really work?

QuietRock can improve the soundproofing by 15 to 20 points on the STC scale, while it will take up to four sheets of drywall to have the same effect. If you’re doing both sides of a partition wall, that’s 2 sheets of QuietRock for 8 of the gypsum.

How to determine the STC rating of a wall?

Wall Material. The material and thickness of the actual wall have a huge impact on the STC rating.

What is an acceptable STC rating?

Sound Transmission Class or STC is the rating system by which the ability of a partition to attenuate, (reduce the effect of) airborne sound is measured. Materials are tested over multiple sound frequencies, from bass levels of 125Hz to treble levels of 4000Hz. They are then assigned STC ratings , a United States standard since 1961.

What are the standard sizes for a metal stud?

Standard Web Size: 2-1/2” (250S),3-1/2” (350S),3-5/8” (362S),4” (400S),5-1/2” (550S),6” (600S),8” (800S),10” (1000S),12” (1200S),14” (1400S)

How to install metal studs to make a wall?

To trim to correct length,cut both side flanges of a steel stud. Use straight-cut aviation snips for this.