Acoustic double glazing - how much will it help?

[andyste]

We have a problem with noisy neighbours - shift workers coming and going at all hours (engines running, doors banging, and one car with a loud exhaust). The exhaust is particularly bad as it's not only noisy but reverberates through the house.

Our house already has uPVC DG from when it was built around 16 years ago. It's a cheap Redrow special as you can hear people having a conversation outside, and draughts come through the joints between the bay window sections (I once pulled off the trim and found copious amounts of expanding filler with some daylight behind it). I filled the trickle vents in our bedroom a few years ago, which helped a little.

I was wondering if replacing the windows (acoustic double glazing, triple glazing, or secondary) is likely to make much of a difference, especially given the nature of the noise - it's not your usual passing traffic. I don't want to fork out on an expensive white elephant.

 

[tomfe]

Will it make a big difference, yes. Will it solve your problem, no idea. It won't stop your house vibrating that's for sure.

 

[ronniecabers]

Acoustic glass making a difference will depend on many factors ...such as the how well your roof is soundproofed , plus your walls, also will depend on the actually frequencies of the noise you are trying to reduce. You can get secondary glazing with laminate designed to reduce noise , which would mean you wouldn't need to change all the windows, just bear in mind the laminate would have to be a specific distance away from the existing glass to work correctly

 

[Doggit]

The problem is actually anti social behaviour, and can be dealt through the council (music), or the police in your case. I assume you don't wish to approach them over it, but they may not realise what they are doing. Covering over the trickle vents, and keeping the windows closed will eventually cause mould and other issue.

 

[Gazman16]

I would say no without spending silly money.
Standard acoustic units (around 3 times the price of normal units) are said to reduce sound by around 30 db, This is equivalent to someone whispering or leafs rustling in a tree. Good heavy duty curtains would probably give the same effect.

The best improvement would most likely be secondary glazing fitted 100mm away from the windows and would likely cost around the same as acoustic units