Soundproofing plasterboard in Newcastle
We supply and fix acoustic board to the system somebody else has designed, on jobs across the Hunter and the Central Coast. Sound insulation is a property of the whole wall rather than of the sheet inside it. The system is set by your builder, your certifier or an acoustic consultant and we install the board to it. We supply the board, the compounds and the fixings. We screw fix rather than using adhesive, because the fixing method is part of the tested assembly. We do not design the system, build the frame or supply the insulation.
Party walls in duplexes and dual occupancies
We sheet the separating wall to the system your builder or certifier has specified. That includes up into the roof space where the specification calls for it. We screw fix to the schedule, we stagger the joints where two layers are called for. We put back exactly the layer count and the board grade named. The framing, the cavity insulation and the design of the wall are all somebody else's. We will not close a wall up until the insulation is in it.
- The layer count and board grade the spec names
- Screwed off, with no glue in the build up
- Sheeted into the roof space where the spec calls for it
Acoustic board in a single house
We fit Soundchek in a home theatre, a studio, a nursery, a home office or a bedroom that backs onto a bathroom. On an existing wall, mass is the honest description of what we are adding. Isolating the two leaves from each other means new framing and that is not work we do. A second layer also brings the wall out into the room. Every architrave, skirting and power point on that wall has to be dealt with afterwards.
- Soundchek at 10mm or 13mm, supplied and fixed
- Adds mass, and we say plainly that is what it adds
- A second layer moves the wall into the room
What decides an acoustic job
Sound insulation is a property of an assembly, and every part of the assembly is load bearing on the result. These are the eight things that decide whether a wall performs, and most of them are settled long before the board arrives on site.
The performance belongs to the system, not to the sheet
CSR is direct about this: enhanced results come when acoustic board is combined with bulk acoustic insulation in the wall cavity. There are four levers and mass is only the first. The others are isolating the two leaves from each other, the type and density of the cavity infill, and sealing every perimeter and penetration. Change the sheet and change nothing else and you have changed the smallest of the four. We supply and fix the board, and the other three belong to whoever designed the wall.
Soundchek is 53 percent heavier than standard board and it is yellow
Soundchek 13mm carries 13kg/m² against 8.5kg/m² for standard 13mm board, and the 10mm sheet carries 9.3kg/m². The yellow face paper is not decoration. It is how anybody on site can verify that what went into the wall is what was specified. That holds months after the invoice, without opening anything up. On a wall that was meant to be acoustic and was patched later in standard board, that colour is the evidence.
The wall has to carry on to the underside of the roof
The Code is explicit on this. A wall required to have sound insulation must continue to the underside of the roof above. The alternative is a ceiling that provides the same sound insulation as the wall. Stop the wall at the ceiling line and the roof space is left open over the top of it. That is the most common and most expensive acoustic non compliance there is. It is invisible at handover and audible on the first night.
Two power points back to back undo the wall
The Code sets the numbers. Electrical outlets are offset by at least 100mm in masonry and 300mm in framed construction. Services are not chased into a masonry or concrete separating wall. Water supply pipes go in discontinuous construction only, with at least 10mm clearance to the adjoining wall. Access doors and panels need at least 10mm overlap and a minimum mass of 24.4kg/m². Most acoustic jobs fail at a penetration rather than in the middle of a wall.
Stud adhesive does not go into an acoustic system
The same rule that keeps adhesive out of a fire rated system keeps it out of this one. The fixing method is part of the tested assembly. A daub of adhesive that bridges the board to the frame short circuits the isolation the system was built to create. We screw fix to the schedule the specification names, and we do not use adhesive anywhere in an acoustic wall.
Discontinuous means no mechanical link between the two leaves
The Code defines it: a minimum 20mm cavity between separate leaves, resilient ties where the wall is masonry. For anything else there is no mechanical linkage except at the periphery. It is required where a bathroom, sanitary compartment, laundry or kitchen in one dwelling backs onto a habitable room next door. One screw through both leaves in the wrong place turns a discontinuous wall into a continuous one.
The insulation density is part of the specification and it is not ours
The Code's own constructions name the infill exactly: glass wool at 11kg/m³, polyester at 20kg/m³, and in one construction 200mm of polyester at 14kg/m³. Thickness and density both count and a substitution breaks the pathway. We do not supply insulation, so it has to be in the cavity, at the specified density, before we sheet. A wall we close up over the wrong batts is a wall somebody opens again.
Near Williamtown the wall build up is a planning condition
Newcastle Airport shares its runway with RAAF Base Williamtown, home of the F-35A. The ANEF maps forecast noise from both military and civilian aircraft including the Salt Ash Air Weapons Range. Land inside the higher contours is treated as unacceptable for housing and land in the band below it as conditionally acceptable and requiring soundproofing. AS 2021 is a standard specifically about building construction for aircraft noise intrusion. Read the current ANEF map for the actual address rather than assuming from the suburb name.
What we do on an acoustic job
We supply and fix the acoustic board
We use Gyprock Soundchek at 10mm and 13mm. The 13mm sheet carries 13kg/m² against 8.5 for standard 13mm board, which is where its performance comes from. It is recognisable by its yellow face paper. A 1200 x 4800 sheet weighs about 75kg, so it is the heaviest sheet in residential plastering.
We install to the specification you give us
The stud size, the centres, the air gap, the insulation density and the number of layers are all part of a tested system. The person who designed it owns those decisions. We fix the board to that specification and we say so on the quote. We do not substitute a product or a layer count to make a job easier.
We sheet the party wall into the roof space
Where the specification calls for the separating wall to continue above the ceiling line, we sheet it up to the underside of the roof. It is awkward, slow work and it is the part most often left out. Tell us at quoting stage, because it changes the figure and it is not something to find out about on the day.
Get a free quote
Send the wall or ceiling specification, or the drawings that carry it, and tell us how many square metres and how many layers. If a party wall has to be sheeted up into the roof space, say so, because that is slow work and it changes the figure. Quoting is free. Quotes are free, including a site visit where one helps, and we do not charge for travel.
Brands we supply and install
Newcastle Gyprocker Heroes supply the board, the cornice, the compounds and the fixings on every job, so there is nothing for you to order and no delivery to wait on. That is worth saying plainly: if you have already bought your own sheets, you are looking for a different arrangement to the one we offer.
Service available across every Newcastle region
City of Newcastle
Newcastle CBD, Newcastle East, The Hill, Cooks Hill, Merewether, Bar Beach, The Junction, Hamilton, Islington, Wickham, Carrington, Tighes Hill, Mayfield, Waratah, Georgetown, Lambton, New Lambton, Adamstown, Broadmeadow, Jesmond, Wallsend, Maryland and Fletcher
Lake Macquarie
Charlestown, Kotara, Warners Bay, Speers Point, Boolaroo, Cardiff, Edgeworth, Glendale, Cameron Park, Belmont, Valentine, Eleebana, Redhead, Dudley, Swansea, Caves Beach, Toronto and Morisset
Maitland and the Hunter Valley
Maitland, East Maitland, Rutherford, Lorn, Bolwarra, Thornton, Beresfield, Chisholm, Gillieston Heights, Lochinvar, Farley, Branxton, Greta, Cessnock, Kurri Kurri, Weston and Singleton
Port Stephens
Raymond Terrace, Heatherbrae, Medowie, Williamtown, Fern Bay, Tomago, Salt Ash, Tanilba Bay, Lemon Tree Passage, Salamander Bay, Corlette, Soldiers Point, Nelson Bay, Shoal Bay and Anna Bay
Central Coast
Gosford, East Gosford, West Gosford, Erina, Woy Woy, Umina Beach, Ettalong Beach, Kincumber, Avoca Beach, Copacabana, MacMasters Beach, Terrigal, Wyoming, Wyong, Tuggerah, Watanobbi, Berkeley Vale, Bateau Bay, Long Jetty, The Entrance, Toukley, Budgewoi, San Remo and Lake Munmorah
Frequently asked questions
Do you soundproof the wall between two houses?
Yes, we sheet it. Newcastle Gyprocker Heroes supply and fix the acoustic board to the system your builder, certifier or acoustic consultant has specified. Roof space work is included where the specification calls for it. We do not design the wall, build the frame or supply the cavity insulation. Send us the specification and we will price the sheeting to it.
Will acoustic board on its own stop the noise?
No, and CSR says the same. Acoustic board adds mass, which is one of four things that make a wall quiet. The other three are isolating the two leaves, the density of the cavity insulation and sealing every penetration. It is also why a wall that handles conversation still passes bass, because low frequencies are the part mass alone struggles with.
Do you supply the insulation?
No. Newcastle Gyprocker Heroes supply the board, the compounds and the fixings, and the cavity insulation comes from your builder or your insulation contractor. The density and the thickness are named in the specification and a substitution breaks it. The right product has to be in the cavity before we sheet over it.
Do you install the steel studs or the acoustic mounts?
No, none of them. Steel studs, timber stud rows, ceiling battens, furring channel and resilient mounts are all a framing trade's work, and each carries its own setout. Newcastle Gyprocker Heroes supply and fix board. We start once the insulation is in the cavity and the wall is closed up ready for sheeting.
Does a party wall have to go up into the roof space?
Yes, where the Code requires the wall to have sound insulation. It must continue to the underside of the roof above, or meet a ceiling that provides the same sound insulation as the wall. Stopping it at the ceiling leaves a path over the top from one dwelling into the other. It is far cheaper to sheet at frame stage than to fix after handover.
Can you soundproof one room in an existing house?
Yes, within limits worth knowing before you order it. We can add Soundchek over or in place of the existing lining, which adds mass. We cannot isolate the wall from the frame, because that needs new framing. A second layer also brings the wall into the room, so the architraves, skirtings and power points on that wall all need attention afterwards.
What does aircraft noise near Williamtown mean for my build?
It can mean the wall and ceiling build up is a condition of approval rather than a choice. Newcastle Airport shares its runway with RAAF Base Williamtown and the ANEF maps forecast military and civilian aircraft noise. AS 2021 covers building construction for aircraft noise intrusion. Read the current ANEF map for your address, because the contour is set by the block rather than by the suburb.
Ready to get a price?
Send plans or photographs and we will price the job. Quoting is free and so is the travel.