Will soundproofing products help with noisy floors?

Will soundproofing products help with noisy floors?

If you’ve been battling with squeaky, creaky, or downright noisy floors, you might have already tried a few solutions. Maybe even some soundproofing products like acoustic underlay or special mats. But will soundproofing products help with noisy floors? Let’s break it down.

Understanding the type of noise

Not all noise is created equal. In fact, there are two main types of noise to think about: airborne noise and mechanical noise.

Airborne noise is the kind that travels through the air, like voices, music, or a TV from another room. It’s common between floors or walls in busy households.

Mechanical noise, on the other hand, comes from movement. It’s what you hear when floorboards rub, knock, or shift, clicks, creaks, squeaks, and the dreaded growls. These sounds often travel through your floor’s structure, like vibrations moving through a guitar string.

Most floor noise that bothers people is mechanical, not airborne.

What soundproofing is really designed for

Here’s the truth: most soundproofing products are designed to reduce airborne noise. They work by adding dense layers that block or absorb sound. And yes, some underlays might help reduce footstep impact a little, but they won’t deal with the real culprits, those clicking, groaning, squeaking floorboards.

Why? Because soundproofing doesn’t fix what’s causing the sound. It just tries to muffle it.

The real fix for mechanical noise

To stop mechanical noise properly, we have to think differently. It’s not about muffling sound, it’s about stopping the movement that causes it.

That’s where our philosophy at SqueakFix comes in: fuse or separate. If two parts of your floor are moving against each other, they either need to be securely joined together so they can’t move independently, or separated completely so they no longer touch. Once the movement stops, so does the noise.

So, will soundproofing products help with noisy floors?

In short, no, not really. They might reduce the noise slightly, but they won’t solve the problem. We’ve had many clients tell us they’ve spent money on soundproofing products with very little to show for it. It’s a frustrating (and expensive) cycle.

At SqueakFix, we focus on fixing the source of the noise, not covering it up.