Soundproofing an air brick Questions and answers on many aspects of soundproofing areas of your home

[damian]

Hi.
I am wondering if there is a way to dampen the sound coming through an air brick in my bedroom because the sound of traffic is driving me mad!
The air brick on the outside of the house is a clay one and is a single standard house brick in width and 2 bricks in height.
I have a vent (that can be closed but doesn't dampen the sound much) on the inside of the bedroom that is again 1 standard house brick in width and 2 bricks in height.
To make matters worse, the vent and the air brick don't exactly line up with each other so I don't think I can use a sleeve between the vent and the brick as I would only be able to attach it at 1 side.

Is there some easy to fit device that would dampen the traffic sound coming through so I can get a decent nights sleep but still allow ventilation?
I've thought of moving house but this is a last resort :-)

Thanks for any help/advice you can give.
regards,

Damian

[carhartt kid]

Hi Damian,

You've got to decide over noise versus ventilation. I'd personally brick the vent up and remember to leave my bedroom door and window open occasionally to get some airflow through it.

You can get sound bafflers for air vets but I seem to remember they can be quite expensive. Try your local builders merchant and see what they have! Also its best not to phone them, but go in person. Talk to the member of staff in a shirt and tie and not the bloke in a t-shirt, as you're more likely to get an informed and slightly more motivated response.
Good luck..

PS: Earplugs??????????

[thedoctor]

If you do not have a gas appliance in the bedroom you could replace the vent brick with trickle vents for more suitable and quieter ventilation Damian. See our project on condensation to find out more about trickle vents

[Nimrod]

As your complaint concerns traffic noise I suspect that the problem is not the air brick but the window in your room.
The quickest way to establish the dominant noise path is to simply tape over the air brick so that it is sealed airtight. Newspaper or card is just fine sealed along the edges is fine. (If there is a gas fire in the room DO NOT do this as the air brick is providing the combustion air for the fire).
If there is no reduction in noise then the problem is not the air brick but low frequency traffic noise coming through the window pane. The answer is then to install secondary glazing.