5. What is the difference in acoustic foam and other kinds of foam,
such as the egg crate bed foam?
Acoustic foam is a special chemical blend of polyurethane foam or melamine foam that is specially designed to absorb sound waves. Other foams do not have the same properties or qualities to adsorb sound properly. Acoustic foam is fairly expensive compared to other look-alike foams, but is a specialty product and is expensive to manufacture from the start. There really is no good substitute for quality and performance when dealing with acoustic foams. Just remember that all foams are NOT a like! Do not be fooled by lower priced foams claiming to be "Acoustic" or "Soundproof." Keep in mind the acoustic industry standard requires a minimum of 2" thick, 2lb foam, as seen on our web pages. The thicker the acoustic foam the more sound absorbent it will be, especially in the mid to lower bass frequencies. If you will notice the cheaper packing type foams that are claiming to be "soundproof," are very thin. Too thin to be effective even if it was the right kind of foam. We can help you find the right foam for your project just give us a call. We carry a full line of acoustic foams, from generic brands to name brands in both Class 1 and Class 2 as discussed below.
6. What is the difference in Class 1 and Class 2 acoustic foam?
The class rating refers to their fire retardant ratings. Class 1 means it will not burn and will turn to ash when exposed to flame. Class 2 means it will flame, but will self extinguish as it burns. Many building codes require Class 1 if used in public buildings or when permanently attached to walls or ceilings, and so forth. Please check your local building codes for your requirements.
Without the ratings and testing it's just plain packing or furniture foam which has NO acoustical value, and may NOT have fire ratings! Some claim to have a CA-117 fire rating but this is NOT a Federal Standard, it basically is a California ONLY fire test for furniture foam. It is not a rating given to acoustic foams. So don't get ripped off by claims of these so called "fire retardant" foams. Why is the fire code so important? Because we do not want to see another tragedy like the night club in Rhode Island because they wanted cheap foam, instead of the right foam. Be safe, and remember, saving money now can cost you later, especially if it doesn't work.
"melamine" foams are Class 1
"polyurethane" foams are all Class 2
Auralex studiofoam works great. But, it ain't cheap. The 2 inch pyramid or 3 inch wedge styles will give you maximum sound reduction, but, depending on the amount of area you're trying to cover, it could cost you a few hundred bucks.
I know a guy that wanted to try a cheaper method, so I suggested that he buy 4 king-size mattress pads and a roll of double-sided tape. Total cost: $66 (tax included)
He taped each pad to an old, thick comforter (blanket) with the double-sided tape, fastened each to the paneled walls with 3 wood screws across the top, and used the rest of the tape between the comforter and the wall so it would stay snug against it.
Results?
Well, he's totally happy with it, and it really does a decent job at sound reduction.
Is it as good as the "real stuff"?
Hard to say. Probably not, but he was happy with the results. Especially since he figured out that covering the same area with the Auralex Pyramid studiofoam would have cost almost 4 times as much.
The only thing is that he has to live with that ugly green color, but he did'nt care, since the mattress pads were "on sale".
He's has that "whatever works" mentality.
