# denim insulation



## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

My husband and I are elderly, and he is no longer able to do the jobs we need, he is on oxygen and 75. We are going to hire a contractor to put some of the newer denim insulation in a basement bedroom the contractor recently build for us. We need it for the sound quieting qualities of the Bonded Logic UltraTouch Plus that they sell. We told him we would call him in the early part of this year for this project. The use is needed because our bedroom is above the new room in the basement and we get up frequently during the night because of bathroom breaks. The new room does not have a ceiling we deliberately left that part undone. We don't need the ceiling unless it is the only way to hold the insulation up or other reasons. The area I am talking about has maybe 4 runs where there are either drain pipes, or round exhaust pipes, or other things that will not allow the insulation to be placed in those runs without lowering them somehow or wrapping possibly. The room above has laminate flooring which is why we are looking at how we can deaden the sound in the best way possible. We do know that Menard's carries the product so there is no problem for us to get it, can someone advise us? It would be much appreciated.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

I think you might be disappointed if you are expecting a miraculous change. 

Most of the noise is carried on the framing (i.e. joist) and while filling the cavity will help, it won't be a cure all. 

By the way, any fibrous insulation will work just fine but the denim will be safer to be left exposed. 

In terms of covering it, just some insulation webbing should be fine but check with fire code.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*Thanks for reply*

I have been trying to find insulation webbing when I had time today. We are not looking for a total block of the sound just hoping to make it a little quieter. We have our son and daughter-in-law come out at least once a year and they asked to use the basement once my husband no longer was able to utilize his work room down there. We put up curtains, got a futon and a few things, but wanted it finished to the point where there was an actual room there, it has an egress window the house was built in 2006. I tried turning on an internet radio that is right above the heat duct and you can barely hear that, but when my husband would walk across the floor it was plenty clear from the creaking of the laminate flooring. We could put carpetting in, but I prefer keeping the laminate in, I find it easier to care for, but we could go that route if necessary, but for now we want to explore the insulation attempt. Can you give me a little more information about the webbing?


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## ChuckF. (Aug 25, 2013)

Try a small throw carpet that you can lay where the squeaks are. A small carpet beside the bed is much more comfortable when you step out of bed in bare feet anyway. At the home centers you can get them in dozens of sizes, perhaps special order.

A low flush toilet will also help quiet the situation, perhaps more than the insulation.

While you have access to the underside of the floor, you can try to silence the squeaks by gluing and screwing 2x2's where the joists meet the floor sheathing, where the squeaks are. That can be done without damaging the laminate above.


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## Gary in WA (Mar 11, 2009)

That link was a bust, lol. If you are finishing the basement room as a "sleeping room" it will probably require drywall on the ceiling. Wood floor joists are given an 8-12 minute fire rating, with 1/2" drywall- double that time. Be sure to double-face tape (or other) any throw rugs to the floor against slippage. 

Gary


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

As for the nightly bathroom breaks. See if you can get on Flomax to help stop that. Lasix and Salt pills for edema causes a lot of that.

As for the other room. If it is just for someone that is staying, I would still use maybe the insulated false ceiling panels, which will cut down on a lot of noise from above.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Windows on Wash said:


> http://screengrabber


Sorry about that. Copied and pasted something to a buddy of mine who is a Redskins fan. 

The link for Insul-web: http://insulweb.com/


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*thanks for all the suggestions*

I see we have a lot to look at and think about. About the bathroom breaks, my husband has so many health issues, but is beating the odds so far he is on permanent anti-biotics due to an infection this last summer, but still gets his hands on as much as he can handle, which means he is still on his feet in spite of the oxygen line. I will post again when we do finally do something especially for hoped for results or none.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Ask you contractor about a drop ceiling. Should help with the noise, allow you access should you need it, and provide the fire rating.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

rahayes good to hear that your husband has not given up the fight.

My wife is dealing with her mother have two types of Cancer right now. One is so rare, that a lot of Onocologists have never heard about it. She is a Stage 3.

Also my wife is dealing with her 97 year old grandmother having serious health issues.

Of course I am just a bundle of joy, because of my bones hate me and I deal with a lot of arthritis pain.

As long as he is still moving around, he is doing the right thing. The anti-biotics is more of a bandaid it sounds like.

You have a lot of support in this group from all of us who are either dealing with health issues or know someone. So we do know all of the tricks to help find ways for the noise dampening and such.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*so kind*

Thank you GregZoll, I don't know how far to go with these things, but we are trying to keep a stiff upper lift, he goes tomorrow for another CT Scan, his infection involved a 10 year old AAA Anuerysm, they won't operate because he would be on ventilator for the rest of his life whatever that may be. Your family story is eerily similar to ours, my mother is alive at 99 and she passed her bad bones on to the three of us, my two brothers and myself, I have lots of ways I try to keep it from taking me over, some work. I walk every day even in our Michigan winter, but don't know how long the dog will last, but we have treadmills and I use a mini trampoline that helps the arthritis to a certain point. My husband is determined and we will see how the CT scan goes tomorrow. He had 4 cases of pneumonia in one year due to a drug he was using for UC which they finally took him off of it. I have lung problems too and we both have to watch what we breath, like fiber glass that is why we are looking at the denim. I am sorry to hear about your wife's grandmother we just lost my nephew at the age of 55 to pancreatic cancer, still trying to digest it he fought but could not win his battle. So our lives cross in many ways, thank you for opening up to me. I want to come back after the insulation is in and give a report on that.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*I will post back*

it may take me a while though. We have another problem we may have to tackle before we get this contractor back. We have a water problem in the basement. We had a crack sealed in the front wall it was done by someone recommended to us who lives across the street, the job was done well and we need to get him back again. Once in a while we get water coming in from the back wall of the house. We discovered another crack on the back wall and a week or so ago there were puddles under the vinyl tile after a sleet storm that left about an inch of sleet on the walks and street. The weather warmed up afterwards and the next day we saw the puddles in the basement, so we have to pop the cheap paneling off of the area we suspect has the crack and call that contractor out, hopefully this will be as we suspect and we can get our same contractor. Then once this is out of the way we will go on to the ceiling problem.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

You all seem to have good ideas and we are thinking about all that has been said. The joists and how to handle that as said by Chuck and brought up by Windows on Wash

"While you have access to the underside of the floor, you can try to silence the squeaks by gluing and screwing 2x2's where the joists meet the floor sheathing, where the squeaks are. That can be done without damaging the laminate above."

It does seem like the strongest noise is coming from one point in the bedroom that could be related to that, my husband said he had seen a suggestion years back in Popular Mechanics to do the same thing. So before we make a bigger investment we want to try that, then down the road do as others have suggested get a drop ceiling in there, I browsed a little last night. It seems like if we can try the gluing and screwing 2x2's, maybe it would help to put some insulation in at least a few of the runs. They did glue the subfloor to the joists when it was built but we noticed a few points in the bedroom even right after we moved in where there were a few loud squeaks and my husband at that time put some nails in right through the carpet that has since been changed to the laminate. So we will see, but this does give us some hope.

Thanks to everyone here.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*We are finding*

most of the noise is coming from the joists and framing. We got rid of several loud points, and will be contacting our contractor to do a dropped ceiling. At this point we will probably not do the insulation. Just wondering how expensive the dropped ceiling can run, it looks like most of the cost will be fro the rails that hold the panels in place. The tiles or panels are on sale periodically, but the cost must be in the rails. Before we get to that we have another contractor coming out for the crack in the basement next week.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Should be pretty reasonable. If you contractor has done them before, you can knock them out pretty quickly. 

Tough to say what he will charge as area to area labor rates vary.


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## rshayes (Jan 4, 2016)

*Thank you*

Thanks, we will try to give as much information as possible over the phone before we call him out, he has a little ride up to where we are from where they live at. Feeling pretty positive. Thanks to all of you here, Thanks to you Windows On Wash. There are a lot of products that claim to be able to handle sound and noise, but it seems like the joists were a big part of our problem, still some left, but sound travels in mysterious ways so we will see if we need to do anything more.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Be sure to recommend that he incorporate some vibration dampers where he bolts the grid to the framing to help uncouple those areas.


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