Rockwool concerns for health

mrcreed

New member
Hi All:
my first post here and need some advice.I have acoustic foam at the moment and it does ok ..it stops some reflections ..i have a 15 foot long and 10 foot wide room with an 8 foot ceiling approx.I have my speakers isolated on iso acoustic stands and they are a foot and a half from the rear wall.The desk is situated equidistant from the long walls so that the short walls are behind me and behind the speakers ..As far as I am aware this is a good practice (correct me if im wrong )..but everywhere i read foam is crap!!!.So i look into the idea of rockwool acoustic panels ..all is great ..quite cheap seem easy enough to make ..BUT ..the fibres ..i cant get my head past the danger of fibres ..Can anyone rest my mind ..perhaps explain how safe or unsafe it is to use them assuming im using the usual cloth types to cover the wool

many thanks in advance


:)
 
Hi All:
my first post here and need some advice.I have acoustic foam at the moment and it does ok ..it stops some reflections ..i have a 15 foot long and 10 foot wide room with an 8 foot ceiling approx.I have my speakers isolated on iso acoustic stands and they are a foot and a half from the rear wall.

Place your mons against the wall. This is the best thing you can do for your room size, since you fall outside of the bolt area.

The desk is situated equidistant from the long walls so that the short walls are behind me and behind the speakers ..As far as I am aware this is a good practice (correct me if im wrong )..

You are wrong. You want the short wall in front of you and the long wall behind you.

but everywhere i read foam is crap!!!.

Welcome to the internet! Foam has its place, but not what everyone thinks it should be. Does it serve a purpose, yes. For mild reflection only.

So i look into the idea of rockwool acoustic panels ..all is great ..quite cheap seem easy enough to make ..BUT ..the fibres ..i cant get my head past the danger of fibres ..Can anyone rest my mind ..perhaps explain how safe or unsafe it is to use them assuming im using the usual cloth types to cover the wool many thanks in advance :)

NOPE! There are way to many conflicting researches to give a defendant answer. It will only boil down to who you believe. Myself, I asked my Doctor. It was not pretty!
 
hi thanks for your answer..i think i may have confused you ..the long walls run either side ..the short walls are behind the speakers and behind my back if you get me ,,so you think they are a hazard ?

thanks again
 
hi thanks for your answer..i think i may have confused you ..the long walls run either side ..the short walls are behind the speakers and behind my back if you get me ,,so you think they are a hazard ?

thanks again

If the short walls are behind your speakers as well as your back, as you have stated, then you have it set up incorrectly. The short wall needs to be in front of you and the long wall needs to be towards your back.
 
There are those who disagree, but the facts about rockwool are no different than about 'fluffy' fiberglass: once you have it in place (and covered) fibers are not going to be released unless the insulation is disturbed somehow. Some people cover the rockwool with very thin plastic sheeting, this will cause some high frequency reflection, but nto much, and will not adversely affect bass frequency trapping.
 
I don't have any fibres in my studio because I used Polyester sound absorber panels. In Australia by law hospitals and a fair few other buildings now have to use Polyester not any loose fibres. The polyester panels have a same or even better absorption than rockwall. Costs more but you don't even have to cover the stuff you can have it exposed. I decided on using polyester when building my 4th studio, 3 studios of working with fibres was enough. You need the higher density stuff, this is the product I used but it's an Australian product, you will have a similar product in other parts of the world.

Alan.
 
hi thanks for your answer..i think i may have confused you ..the long walls run either side ..the short walls are behind the speakers and behind my back if you get me ,,so you think they are a hazard ?

thanks again

If the long wall runs either side of you, and the short walls are front and back, that would be the better way of configuring your room.

This is a worthwhile article to go through:

Mix Position: How to Setup Your Listening Room | LN

Here is a good diagram

https://ledgernote.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/art_room-setup1.gif
 
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If the long wall runs either side of you, and the short walls are front and back, that would be the better way of configuring your room.

thats exactly how i have it ..my explanaition was bad i guess ..thanks for the headsup on the polymax ..how thick do you have it ?

cheers
 
thats exactly how i have it ..my explanaition was bad i guess ..thanks for the headsup on the polymax ..how thick do you have it ?

cheers

The polyester I used is the highest density, some panels are 50mm / 2”, but in the bass traps and broadband panels it is doubled up to 100mm / 4”,

Alan
 
Hey witzendoz, just wondering how the Polymax Absorb compares with the old Acoustisorb? I've been searching everywhere for more Acoustisorb, but also, it's getting hard to find!
 
Hey witzendoz, just wondering how the Polymax Absorb compares with the old Acoustisorb? I've been searching everywhere for more Acoustisorb, but also, it's getting hard to find!

Where are you located? Which country?

Here is the spec sheet for acoustisorb 3 which is mostly what I used, but acousticasorb 2 is useful also. Be warned that you have a tough time cutting 3, I ordered it cut to size (no extra cost).

I think the acoustic version of polymax is going to be a similar spec as I think originally Acoustisorb was made by CSR Bradford the same company. You just need to check which version to get, I am sure a sale tech will help you if you show the original Acoustisorb tech sheet.


View attachment 6-tontine_accoustisorb_3.pdf
 
Thanks for the reply, I'm in OZ like you. Acoustisorb was made by Tontine, but was sold to CSR Bradford as far as I understand.
 
Thanks for the reply, I'm in OZ like you. Acoustisorb was made by Tontine, but was sold to CSR Bradford as far as I understand.

Thats what I think happened, I used to buy Acoustisorb from a local wholesaler, they now stock the CSR Bradford stuff. There seems to be some great new products by CSR Bradford in sound control. There is another product called Greenstuff that is available at various outlets. I am not sure that any of the products are the same as Acoustiasorb 3 but you can add thickness and get the same results. As I said before Acoustisorb 3 was very hard to cut without a diamond blade so something around Acoustisorb 2 will be easier to work with.

Alan.
 
Jeez! Thought our room was small at 12'x12.5'x8.5' ! I doubt there is a lot you can 'get in' there and still have room to work?

' If 'fibres' bother you, buy GF in sealed plastic bags and disport them in the corners. The bags are 'fibre-tight' but LF will still penetrate and be absorbed.

Dave.
 
BUT ..the fibres ..i cant get my head past the danger of fibres ..Can anyone rest my mind ..perhaps explain how safe or unsafe it is to use them assuming im using the usual cloth types to cover the wool
What it sounds like you're asking is how rockwool fibers will affect you, in particular, your lungs.

Y'see, EVERYTHING has fibers to it. Wood has fibers. Yes, that you sometimes inhale. Your clothes. Carpeting. Perhaps the upholstery in your car. So there's no getting around it, with or without a studio. You got fibers all over your body that you inhale every minute of every day. (itching yet? :D)

So let's inject some reality. If you're not having systemic reactions to THOSE fibers, then how about rockwool fibers? After all, considering the massive, overblown, near-melodramatic ordeal of asbestos fibers, what's a guy to do?

Rockwool fibers are far safer than fiberglass, but more prolific than polyester. Damage to you? None, most likely. However, you can develop (or lose) an allergy to absolutely anything. Allergies? That's up to you. If you don't have a reaction, then you're fine. And really, even if you do, you're pretty fine.

Remember the asbestos? Those guys worked in thick clouds of that stuff all day long. No masks. Worked hard. Some of the guys that did, and especially if they smoked, which everyone did in those days, got lung trouble. They took deep breaths (working hard, remember?) of sharp, mineral dust. It stayed there and irritated their lungs, often aggravated by the onset of emphysema. After years of irritation from those sharp little asbestos crystals (they look like urchins) that simply wouldn't move out of their lungs, bad things developed. Like cancer.

Rockwool, like many organic compound fibers, say cotton, can be inhaled deeply and settle deeply. BUT, they don't stay there. Being organic, they wilt and change. Rot, if you will... and are expelled. Unlike asbestos. BTW, fiberglass can be inhaled deeply, but there's far more irritation and it takes longer to expel.

So unless you intend to make a pillow from a raw slab of pressed rockwool, you really don't have much to worry about. Even if you were buried under the stuff for several days, you wouldn't have much long term problems. (With your lungs... i dunno about going nuts from something like that :confused:)

You'll pick up a thousand times that many fibers if you ever put new carpet down. Seen the death toll on new carpet? Nah, neither has anyone else. You'll be fine.

Ponder5
 
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