Styrofoam walls and ceiling

TimMJN

New member
Hello all,

I recently got my hands on a non-function cooling cell, and I intend to convert it into a rehearsal studio for drums and band. I'll start with a few pictures to give you an idea of what I'm talking about.

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The roam is approximately 5m long, 3.4m wide and 3m high. The walls and the ceiling are lined with 2x6cm of styrofoam. Behind the styrofoam are rough brick walls. The entire cell is inside a barn, so thermal isolation is less of a problem.

I intend to line the walls and ceiling with carpet and then, based on measurements, add acoustic elements. However, my major doubt at this point is, should I leave the styrofoam in place? As you can see, it's rather dirty. Also, leaving it in place means I'll have to anchor anything attached to the walls in the brick wall behind it. Removing it will be quite a bit of work, though that is non of a problem. It does however mean that I'll have to cover the brick walls with something, wood and carpet perhaps?

Could some of you maybe give their thoughts on this? What would you do in this case? Please keep in mind that the intended use is for rehearsals and practice, not recording.

Thank you all very much!

Tim
 
My first thought is 'Fire Hazard'!!! One dropped smoke and that place could go inferno on 30 seconds.
 
And putting carpet over everything is not going to make it sound good. But if you just want a practice place, not a recording room, pull the styrofoam down and hang some old quilts/comforters over the walls.
 
Hey all,

Thanks for your replies! Don't worry, I'll be tearing it down. I'm going to have to bricks plastered, and then add foam elements on top of that. I'm thinking also a diffuser will be a good idea, because of the small size of the room.

Cheers!
 
This must be 'old foam week' here at HR.com.

Foam does not absorb low frequencies. To control sound, you need full frequency trapping (sometimes called bass traps). 4" rockwool. But if this is just a practice room, its most important just to control the volume so you all don't go deaf.
 
I'd replace all the foam with rock wool if that's in your budget. It will absorb a lot of the energy. Then hang moving pads (cheap at Harbor Freight if you're located in the States). Maybe even do the ceiling with the pads - it looks kind of low.

Then, turn down the amps and put the drummer on an electronic kit with a volume control. You're going to go deaf otherwise.
 
I'd replace all the foam with rock wool if that's in your budget. It will absorb a lot of the energy. Then hang moving pads (cheap at Harbor Freight if you're located in the States). Maybe even do the ceiling with the pads - it looks kind of low.

Then, turn down the amps and put the drummer on an electronic kit with a volume control. You're going to go deaf otherwise.

Sounds expensive. For a rehearsal room (not recording) I would suggest a method with a bit less cost:

Furring strips on the ceiling and at least 3 of the walls. Staple up cheap pink insulation and cover with the cheapest breathable cloth you can find. Then spray that with fire retardant.

The cheapest way would be to just leave the walls bare and wear earplugs...

:)
 
Lots of suggestions going on here, thank you very much!

Couple of replies:
- I am in fact the drummer, and I hate electronic kits with a passion. (;
- Playing out in the barn is not an option, it is still in use and dirty. No way I'm putting my equipment there!
- I'm indeed going to fill the ceiling with rockwool and cloth, that should absorb quite some energy.
- I'm planning on putting bass traps in the upper corners, and some panels on the walls for reflections.
- Lastly, I'm putting a skyline diffuser on the shortest wall, behind the drumkit. It's debatable whether or not this will have a huge effect in such a small room. But hey, it only costs me a few bucks, it's fun to build and looks really cool.

Again thanks for the advice!
-
 
Lots of suggestions going on here, thank you very much!

Couple of replies:
- I am in fact the drummer, and I hate electronic kits with a passion. (;
- Playing out in the barn is not an option, it is still in use and dirty. No way I'm putting my equipment there!
- I'm indeed going to fill the ceiling with rockwool and cloth, that should absorb quite some energy.
- I'm planning on putting bass traps in the upper corners, and some panels on the walls for reflections.
- Lastly, I'm putting a skyline diffuser on the shortest wall, behind the drumkit. It's debatable whether or not this will have a huge effect in such a small room. But hey, it only costs me a few bucks, it's fun to build and looks really cool.

Again thanks for the advice!
-
Haha. Drummers ;). Well, when you get to be my age and have to lug that stuff around your opinion may soften - my drummer friends (from 40-50 years ago) who still gig are at least looking at them now!

It all sounds good. If you are buying rockwool then I'll suggest building your bass traps with that, if you weren't already planning it. Much cheaper than buying anything and more effective if you double/triple it up for depth. You could make a couple smaller panels with "feet" on them to move around and maybe help with hot spots.

I think the skyline diffuser is a good idea with that small rectangular room. Can't hurt!

Show us some in-progress and final pics!
 
Just a quick update: that dirty old styrofoam is all gone! I'm now going to get the walls plastered and move on from there.

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Nice improvement! Are you plastering the walls to keep the dust down? If so, you can use a brick/block paint that will do the same thing. It should be a lot cheaper. It also looks like you have open floor joist. You will have many options for treating your ceiling if they are.
 
I'm plastering mainly because the walls are really rough and still have a lot of glue stains. I think the previous owner was scared someone would steal his styrofoam, 'cause was it on there.. Anyway, I want a nice smooth finish, so plastering it is.

The ceiling is an open joist, indeed. I'm planning on rockwool and fabric there. I'm still debating whether I should put the rockwool between the beams and than stable the fabric to the joists, or but the rockwool on the beams, and then add a frame for the fabric. Any suggestions? The beams are pretty high, so I'll have an air gap in both cases.
 
Invest in Polyester batts and not rockwool, no fibres and you can leave it all exposed, if you fix the batts with batons you don't even need to cover it with cloth. See the photo below, the wall is covered in high density polyester batts and that the colour of the bat. By the way the corner is actually a bass trap.

Alan.

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I'm plastering mainly because the walls are really rough and still have a lot of glue stains. I think the previous owner was scared someone would steal his styrofoam, 'cause was it on there.. Anyway, I want a nice smooth finish, so plastering it is.

The ceiling is an open joist, indeed. I'm planning on rockwool and fabric there. I'm still debating whether I should put the rockwool between the beams and than stable the fabric to the joists, or but the rockwool on the beams, and then add a frame for the fabric. Any suggestions? The beams are pretty high, so I'll have an air gap in both cases.

When you say "plastered" do you mean skilled men with buckets of muck? Or are you going to use 'plasterboard' (UK for 'sheetrock'?) because you can do the latter yourself. Plus you put it on battens and put insulation in the gaps. And electricals.

Of course, you MIGHT be a time served, expert plasterer!

Horse has bolted but! You could have cut channels in the foam and whacked in the battens!

Dave.
 
When you say "plastered" do you mean skilled men with buckets of muck? Or are you going to use 'plasterboard' (UK for 'sheetrock'?) because you can do the latter yourself. Plus you put it on battens and put insulation in the gaps. And electricals.

Of course, you MIGHT be a time served, expert plasterer!

Horse has bolted but! You could have cut channels in the foam and whacked in the battens!

Dave.

Hey, I should correct myself, I'm having it plastered. By skilled men with buckets of muck. (; I thought about using those plasterboard, but decided against it. As for hiding the electricals, I have a plan for that. There's a 6 cm gap of styrofoam between the floor and the walls (the styrofoam runs under the floor). I will cut a channel in there and put the wires in there.

Correct and this will be my only reply concerning this issue. Hey @jimmys69 , you have more experience with this and you will be able to maybe give a better explanation.

As for this, I appreciate your input, but I'm not going down the rabbit hole of these heated discussion the two of you have. Covering the whole thing with plastic isn't actually a bad idea. I have ordered some really heavy, thick fabric for the ceiling (the stuff they make theater curtains out of), but I'll consider the probability of fibers getting through.

Invest in Polyester batts and not rockwool, no fibres and you can leave it all exposed, if you fix the batts with batons you don't even need to cover it with cloth. See the photo below, the wall is covered in high density polyester batts and that the colour of the bat. By the way the corner is actually a bass trap.

Alan.

View attachment 100451

Thanks for the suggestion! That sounds like it's awesome stuff to work with. However, I did some research, and this stuff is really uncommon for my region (western Europe). This makes it really expensive. Also, I want to cover the ceiling anyways, it's not that pretty. There's also a lot of dust falling through the planks above the joists, so I want that sealed off.

Thanks all!
 
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