Thanks for the insights, to you both.
In the concrete building I tended to hear the sharp sounds -- someone dropping something -- and the bass notes of movies and video games (for a few years I think the person above me had a kid or teen who cranked up both when the parents or grandparents were away).
I expect we'll see more wood structures as builders become comfortable with it, and material prices come back to "normal." And I'm surprised that blended approach hasn't become more popular here either -- it seems to make a lot of sense, especially if it helps get past the height issue.
Is wood faster to erect? (mind the pun there lol). I'd think a builder could pre-assemble walls and simply bring them on site for quick installation.
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Originally Posted by TheHonestMaple
Yes there is some content in the building code related to soundproofing of wood builds.
However what I've noticed in my experience is that different sounds travel through different construction materials. For example, in a concrete structure you might be able to hear your neighbour on the other side of the buildings drop a spoon, but never hear their TV or even a party. But in a wood build you may not hear them drop a spoon, but you could hear them talking loudly.
Generally concrete floors will transfer impact noises, while through wood you might hear lower frequency sounds.
I have also lived in a 1960s era concrete high rise apartment and never heard anything. While in more modern concrete condos I find you can. The industry has moved towards thinner walls and floors, as well as interior walls are now rarely concrete (just the inner elevator shaft walls are). 1960s era concrete building were built like bunkers.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere
wood is a surprisingly good insulator, it just works differently than concrete by "absorbing" the noise as it's a soft material compared to "bouncing" the noise in a concrete building.
I lived in a concrete building without concrete separators between adjacent units and basically never heard my neighbours. My more limited experience with wood apartment blocks isn't all that different.
The province made a big hullabaloo when they increased the wood construction limit to 6 storeys, but few buildings have actually been built to that height yet. The most buildings I've seen take advantage of it is actually suburban hotels! The Sandman Hotel in Stoney Creek was actually the first 6-storey wood structure in Ontario.
The reality is that most urban mid-rise construction is simply too complex for wood and usually exceeds the height to an at least technical 7-storeys in order to provide rooftop access, as well as other structural complications resulting from required setbacks, etc.
The US has "5+1s" buildings a dime-a-dozen all over the country, which are generally 4-7 storey apartment buildings with a ground floor made of concrete construction and 3-6 storeys of wood apartment units constructed above, often wrapped around a central concrete structured parking garage. These have proven affordable to construct and usually have fairly large floorplates, but for whatever reason haven't really made it north of the border.
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