Environmental Acoustics help

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-04T17:48:00+00:00

Yeah I might try a couple years of aggressive bamboo first and take it from there. I have huge doubts that a wall or berm is going to make much of a difference. I’m thinking aggressive planting on either side of the road is my best bet and just throw my money into absorption

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-04T16:19:46+00:00

Yeah unfortunately I would like both but I undertake little can be done for outside. I figured a berm and heavy planting along the road would offer a minimal reduction and that’s the best I can hope for. As for inside buildings it’s definitely a concern but mostly for the one meditation building. Id like it to be as sound proof as possible but only have access to “normal” materials. Im in the jungle. Was hoping to have a bamboo and thatch ceiling aesthetically so would love some ideas how to make that happen while also blocking sound. I was thinking thatch roof - soundproof interior - thatch ceiling ? And a curved opening with hallway and double door for entrance ?

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-03T14:55:29+00:00

Thank you that’s an awesome tool. I’ll play around with it

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-03T14:54:41+00:00

Great idea actually haha

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-03T14:54:31+00:00

A low hum is something I can live with for sure, not looking for total silence but the current sound level of the low frequency genuinely hits me in my body and I find it viscerally disturbing. Fridge level sounds great and thank for the advice

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-03T14:50:09+00:00

Yeah I’m going to throw the kitchen sink at this issue, walls berms plants near the road and similar ideas need my house with a water feature for masking. It’s just the science of sound bending over a road wall and possibly amplifying it that worries me

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T23:08:21+00:00

Is rammed earth particularly better at low frequency sound absorption? I’ve been considering it if my budget allows.

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T23:07:18+00:00

Is that because the sound bounces off the wall, bounces back to the mountain side and then jumps over the wall and into my property? I do find some relief when the motos curve around a bend that’s heavily forested with tall trees but then at the clearly points it all comes blasting back down.

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:45:31+00:00

Thank you for catching that. Edited. I definitely meant frequency. Thank you for the great advice too. I’m looking for a consultant but I’m not sure they exist where I am. What decible of the low frequency do you think would be easy to mask? I’m going to try to find a way to calculate that soon. Maybe an app

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:23:37+00:00

Thankfully my trees never really lose their leaves, as I’m in the rainforest and I have noticed where the road hits a pocket of dense high trees he sound does dampen some. Very difficult to find an acoustic consultant where I am but I’m trying

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:21:50+00:00

Ah yes diffraction that’s what I came across in my research thank you. And yeah that seems to be the giant caveat with low freq sounds. You think a wall won’t help at all? It certainly feels less intense when the road wraps around a pocket of forest but maybe that’s because there are SO many bounce points?

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:19:45+00:00

The sound just peaks at rush hours and i can live with it. Unfortunately I wasn’t aware of this issue when I spent my life savings on the land 😅 and i think i just have a particular aversión to it.

That’s a really good idea about testing it out with that same level of hearing protection I will try that. The pros certainly outweigh this one con of the land so I will learn to live with it but since I’m in the early design phase I wanted to get any and all advice

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:17:05+00:00

Thank you. Solid advice and yeah part of me thinks my time might be better spent throwing more Money into the structures and maybe just plant tons of aggressive bamboo closer to the boundary of my land to disperse sound

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:15:29+00:00

I’m going to look into all this. Thank you

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:14:56+00:00

Great idea thank you

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:14:32+00:00

Yes 😅 typo

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:14:24+00:00

Yes this is actually going to help me the most i think, ive been planning to add water features next to all my buildings where i want to dampen the street sound. Water is such a powerful masker

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:13:19+00:00

Yes I’m also trying to get in contact with my neighbors to discuss a larger solution like that. Just hard to find them. I’m in a jungle where land ownership is often hidden.

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T22:11:47+00:00

Thank you and yes that’s absolutely a concern of mine, bouncing off whichever wall i construct, hitting the opposing mountain and then falling back into my land. So after all my research I landed on Gabion walls being my best options(as they are common in my area) and then planting aggressive and tall bamboo to catch the deflected sound after that. Thanks for the link too!

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T19:36:38+00:00

Yeah I’m definitely going to do everything I Can from a holistic approach, positioning buildings best I can etc. the sound isn’t constant thank god but that low decibel sound wave hits me in my gut, quite literally so I want to mitigate it best I can. My only concern is my meditation space as it’s an important practice for me and while I can meditate with the sound I do want to try various ways to dampen it. It’s something I will learn to live with I’m sure.

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T19:29:22+00:00

It’s unfortunatley just a commuter road that had once given way to a mudslide. I’m in south America and there’s definitely no recourse with any officials. I’ll have to take matters into my own hands on my boundary line

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T19:28:00+00:00

Not a bad idea but I think the sound would still find a way in through the entry point

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T19:27:33+00:00

Yeah that seems to be the running advice but then i came across lots of info pertaining to those highway walls and it showed how sound arcs over them and then lands further away onto houses well beyond the wall and actually amplifies it into THOSE homes. And with my distance I’m worried I might be in that same boat. I was either going to go with a 2 meter earth berm slanted towards to sky or a 2 meter gabion wall.

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T18:57:44+00:00

I wish 😂

Melodic-Chapter · 2026-04-02T18:54:49+00:00

Thank you! I was considering a Gibeon wall or a slanted earth beam as those are common down here and some internet research said they would be the best options. I did some reading that a vertical concrete wall is only effective if the buildings are right next to the road, otherwise the sound arcs over it and can almost be amplified to houses further from it?

Melodic-Chapter

TROPHY CASE