It is often said that the devil is in the details. Sound control in floor ceiling assemblies in multi-family construction can easily fail to perform to expectations, when attention to detail is not followed. One real area of concern involves the intersection of the vertical gypsum wall board (GWB) and the horizontal GWB ceiling. In order to properly follow acoustical recommendations, there needs to be a 1/8” gap maintained between the two pieces of GWB, which eliminates any flanking vibration from passing through. Since walls and ceilings are not necessarily built perfectly square or level, you can be sure that parts of the wall are touching the ceiling in a number of places. Therefore, it is difficult to maintain this gap.
That is where Space Assurance™ from Keene Building Products provides the assurance in its name.
Space Assurance is a ceiling perimeter isolation that is made up of a flexible, flame-resistant polyester fabric. It is used as a fastener line, virtually ensuring the proper detail between the wall and ceiling, and eliminating one of the most common paths for noise flanking in multi-family construction. Around the perimeter of all rooms, Space Assurance is installed with mechanical fasteners or spray adhesive. Space Assurance is installed prior to all ceiling elements; before resilient channel installation, Cylent Assurance™ Clips installation, and gypsum ceiling or wall installation.
So, for your next project, make sure you pay close attention to the details and utilize Space Assurance, along with our other floor ceiling assembly solutions: Quiet Qurl® sound mats, GSL® Gypsum Concrete and our new Cylent Assurance Clip resilient channel isolator.