The Quest for Quiet

Houses without adequate soundproofing are proving to be a major annoyance to their owners. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that noise is the top complaint people have with their neighborhoods, beating out the more publicized problems of crime and litter.

Thorp emphasizes that he is not just complaining about noise, he's doing something about it. Thorp serves as chairman of the aircraft noise committee of the Palisades Citizens Committee, and is the D.C. citizen representative on the airport noise committee of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.

His goal is not to wipe out National Airport, but to work with it to make sure that flight paths and jets cause the least amount of noise for the residents who live in its shadow.

Thorp and his neighbors are working with airport officials to move flight paths along the Potomac River, rather than directly over homes. They're also working on new arrival and departure procedures that would allow for quieter flights. As for his home, Thorp hasn't done much soundproofing beyond the obvious: He long ago installed central air conditioning and he owns thick storm windows.

More important, he said, is staying active in the efforts between citizens and airport officials to work on sound-deadening procedures.

This approach to soundproofing is critical to residents who live in flight paths or near major airports. No amount of solid-core doors, after all, is going to stand up to the noise of a jet overhead.

"A good insulation package, air conditioning, window treatments and construction enhancements can have real serious noise-reduction benefits in a home. The problem is, if you enjoy sitting on a deck in places like Alexandria, Arlington or Palisades, it's almost impossible to enjoy the outdoors on summer evenings," said Dennis McGrann, executive director of the Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, an advocacy group based in Montpelier, Vt., dedicated to helping citizens deal with noise issues. "You can't have a normal conversation with someone three feet away, thanks to the roar of a jet engine over your home. What is the price of that?"

McGrann advocates the same approach as does Thorp: Residents living near airports must make themselves heard and should work with airport authorities and politicians to push airports to adopt flight patterns and procedures that result in the least amount of noise possible.

While airports cause perhaps the most difficult form of outside noise, other sources -- busy streets, railroad tracks, home theaters, barking dogs -- also can be annoying. An entire soundproofing industry has sprung up to help owners deal with such frustrations.

A good place to start is with doors and windows. Older houses, especially, may have windows that leak sound. Homeowners whose residences have hollow-core doors will find that noise quickly travels through them. The best solution is to replace thin doors and noise-leaking windows.

Chris King, marketing manager for interior doors for Jeld-Wen, a Klamath Falls, Ore., manufacturer of sound-deadening doors and windows, said homeowners who replace their hollow-core doors with solid-core versions can reduce interior noise by up to 50 percent. He vouches for this: His home has Jeld-Wen's ProCore doors, the company's signature solid-core door, on its laundry room.

"We fire up the laundry machines, shut the door and can't hear anything," he said.