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Guide
149

Do door sealing tracks also dampen noise?

Carolin Teufelberger
10.3.2020
Translation: machine translated

I have already explained that adhesive seals keep out unpleasant draughts. The question of whether this also keeps noise out of the door has remained unanswered - until now.

I recently tried out adhesive door sealing strips in my home, focussing on using them on uneven floors and draughts. All well and good, thought user Super Duper, but still had one comment:

A promise is a promise and will not be broken. So, armed with a standard sealing rail, my mobile and a sound level meter, I went to work on another door. The idea: I let my mobile play music at maximum volume a good 30 centimetres behind the closed door. Once without the adhesive seal and once with. I stand on the other side of the door with my decibel meter. Goal: the meter shows fewer decibels with the seal in place.

tesa tesamoll STANDARD door sealing strip, self-adhesive door seal for smooth floors (0.10 kg, White)
Sealant
EUR19,12

tesa tesamoll STANDARD door sealing strip, self-adhesive door seal for smooth floors

0.10 kg, White

War of the decibels

I play "Ordinary Man" by "Chinese Man" on my Spotify app, close the door and start measuring. The level is between 55 and 65 decibels, depending on the song, and the music can be heard quite clearly. I'm not particularly surprised. The door is relatively thick, but there is a gap of about two centimetres between it and the stone floor.

First thanks to digitec colleague Kevin Hofer for the decibel meter. Your table is a land of milk and honey for me.
First thanks to digitec colleague Kevin Hofer for the decibel meter. Your table is a land of milk and honey for me.

I now close this gap with a sealing rail. It goes on the side of the mobile on my door. It's nice that it fits perfectly and I don't have to make any cuts.

Pressed on once and then it says: Nothing works anymore!
Pressed on once and then it says: Nothing works anymore!

Once I've placed them correctly, I play the same song on Spotify and measure again. Sure enough, the decibel level has dropped by an average of five. The music also sounds duller to my ears and words are harder to understand.

The figures confirm what my ear was already thinking. The music is quieter.
The figures confirm what my ear was already thinking. The music is quieter.

Yes, seals dampen

So I can answer the original question in the affirmative. Noise is dampened with sealing strips. Whether five decibels difference is enough to equip all doors with them is up to you

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Carolin Teufelberger
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carolin.teufelberger@digitecgalaxus.ch

My life in a nutshell? On a quest to broaden my horizon. I love discovering and learning new skills and I see a chance to experience something new in everything – be it travelling, reading, cooking, movies or DIY.

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