conducted for: building industry authority wellington by ... · conducted for: building industry...

TESTING OF THE SOUND ATTENUATION OF THE EXTERNAL ENVELOPE OF

SIX HOUSES

Conducted for:

Building Industry Authority

WELLINGTON

by George Bellhouse

March/April 2000

TABLE OF CONTENTS

BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................... 1

INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 1

TEST HOUSE SELECTION

GENERAL ....................................................................................................................... 1

CONSTRUCTION ............................................................................................................. 1

LOCATION ...................................................................................................................... 2

SELECTION PROCESS ...................................................................................................... 2

LAYOUT OF HOUSES ...................................................................................................... 2

VENTILATION ................................................................................................................. 4

MEASUREMENT PROCEDURES

GENERAL................................................................................................................................. 4

PARAMETERS USED ................................................................................................................. 4

INSTRUMENTATION ................................................................................................................. 4

MICROPHONE POSITION........................................................................................................... 5

MEASUREMENTS ..................................................................................................................... 5

VENTILATION .......................................................................................................................... 6

MEASUREMENT RESULTS ............................................................................................. 6

CONCLUSIONS................................................................................................................... 6

APPENDIX 1: INSTRUMENTATION USED ................................................................... 8

APPENDIX 2: ELEMENT SPECIFICATION DETAILS .................................................. 9

APPENDIX 3: GLOSSARY OF TERMS ......................................................................... 10

APPENDIX 4: INDIVIDUAL HOUSE REPORTS .......................................................... 11

REPORT 1 (ROAD TRAFFIC) ................................................................................................... 12




REPORT 5 (AIR TRAFFIC) ....................................................................................................... 65

REPORT 6 (AIR TRAFFIC) ....................................................................................................... 76

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BACKGROUND The Building Industry Authority (BIA) is proposing to introduce a requirement in clause G6 of the Building Code for the isolation of the interior of residential buildings from external environmental sound. In order to be able to specify minimum construction requirements, it is necessary to obtain data on the sound attenuation of the building envelope of houses recently constructed by current day construction methods to provide a basis for an “Acceptable Solution” for the new clause. This data should also include the effect of open windows since room ventilation is a requirement of clause G4 of the Building Code. Therefore, this data must be available concurrent with the acoustic attenuation with windows closed.

It is intended that the “Acceptable Solution” of the proposed addition to G6 “Airborne and impact sound” will include data that will assist in giving the user of the proposed “Acceptable Solution” the option of having natural ventilation through opening windows or passive ventilation systems.

INTRODUCTION The main objective of this study is to obtain information on the sound attenuation of current building envelope construction in residential buildings so that it can be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 “Airborne and impact sound” in the Building Code, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. A second objective is to find out what the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope is when windows are open and when they are closed. It was also hoped that the difference in sound attenuation between when windows are closed and when there is passive ventilation could be determined. However, because of the lack of this type of ventilation actually in use, it was not possible to obtain this information in this study. The effect of the layout of buildings was considered by comparing the difference between the level of the noise in rooms facing the noise source and the level of noise in rooms on the opposite side of the building from the source of noise.

TEST HOUSE SELECTION GENERAL The study required the location of 6 houses for acoustic testing. These houses required the correct construction, location with respect to the noise source, and the owner’s permission. Of the six houses, four were located close to a busy road using road traffic as the sound source and two adjacent to a busy airport using aircraft as the sound source.

CONSTRUCTION The dwellings needed to be constructed since 1992 to ensure that they had been constructed to the current New Zealand Building Code. They had to comply with the element specifications set out in the Table in Appendix 2. A range of 6 different combinations of roof and wall element specifications was required. The combinations were intended to include at least one example of a passive ventilation window system with at least 4,000mm2 ventilation in the jambs or head and sill. However, because of the scarcity of this type of window frame in current use it was not possible to locate any house with passive ventilation installed that also

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complied with the other requirements for the study (see below). The dwellings could be single or double storey houses or the top floor of multi-storey apartments.

LOCATION Two houses were chosen within the 60 – 65 dB contour of Auckland International Airport. One house was directly under the flight path and one approximately 400 metres to the side of the flight path to Auckland Airport. The other four houses were 10 – 15 metres from a busy highway and at approximately the same level as the highway and within direct line of sight of the traffic.

SELECTION PROCESS The vast majority of housing development in the recent past have been on new subdivisions and these are either well away from major roads, or if they are close, only a small number of houses are close enough to the major roads to be potential candidates in this study. Additionally, section sizes are nowadays relatively small and tend to be long and narrow. Houses are therefore normally placed on the section "end-on" and this virtually eliminates all such houses because there is no habitable room that is not on a corner facing the road. Where houses may be suitable, the trend appears to be for open plan living with living, dining, kitchen and other areas all blended into a single living space on one side of the house. Even when there is a suitable small habitable room on one side of the house suitable for measurements, there is usually no suitable room on the opposite side of the house. Many potential houses are so small that, again there is no suitable "none-corner" room in the house. Larger homes are often constructed using unsuitable methods/materials and usually tend to be located in quiet streets away from major traffic routes. The total choice is therefore extremely small, and not a single house with passive ventilation in the windows was found. Enquiries with local authorities also indicate that these types of windows are rare. Therefore the chances of finding a house meeting all the other criteria together with passive ventilation is extremely remote. Some of the houses selected for this study have rooms that are marginal as far as the volume of the rooms are concerned. A room volume requirement of 25 cubic meters or so means that the floor area of the room must be at least 10.4 square metres (say 3 by 3.5 metres). The task of locating suitable houses was much more difficult than anticipated.

LAYOUT OF HOUSES ADJACENT TO A BUSY ROAD Two test rooms were used for each dwelling. These rooms complied with the following conditions:

• Neither room was on a corner of the dwelling or open to another room • Each room contained only one window • One room had the window directed toward the noise source • One room faced away from the noise source • Each room was a habitable space, for example, a bedroom or study • The room was not a garage, bathroom or laundry • The room was no smaller than 20 cubic metres. • The window was in the external wall, and was at least 10% of the floor area but not

more than 35% the area of the wall it was in.

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Highway

Test Room 1

Test Room 2

M1

M2

FIGURE 1: LAYOUT OF THE HOUSES ADJACENT TO A BUSY ROAD (TYPICAL PLAN)

ADJACENT TO AUCKLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Only one test room was used for each dwelling. This room complied with the following conditions:

• The room was not on a corner of the dwelling or open to another room • The room contained only one window • The window was directed toward the Airport (noise source) • The room was a habitable space • The room was not a garage, bathroom or laundry • The room was no smaller than 20 cubic metres. • The window was in the external wall, and was at least 10% of the floor area but not

more than 35% the area of the wall it was in.

M1

Test Room 1

Airport

FIGURE 2: ADJACENT TO AUCKLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (TYPICAL PLAN)

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VENTILATION The ventilation in each test room was from an openable window that was not less than 5% of the floor area of the room. The window ventilation was provided during the measurements by opening the window in the test room by a small amount to simulate a window that can remain slightly open and secured in that position (where this was provided). In order to determine the effect of a fully wide open window, that condition was also included in the tests.

MEASUREMENT PROCEDURES GENERAL The measurements were carried out in accordance with the International Standard ISO 140 - 5:1998 “Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements- Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and facades”, except that in the case of the measurements in the room to the rear of the building, the noise source was either at the front of the building near the sound source (road traffic) or to the rear of the building away from the sound source (road traffic) and therefore inn both these cases there was a deviation of the method stated in ISO 140-5: 1998 in respect of the set of measurements relating to the rear room. ISO 140-5 requires that the sound being measured is on the same side of the building as the room in which the measurements are being taken and in line of sight with the source of the sound. The “Global Method” using road traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to road traffic.

PARAMETERS USED The aim of the measurements was to evaluate the performance of the whole façade of the buildings, including all flanking paths. The measures used in this study to determine the sound attenuation were those specified in ISO 140-5, the Level Difference and the Standardised Level Difference in the case of road traffic noise measurements and the Sound Exposure Level Difference and the Standardised Sound Exposure Level Difference in the case of air traffic noise measurements. These are defined in Appendix 3. The Level Difference and Sound Exposure Level Difference are essentially simply the arithmetic difference between the level of noise outside and that inside the building. The Standardised Level Difference and the Standardised Exposure Level Difference are the arithmetic difference between the noise outside and that inside the building but referenced to a standard test room with a reverberation time of 0.5 seconds. This means, for example, that where the actual test room used had a reverberation time longer than the reference 0.5s the value of the Standardised Level Difference will be larger than the value of the actual Level Difference measured. The intention is to standardise measurements and effectively remove at least one of the variables – the differences in the amount of acoustic absorption within the test rooms.

INSTRUMENTATION The instrumentation used is listed in Appendix 1. Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements, with one microphone external and one internal to the building. The sound level meters were calibrated after turning them on and immediately before the meters were turned off for each of the series of measurements. The calibrator used was that listed in the table of instruments in Appendix 1.

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The Rion NA-27 meter is a real time frequency analyser. It is capable of measuring sound in octave or 1/3 octave bands. 1/3 octave band measurements were made in each case. A remote control unit was normally used to start and stop each measurement so that both meters were switched at the same time. This was especially important for the measurements with the window closed since one of the meters was physically located outside the closed window. This was because the microphone cable could not be passed through the window when it was closed. All measurements were therefore completely concurrent.

MICROPHONE POSITION The noise source in each case was the external ambient noise from either road or aircraft traffic (as appropriate). External The external microphone was positioned at a distance of 2m from the façade of the house (both at the front and the rear of the house) at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of the test room. Internal Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in the test rooms to obtain the average sound pressure level in each test room. The measurement positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The microphone was at a height of 1.5m above the floor in each case. The positions of the microphone are illustrated in figure 3 below.

1 2

3 4

5

Figure 3: Location of the five microphone positions in each test room (Schematic)

MEASUREMENTS The procedure for each of the above series of measurements was performed in accordance within ISO 140 – 5. In the case of road traffic as the sound source the one-third octave Leq was measured and in the case of air traffic as the sound source the sound exposure level (SEL) was measured for each aircraft flyover event. The reverberation time of each test room was measured at three of the five internal positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements).

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HOUSES ADJACENT TO BUSY ROAD Measurement of front Attenuation The external microphone position was 2 metres from the front façade and the five internal microphone positions were within the test room 1 as previously described. All doors were closed.

Measurement of Rear Attenuation (External microphone at the front) The external microphone position was 2 metres from the front façade and the five internal microphone positions were within the test room 2 as previously described. All doors were closed.

Measurement of Rear Attenuation (External microphone at the rear) The external microphone position was 2 metres from the rear façade and the five internal microphone positions were within the test room 2 as previously described. All doors were closed.

HOUSES ADJACENT TO AUCKLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Measurement of the Front attenuation (toward the noise source) The external microphone position was 2 metres from the front façade and the five internal microphone positions were within the test room 1 as previously described. All doors were closed.

VENTILATION Each of these series of measurements were made with three window conditions:

1 window closed 2 window open and ajar 3 window fully open in the maximum position

All openable windows were hinged at the top. The window ajar position was with an opening of approximately 10cm at the bottom of the window. The exact measurement is stated in each case. The window fully open position was with an opening of approximately 43cm at the bottom of the window. The exact measurement is stated in each case. There was no passive ventilation in any of the houses selected.

MEASUREMENT RESULTS The measurements were carried out between 29th March and 1st April 2000. The details of the individual house measurements are given in Appendix 4.

CONCLUSIONS As anticipated, the level of attenuation (level difference) of modern New Zealand houses varies depending on whether there are any openings to the external environment. The level difference varied between the houses in the case of a “front” room with the room exposed directly to the road traffic noise or air traffic noise and with the window and doors closed. The variations were relatively small however and cannot necessarily be attributed to

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building construction. Variations in measured level differences are to be expected even when testing the same building on different occasions. Much more significant is the fact that as soon as a window is opened, by even a small amount, the attenuation value drops significantly. On opening the window further there is a further reduction in the attenuation value. The difference in the level difference between when a window is open and when it is closed is greatest in the middle range of frequencies. At low frequencies, below about 125Hz, there was only a small difference between the window open and window closed situations. The building structure is therefore highly significant in controlling the level of attenuation in this range of frequencies. With the window and doors closed the overall A-weighted level of attenuation (level difference) obtained was between 23 and 28 dB for road traffic and between 24 and 27 dB for air traffic. With the window ajar and doors closed the overall A-weighted level of attenuation (level difference) obtained was between 14 and 17 dB for road traffic and between 15 and 18 dB for air traffic. With the window wide open and doors closed the overall A-weighted level of attenuation (level difference) obtained was between 8 and 12 dB for road traffic and between 12 and 14 dB for air traffic. G Bellhouse

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APPENDIX 1

INSTRUMENTATION USED

Instrument Make Model Serial Number

Sound Level Analyser

Rion NA-27 570335

Microphone Rion UC-53A 75620

Sound Level Analyser

Rion NA-27 201177

Microphone Rion UC-53A 90407

Calibrator Rion NC73 10876362

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APPENDIX 2 ELEMENT SPECIFICATION DETAILS

ELEMENT DESCRIPTION OF CONSTRUCTION

Roof cladding Concrete tile, metal tile or long run corrugated steel

Roof structure Attic or skillion

Roof cavity insulation fibreglass batts, wool batts or macerated paper or other of thickness to comply with the Approved Documents of the Building Code.

Ceiling lining 1 x 9.5mm or 1 x 12.5mm plasterboard on timber or steel battens or other lining and support

Wall cladding Brick veneer, fibre cement, timber weather boards, External Insulation and Finish Systems (EIFS)

Wall structure 100 mm timber or steel studs, thermal insulation, building paper

Wall lining 1 x 9.5mm or 1 x 12.5mm plasterboard or other lining

Window Aluminium proprietary system complying with NZS 4211

Ranch slider (if any) Aluminium proprietary system complying with NZS 4211

VENTILATION • Openable windows • Passive ventilation in framework of windows

Foundations Concrete slab over grade or concrete ring foundation with piles

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APPENDIX 3

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Level Difference, D2m The difference, in decibels, between the outdoor sound pressure level 2m in front of the façade, L1.2m, and the space and time averaged sound pressure level, L2, in the receiving room.

D2m = L1.2m – L2 dB

Where the sound source is road traffic the expression used is Dtr,2m

Standardised Level Difference, D2m,nT The level difference, in decibels, corresponding to a reference value of the reverberation time in the receiving room.

D2m,nT = D2m + 10Log(T/T0) dB

Where T0 = 0.5 seconds

Where the sound source is road traffic the expression used is Dtr,2m,nT

Sound Exposure Level Difference, DE2m The difference between the outdoor sound exposure level, LE1.2m, and the space-averaged sound exposure level, LE2, in the receiving room.

DE2m = LE1.2m – LE2 dB

Where the sound source is air traffic the expression used is Dat,E2m

Standardised Sound Exposure Level Difference, DE2m,nT The level difference corresponding to a reference value of the reverberation time in the receiving room.

DE2m,nT = DE2m + 10Log(T/T0) dB

Where T0 = 0.5 seconds Where the sound source is air traffic the expression used is Dat,E2m,nT

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APPENDIX 4

INDIVIDUAL HOUSE REPORTS

REPORT 1 (ROAD TRAFFIC): ...........................................PAGES 11-23




REPORT 5 (AIR TRAFFIC): ................................................PAGES 64-74

REPORT 6 (AIR TRAFFIC): ................................................PAGES 75-85

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FIELD TEST REPORT 1: EXTERNAL ENVELOPE ACOUSTIC FIELD TESTS

19 Adelphi Place Brookfield Albany Auckland

Report by: George Bellhouse

Bel Acoustic Consulting

13

1 GENERAL

1.1 SUBCONTRACT ORDER: Claire Benge

1.2 SITE: 19 Adelphi Place, Brookfield

1.3 DATE OF VISIT: 1 April 2000

1.4 WEATHER: Fine, calm, dry, 24ºC

1.5 ACOUSTICIANS PRESENT: George Bellhouse

1.6 OTHER PERSONS PRESENT: Occupier

2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was included by comparing the sound attenuation in rooms facing the noise source with the sound attenuation in rooms to the rear of the building away from the source. This was achieved by having two external microphone locations (one at the front and one at the rear of the house) and two sets of internal microphone locations (in test rooms at the front and rear of the house). Three series of measurements were taken with the source of noise (Road traffic) common to all three series.

1. Front/Front Measurements with the external microphone at the front façade and internal microphone in the test room at the front of the house

2. Front/Rear Measurements with the external microphone at the front façade and internal microphone in the test room at the rear of the house

3. Rear/Rear Measurements with the external microphone at the rear façade and internal microphone in the test room at the rear of the house

3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house is on a flat section raised above the road level. The level of the floor of the house is approximately 1.2m above the level of the road. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade is 10m from the kerb. The road is very slightly graded up as viewed in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A.

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3.2 CONSTRUCTION Details of the construction of the house are in Appendix B.

3.3 SOURCE OF INFORMATION This information was derived from the owner and site inspection.

4 BUILDING HISTORY 4.1 Built in 1999, one owner, owner occupier.

5 SITE INVESTIGATION

5.1 EQUIPMENT USED The following equipment was used: Two Rion NA-27 Real-time One-third Octave Spectrum analyers to make the measurements and calibrated with a Rion Sound level calibrator. The resulting measurements were analysed using an Excel spreadsheet.

5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using road traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to road traffic. Two test rooms were used in the measurements, one facing the road (test room 1) and the other on the opposite side of the house facing away from the road (test room 2). The test rooms were directly opposite each other across an intervening passageway. The rooms met the following conditions:

• Neither test room was on the corner of the dwelling or open to another room, • Each test room contained only one window, • One test room had the window directed toward the road (noise source), • One test room faced away from the noise source, • Both test rooms were a habitable space, a bedroom and a work room • The test rooms were greater than 20 cubic metres in volume. • The window in each test room was on one wall only and between 10 and 35% of the

floor area. The tests undertaken complied with the requirements of ISO 140-5 only in respect of the test room with the façade towards the road with the microphone position in front of that façade. The other measurements involving the test room to the rear of the house were not strictly in accordance with ISO 140-5. This is because the standard requires the external wall of the test room to be exposed to the road traffic noise directly. Photographs recording the position of each window (ajar and wide open) at the time of measurements may be found in Appendix C of this report.

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5.3 MEASUREMENTS All the measurements were taken with the two sound level meters measuring concurrently. This was achieved by starting and ending the series of measurements using a remote control to start and stop the meters. 5.3.1 Measurements: Test Room 1 (Facing Road) Front/Front Measurements Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements, with one external microphone positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of the test room. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 1 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The background noise level could not be determined because the sound source (road traffic) was always present. The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). 5.3.2 Measurements: Test Room 2 (Away from Road) Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements in two different ways. Firstly with the external microphone at the front façade of the house and with the internal microphone in test room 2 at the rear side of the house (Front/Rear measurements). Secondly, with the external microphone at the rear façade of the house and the internal microphone in test room 2 (Rear/Rear measurements). Front/Rear Measurements The external microphone was positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house facing the road at the location of the measurements for test room 1. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 2 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The background noise level could not be determined because the sound source (road traffic) was always present. The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). Rear/Rear Measurements The external microphone was positioned at a distance of 2 m from the rear façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of test room 2. Five measurement positions were used in test room 2 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart.

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The results of all these measurements are tabulated in Appendix E, graphed in Appendix F and the positions of the windows and content of the test rooms can be seen in the photographs in Appendices C and D

5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was some difficulty at times in conducting the Front/Rear and Rear/Rear measurements in test room 2 because of the low level of noise within the test room from the traffic at the front of the house. The resulting Level Differences and Standardised Level Differences for test room 2 were probably close to the background level (which could not be measured directly).

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS The occupier-owners had recently moved from the provinces. They were not too bothered with the traffic noise although it was quite noticeable. They are troubled more by the over-flying of the RNZAF aircraft on track to Whenuapai airbase. The traffic noise does not disturb them unduly.

6 EVALUATION

6.1 The results from the measurements in the front test room indicate that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected. The level differences in the rear test room when the external microphone is at the front of the house show a higher level of difference than those of the front test room. The level difference is high and much the same even with the window open. This indicates the there is a high level of sound reduction due to the shielding effect of the house, probably due to the particular layout and positioning of the house. The level differences in the rear test room with the external microphone at the rear are slightly greater than those of the front test room. This is probably due to the fact that the sound from the major source is not directed directly at the rear façade. The exception is with the window closed where the relatively low apparent level difference was probably due to the activities of the occupants at the time that those measurements were made.

7 COMMENT

7.1 The results were in line with intuition in that the level differences appear to be controlled by the position of the window when opened. If there is an opening in the façade, the larger it is the smaller is the Level Difference. George Bellhouse Acoustic Consultant Bel Acoustic Consulting

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APPENDICES Appendix A Location map/Topography Appendix B Building construction Appendix C Photographs of windows at testing Appendix D Photographs of test rooms 1 and 2 Appendix E Tables of field test results Appendix F Graphical presentation of results

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APPENDIX A

LOCATION MAP, TOPOGRAPHY

Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 19 Adelphi Place

Figure 2: Photograph illustrating the position of the house in relation to the road

House at 19 Adelphi Place

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APPENDIX B

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION DETAILS


Floor level tested Single storey

Roof cladding Concrete tile

Roof structure Pitched

Roof cavity insulation R2.2 fibre-glass

Ceiling lining 1x9.5mm plasterboard on timber

Wall cladding Concrete brick

Wall structure 100x50 standard framing, R 1.8 fibre-glass thermal insulation

Wall lining 1x9.5mm plasterboard, 1x12.5mm plasterboard to external walls

Window Aluminium to NZS4223.3, 6mm laminated in rooms to road, 4mm standard elsewhere

Test rooms Test Room 1 to road

Work room

3.1m(l) 3.0m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.2m2, total surface area 47.9m2, volume of room 22.3m3, no wardrobe.

Cut pile carpet on underlay to floor partly covered with plastic sheeting, painted plasterboard to walls and ceilings.

Work desk and other small items. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D

Standard 760mm internal door, standard hardware

Test Room 2 away from road

Bedroom

3.3m(l) 3m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.9m2, total surface area 50.0m2, volume of room 23.8m3, built-in wardrobe volume 3.1m3.

Cut pile carpet on underlay to floor, painted plasterboard to walls and ceilings.

Two single beds and chest of drawers. See Photograph in Figure 2 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to road

Work room

Window 2.0m2, with 0.77m2 openable, total window 21% of floor area


Bedroom


See photographs in Appendix C

Foundations Concrete slab over grade

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APPENDIX C

RECORD OF VENTILATION AT TIME OF EACH MEASUREMENT

The windows in each test room were either closed or open and when open were as illustrated below:

1 Window closed Windows completely closed with no ventilation

2 Window ajar

Figure 1: Window ajar with a gap at the bottom of 10cm

3 Window open

Figure 2: Window fully open with a gap at the bottom of 43cm

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APPENDIX D

RECORD OF TEST ROOMS AT TIME OF EACH MEASUREMENT

The layout and contents of the test rooms were as illustrated below:

Test Room 1 adjacent to the road

Figure 1: Test Room 1 used as a work room

Test Room 2 away from the road

Figure 2: Test Room 2 used as bedroom

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APPENDIX E

TABLES OF FIELD TEST RESULTS

Level Difference, DTr,2m for the three series of measurements

23

Standardised Level Difference, D2m,nT for the three series of measurements

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APPENDIX F

GRAPHICAL PRESENTATION OF RESULTS

LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DTR,2M

Level Difference - Road FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

50H

z

63H

z

80H

z

100H

z

125H

z

160H

z

200H

z

250H

z

315H

z

400H

z

500H

z

630H

z

800H

z

1kH

z

1.25

kHz

1.6k

Hz

2kH

z

2.5k

Hz

3.15

kHz

4kH

z

5kH

z

6.3k

Hz

8kH

z

10k

Hz

Frequenct, f, Hz

Leve

l Diff

eren

ce, D

Tr,2

m, d

B

Window ClosedWindow AjarWindow Open

STANDARDISED LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DTR,2M,NT

Normalised Level Difference - Road FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

50H

z

63H

z

80H

z

100H

z

125H

z

160H

z

200H

z

250H

z

315H

z

400H

z

500H

z

630H

z

800H

z

1kH

z

1.25

kHz

1.6k

Hz

2kH

z

2.5k

Hz

3.15

kHz

4kH

z

5kH

z

6.3k

Hz

8kH

z

10k

Hz

Frequenct, f, Hz

Leve

l Diff

eren

ce, D

2m,n

T dB


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17 Burnside Court Bushlands Albany Auckland



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1 GENERAL


1.2 SITE: 17 Burnside Court, Bushlands

1.3 DATE OF VISIT: 31 March 2000




2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was included by comparing the sound attenuation in test rooms facing the noise source with the sound attenuation in test rooms to the rear of the building away from the source. This was achieved by having two external microphone locations (one at the front and one at the rear of the house) and two sets of internal microphone locations (in test rooms at the front and rear of the house). Three series of measurements were taken with the source of noise (Road traffic) common to all three series.




3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house was on a sloping section raised above the level of the road. The level of the floor of the house was approximately 2 to 2.5m above the level of the road. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade was 13.7m from the kerb. The road was moderately graded up as viewed in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A.

27






5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using road traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to road traffic. Two test rooms were used in the measurements, one facing the road (test room 1) and the other on the opposite side of the house facing away from the road (test room 2). The rooms were directly opposite each other across an intervening passageway. The test rooms met the following conditions:

• Neither room was on the corner of the dwelling or open to another room, • Each room contained only one window, • One room had the window directed toward the road (noise source), • One room faced away from the noise source, • Both rooms were a habitable space, a bedroom and a work out room • The rooms were greater than 20 cubic metres in volume. • The window in each room was on one external wall only and between 10 and 35% of

the floor area. The tests undertaken complied with the requirements of ISO 140-5 only in respect of the test room with the façade towards the road with the microphone position in front of that façade. The other measurements involving the test room to the rear of the house were not strictly in accordance with ISO 140-5. This is because the standard requires the external wall of the test room to be exposed to the road traffic noise directly. Photographs recording the position of each window (ajar and wide open) at the time of measurements may be found in Appendix C of this report.

28


29


5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was some difficulty at times in conducting the Front/Rear and Rear/Rear measurements in test room 2 because of the low level of noise within the test Room from the traffic at the front of the house. The resulting Level Differences and Standardised Level Differences for test room 2 were probably close to the background level (which could not be measured directly).

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS The occupiers/owners had recently moved into the house with little comment because of the short time living there.

6 EVALUATION

6.2 The results from the measurements in the front test room indicate that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected. The level differences in the rear test room when the external microphone is at the front of the house show a higher level of difference than those of the front test room, particularly when the window is open. This is to be expected since there is an additional attenuation between the two microphone due to the presence of the house.

7 COMMENT


30


31

APPENDIX A


Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 17 Burnside Court


House at 17 Burnside Court

32

APPENDIX B




Roof cladding Colorsteel iron




Wall cladding Cement fibre board


Wall lining 1x9.5mm plasterboard



Bed room Storage Area

3.3m(l) 3.0m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.2m2, total surface area 40.8m2, volume of room 23.8m3, volume of wardrobe 5.5 m3.

Loop pile carpet on underlay to floor, painted plasterboard to walls and ceilings.

Single unmade bed and other small items. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D



Workroom

3.2m(l) 2.6m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 6.2m2, total surface area 42.1m2, volume of room 17.0m3, built-in wardrobe volume 2.3m3.

Uncovered particle board floor, painted plasterboard to walls and ceilings.

Work desk with other small items of furniture including a bookshelf. See Photograph in Figure 2 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to road

Bedroom Storage Area



Workroom



Foundations Particle board floor on pile construction

33

APPENDIX C




2 Window ajar


34

3 Window open


35

APPENDIX D




Figure 1: Test Room 1 used as a bedroom/storage area


Figure 2: Test Room 2 used as workroom

36

APPENDIX E



37


38

APPENDIX F




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STANDARDISED LEVEL DIFFERENCE, D2M,NT

Standardised Level Difference - Road FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

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39


2/28 Clendon Avenue Puhinui Auckland



40

1 GENERAL


1.2 SITE: 2/28 Clendon Avenue, Puhinui





2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was included by comparing the sound attenuation in rooms facing the noise source with the sound attenuation in rooms to the rear of the building away from the source. This was achieved by having two external microphone locations (one at the front and one at the rear of the house) and two sets of internal microphone locations (in test rooms at the front and rear of the house). Three series of measurements were taken with the source of noise (Road traffic) common to all three series.




3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house was on a slightly sloping section sloping away from the road towards the rear of the property. The level of the floor of the house was approximately 0.7m below the level of the road. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade was 12m from the kerb. The road was approximately level as viewed in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A.

41






5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using road traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to road traffic. Two test rooms were used in the measurements, one facing the road (test room 1) and the other on the opposite side of the house facing away from the road (test room 2). The rooms were directly opposite each other across an intervening passageway. The test rooms met the following conditions:



42


43


5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was some difficulty at times in conducting the Front/Rear and Rear/Rear measurements in test room 2 because of the low level of noise within the Test room from the traffic at the front of the house. The resulting Level Differences and Standardised Level Differences for test room 2 were probably close to the background level (which could not be measured directly).

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS The occupier/owner had become concerned about traffic noise in the recent past. This was because of the increase in traffic volume as a consequence of the road becoming a major thoroughfare. The occupier had lived in the house next door for 13 years previously but moved into the new house following subdivision of the land. Exposure to aircraft and road traffic noise has occurred over a long period of time. There has been no compensation for the noise from aircraft movement that has increased dramatically over recent years. That is a bit of a “bug”. There has been no noticeable difference in the way noise gets into the house between the old house and the new house. The house is located almost directly under the flight-path of Auckland International Airport.

6 EVALUATION

6.3 The results from the measurements in the front test room indicate that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected. The level differences in the rear test room when the external microphone is at the front of the house show a higher level of difference than those of the front test room. This is also to be expected since there is an additional attenuation between the two microphones due to the presence of the house. The level differences in the rear test room with the external microphone at the rear are slightly greater than those of the front test room, except for the closed window situation. This could be attributed to the activities of the occupant at the time. This overall increase in level difference is probably due to the fact that the sound from the major source is not directed directly at the rear façade.

7 COMMENT


44


45

APPENDIX A


Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 2/28 Clendon Avenue

Figure 2: Photograph illustrating the rear of the house with the foundations elevated above ground level compared with the front of the house

House at 2/28 Clendon Avenue

46

APPENDIX B




Roof cladding Metal tile




Wall cladding 7.5mm Hardies weather-board





Bedroom

3.4m(l) 3.2m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 8.2m2, total surface area 53.4m2, volume of room 26.1m3, built-in wardrobe volume 3.2m3.


Double bed and other items of furniture. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D



Store room (to become a bedroom)

3m(l) 3m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.2m2, total surface area 48.6m2, volume of room 23.1m3, built-in wardrobe volume 3.0m3.


Various stored items, few items of furniture. See Photograph in Figure 2 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to road

Bedroom



Store room (to become a bedroom)




47

APPENDIX C




2 Window ajar


3 Window open


48

APPENDIX D




Figure 1: Test Room 1 used as a bedroom


Figure 2: Test Room 2 used as a storage room (to become a bedroom)

49

APPENDIX E



50


51

APPENDIX F




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52


18 Red Shed Lane Bushlands Albany Auckland



53

1 GENERAL


1.2 SITE: 18 Red Shed Lane, Albany





2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was included by comparing the sound attenuation in test rooms facing the noise source with the sound attenuation in test rooms to the rear of the building away from the source. This was achieved by having two external microphone locations (one at the front and one at the rear of the house) and two sets of internal microphone locations (in test rooms at the front and rear of the house). Three series of measurements were taken with the source of noise (Road traffic) common to all three series.




3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house was on a slightly sloping section sloping away from the road towards the cul de sac from which there was access to the property. The level of the floor of the house was approximately 0.8m below the level of the road. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade was 10.2m from the kerb. The road was very slightly graded up as viewed in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A.

54


3.3 SOURCE OF INFORMATION This information was derived from the owner, site inspection and the Local Authority.

4 BUILDING HISTORY 4.1 Built in May 1999, one owner, owner occupier.



5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using road traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to road traffic. Two test rooms were used in the measurements, one facing the road (test room 1) and the other on the opposite side of the house facing away from the road (test room 2). The test rooms were directly opposite each other across an intervening passageway. The test rooms met the following conditions:



55

5.3 MEASUREMENTS All the measurements were taken with the two sound level meters measuring concurrently. This was achieved by starting and ending the series of measurements using a remote control to start and stop the meters. 5.3.1 Measurements: Test Room 1 (Facing Road) Front/Front Measurements Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements, with one external microphone positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of the test room. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 1 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The background noise level could not be determined because the sound source (road traffic) was always present. The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). 5.3.2 Measurements: Test Room 2 (Away from Road) Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements in two different ways. Firstly with the external microphone at the front façade of the house and with the internal microphone in test room 2 at the rear side of the house (Front/Rear measurements). Secondly, with the external microphone at the rear façade of the house and the internal microphone in Test 2 (Rear/Rear measurements). Front/Rear Measurements The external microphone was positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house facing the road at the location of the measurements for test room 1. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 2 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The background noise level could not be determined because the sound source (road traffic) was always present. The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). Rear/Rear Measurements The external microphone was positioned at a distance of 2 m from the rear façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of test room 2. Five measurement positions were used in test room 2 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart.

56

The background noise level could not be determined because the sound source (road traffic) was always present. The results of all these measurements are tabulated in Appendix E, graphed in Appendix F and the positions of the windows and content of the test rooms can be seen in the photographs in Appendices C and D

5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was some difficulty at times in conducting the Front/Rear and Rear/Rear measurements in test room 2 because of the low level of noise within the test room from the traffic at the front of the house. The resulting Level Differences and Standardised Level Differences for test room 2 were probably close to the background level (which could not be measured directly).

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS The occupier/owner was not really concerned about traffic noise. The side of the house facing the road had two habitable rooms but they were not currently used as bedrooms. The living areas otherwise generally faced away from the road.

6 EVALUATION

6.4 The results from the measurements in the front test room indicate that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected. The level differences in the rear test room when the external microphone is at the front of the house show a higher level of difference than those of the front test room, particularly when the window is open. This is to be expected since there is an additional attenuation between the two microphones due to the presence of the house. The level differences in the rear test room with the external microphone at the rear are slightly greater than those of the front test room. This is probably due to the fact that the sound from the major source is not directed directly at the rear façade.

7 COMMENT


57


58

APPENDIX A


Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 18 Red Shed Lane


House at 18 Red Shed Lane

59

APPENDIX B




Roof cladding Concrete tile

Roof structure Pitched 28º

Roof cavity insulation 150mm blown wool


Wall cladding Brick veneer

Wall structure 100x50 standard framing, fibre-glass thermal insulation

Wall lining 1x9.5mm plasterboard



Work-out Room

3m(l) 3m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.2m2, total surface area 46.8m2, volume of room 21.6m3, built-in wardrobe volume 1.58m3.


No furniture, small items. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D



Bedroom

3.5m(l) 3m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 8.4m2, total surface area 51.2m2, volume of room 22.9m3, built-in wardrobe volume 2.3m3.


Double bed with other items of furniture. See Photograph in Figure 2 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to road

Work-out Room


Test Room 2 away from road Bedroom




60

APPENDIX C



1 Window closed

Windows completely closed with no ventilation

2 Window ajar

Figure 1: Window ajar with a gap at the bottom of 10cm (indicated by the tape)

3 Window open

Figure 2: Window fully open with a gap at the bottom of 43cm indicated by the tape

61

APPENDIX D




Figure 1: Test Room 1 used as a work-out room and storage


Figure 2: Test Room 2 used as bedroom

62

APPENDIX E



63


64

APPENDIX F




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65


3/37 Clendon Avenue Puhinui Auckland



66

1 GENERAL


1.2 SITE: 3/37 Clendon Avenue





2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was not included in this series of measurements on aircraft noise as a source. This was achieved by having an external microphone location at the façade of the house facing the airport and a set of internal microphone locations in a test room at the front of the house facing the sound source. The series of measurements were taken with the source of noise being aircraft traffic.

13. Front/Front Measurements with the external microphone at the front façade and internal microphone in the test room at the front of the house facing the airport

3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house was on a flat section down a right of way off Clendon Avenue and at road level. The main north/south trunk railway line was immediately to the rear of the property. The level of the floor of the house is approximately 0.4m above the level of the ground. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade was directly facing the airport and the house was directly underneath the flight path for Auckland International airport.

67






5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using aircraft traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to air traffic. One test room was used in the measurements, facing the airport (test room 1). The test room met the following conditions:

• The room was not on the corner of the dwelling or open to another room, • The room contained only one window, • The room had the window directed toward the airport (noise source), • The room was a habitable space, a bedroom • The room was greater than 20 cubic metres in volume. • The window in the room was on one external wall only and between 10 and 35% of

the floor area. The tests undertaken complied with the requirements of ISO 140-5 in respect of the test room with the façade towards the airport with the microphone position in front of that façade. Photographs recording the position of the window at the time of measurement may be found in Appendix C of this report.

5.3 MEASUREMENTS All the measurements were taken with the two sound level meters measuring concurrently. This was achieved by starting and ending the series of measurements using a remote control to start and stop the meters.

68

5.3.1 Measurements: Test Room 1 (Facing Airport) Front/Front Measurements Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements, with one external microphone positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of the test room. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 1 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The sound exposure level of individual over-flights of aircraft were measured in accordance with Appendix D of ISO 140-5. A total of fifteen such measurements were taken with the window closed, ajar and wide open The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). The results of all these measurements are tabulated in Appendix E, graphed in Appendix F and the positions of the window and content of the test room can be seen in the photographs in Appendices C and D

5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was no difficulty in obtaining the measurements although there were considerable delays between flights.

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS The occupier/owners had lived in the house since the house was built and now find that the noise from aircraft very disturbing. They are disappointed with the house because the high level of noise from both aircraft and the adjacent railway line was unexpected. The house shakes when a freight train passes. The noise from the jets hurts the ears sometimes and sometimes they are woken up. They sleep with the windows closed but would like to have them open.

6 EVALUATION

6.5 The results from the measurements in the front test room show that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected.

7 COMMENT


69

APPENDICES Appendix A Location map/Topography Appendix B Building construction Appendix C Photographs of window at testing Appendix D Photographs of test room 1 Appendix E Tables of field test results Appendix F Graphical presentation of results

70

APPENDIX A


Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 3/37 Clendon Avenue

Figure 2: Photograph illustrating the rear side of the house with façade pointing towards the airport

House at 3/37 Clendon Avenue

71

APPENDIX B




Roof cladding Steel tiles







Window Aluminium to NZS4223.3, 6mm laminated

Test rooms Test Room 1 to airport

Bedroom

3.0m(l) 3.0m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.2m2, total surface area 46.8m2, volume of room 21.6m3, volume of wardrobe 2.2m3.


Bed and other furniture. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to airport

Bedroom




72

APPENDIX C


The window in the test room was either closed or open and when open was as illustrated below:

1 Window closed Window completely closed with no ventilation

2 Window ajar


3 Window open


73

APPENDIX D

RECORD OF THE TEST ROOM AT TIME OF EACH MEASUREMENT

The layout and contents of the test room were as illustrated below:

Test Room 1 facing airport

Figure 1: Test Room 1 used as a bedroom

74

APPENDIX E


Level Difference, Dat,E2m for the series of measurements

Standardised Level Difference, Dat,E2m,nT for the series of measurements

75

APPENDIX F


LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DAT,E2M

Level Difference - Airport FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

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STANDARDISED LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DAT,2M,NT

Standardised Level Difference - Airport FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

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143 Puhinui Road Puhinui Auckland



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1 GENERAL


1.2 SITE: 143 Puhinui Road


1.4 WEATHER: Occasional drizzle, calm, wet, 18ºC



2 DESCRIPTION OF FIELD TEST 2.1 The aim was to obtain information on the sound attenuation of houses built to the current building code envelope construction. The results could be used as a basis for writing an Acceptable Solution for the proposed new clause in G6 of the Building Code “Airborne and impact sound”, which requires a maximum environmental sound level in habitable spaces of household units. The objective was to find the difference in sound attenuation of the building envelope when windows are both open and closed. The effect of layout of buildings was not included in this series of measurements on aircraft noise as a source. This was achieved by having an external microphone location at the façade of the house facing the airport and a set of internal microphone locations in a test room at the front of the house facing the sound source. The series of measurements were taken with the source of noise being aircraft traffic.

14. Front/Front Measurements with the external microphone at the front façade and internal microphone in the test room at the front of the house facing the airport

3 SITE INSPECTION

3.1 SITE The house was on a flat section down a right of way off Puhinui Road and approximately at road level. The level of the floor of the house was approximately 0.1m above the level of the ground. This is illustrated in the photograph in Figure 2 in Appendix A. The façade was directly facing towards the airport and the house was approximately 400m to the side of the flight path for Auckland International airport.

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3.3 SOURCE OF INFORMATION This information was derived from the builder and site inspection.

4 BUILDING HISTORY 4.1 Built in 1999/2000 (New), one owner, the builder. Unoccupied at the time of

measurement.



5.2 METHODOLOGY The measurements were conducted in accordance with the requirements of the International Standards Organisation standard ISO 140-5, 1998: Acoustics – Measurement of sound insulation in buildings and building elements; Part 5: Field measurements of airborne sound insulation of façade elements and façades”. The Global Method using aircraft traffic as the sound source was used which is the preferred method for the estimation the overall sound insulation of a façade exposed to air traffic. One test room was used in the measurements, facing the airport (test room 1). The test room met the following conditions:

• The room was not on the corner of the dwelling or open to another room, • The room contained only one window, • The room had the window directed toward the airport (noise source), • The room was a habitable space, potentially a bedroom • The room was greater than 20 cubic metres in volume. • The window in each room was on one wall only and between 10 and 35% of the

floor area. The tests undertaken complied with the requirements of ISO 140-5 in respect of the test room with the façade towards the airport with the microphone position in front of that façade. Photographs recording the position of the window at the time of each measurement may be found in Appendix C of this report.

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5.3 MEASUREMENTS All the measurements were taken with the two sound level meters measuring concurrently. This was achieved by starting and ending the series of measurements using a remote control to start and stop the meters. 5.3.1 Measurements: Test Room 1 (Facing Airport) Front/Front Measurements Two sound level meters were used to take the measurements, with one external microphone positioned at a distance of 2 m from the façade of the house at a height of 1.5m above the floor at a position approximately in the middle of the external wall of the test room. Five measurement positions were used for the internal microphone in test room 1 to obtain the average sound pressure level in the test room. The positions were one towards each corner of the test room and 0.7m from each wall and the fifth near the centre of the test room. All positions were at least 1m apart. The sound exposure level of individual over-flights of aircraft were measured in accordance with Appendix D of ISO 140-5. A total of fifteen such measurements were taken with the window closed, ajar and wide open The reverberation time of the test room was measured at three of the five previous positions of the microphone, each position using the sound source at two positions (six measurements). The results of all these measurements are tabulated in Appendix E, graphed in Appendix F and the positions of the window and content of the test room can be seen in the photographs in Appendices C and D

5.4 SUMMARY OF SITUATION There was no difficulty in obtaining the measurements although there were considerable delays between flights. The house was empty and because of the lack of furniture and fittings in the test room, the room was reverberant.

5.5 STATEMENT BY OTHERS Since the house is new there have been no occupier/owners.

6 EVALUATION

6.6 The results from the measurements in the front test room show that the level difference increases as the opening increases. This is to be expected. The level difference with window closed was relatively low.

7 COMMENT


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APPENDICES Appendix A Location map/Topography Appendix B Building construction Appendix C Photographs of window at testing Appendix D Photographs of test rooms 1 Appendix E Tables of field test results Appendix F Graphical presentation of results

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APPENDIX A


Figure 1: Location Map of the Property at 143 Puhinui Road

Figure 2: Photograph illustrating the front side of the house with this side pointing away from the airport

House at 143 Puhinui Road

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APPENDIX B




Roof cladding Concrete tiles


Roof cavity insulation R1.8 Rockwool

Ceiling lining 18mm MDF board


Wall structure 36mm chipboard with 47mm polystyrene and a 40mm cavity

Wall lining 2x36mm chipboard

Window Aluminium to NZS4223.3, 4mm glass

Test rooms Test Room 1 to airport

Bedroom

3.3m(l) 3.3m (w) 2.4m (h), external wall area 7.9m2, total surface area 53.5m2, volume of room 26.1m3, volume of wardrobe 1.6m3.


No furniture, empty. See Photograph in Figure 1 Appendix D


Ventilation

Test Room 1 to airport

Bedroom




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APPENDIX C


The window in the test room was either closed or open and when open was as illustrated below:

1 Window closed Window completely closed with no ventilation

2 Window ajar


3 Window open


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APPENDIX D

RECORD OF TEST ROOM AT TIME OF EACH MEASUREMENT

The layout and contents of the test room were as illustrated below:

Test Room 1 facing airport

Figure 1: Test Room 1 to be used as a bedroom

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APPENDIX E


Level Difference, Dat,E2m for the series of measurements

Standardised Level Difference, Dat,E2m,nT for the series of measurements

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APPENDIX F


LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DAT,E2M

Level Difference - Airport FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

50H

z

63H

z

80H

z

100H

z

125H

z

160H

z

200H

z

250H

z

315H

z

400H

z

500H

z

630H

z

800H

z

1kH

z

1.25

kHz

1.6k

Hz

2kH

z

2.5k

Hz

3.15

kHz

4kH

z

5kH

z

6.3k

Hz

8kH

z

10k

Hz

Frequenct, f, Hz

Leve

l Diff

eren

ce, D

Tr,2

m, d

B


STANDARDISED LEVEL DIFFERENCE, DAT,E2M,NT

Standardised Level Difference - Airport FaçadeAccording to ISO 140-5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

50H

z

63H

z

80H

z

100H

z

125H

z

160H

z

200H

z

250H

z

315H

z

400H

z

500H

z

630H

z

800H

z

1kH

z

1.25

kHz

1.6k

Hz

2kH

z

2.5k

Hz

3.15

kHz

4kH

z

5kH

z

6.3k

Hz

8kH

z

10k

Hz

Frequenct, f, Hz

Leve

l Diff

eren

ce, D

2m,n

T dB

Window ClosedWindow OpenWindow Ajar