How To Soundproof A Dishwasher
We all have dishwashers in our homes. It is a sheer necessity in all households. As helpful and convenient as they might be, it goes without saying that dishwashers can turn out to be very noisy at times. So much so that the noise dishwashers generate can ruin conversations and also your peace during your leisure time at your house. Nonetheless, you just cannot throw away your dishwasher, can you? However, what you can do is get to learn how to soundproof a dishwasher. And in this article, I will be teaching you exactly that.
A soundproof dishwasher will look and work just as similar to any other dishwasher on the market. Soundproofing it will not lead to any changes in performance whatsoever. And this is what really stops most people from soundproofing their dishwasher as they think that it will ruin its overall performance. Well, you will be glad to know that it doesn’t and there is absolutely no problem in soundproofing a dishwasher.
SOUNDPROOFING IS EASY:
Soundproofing overall is a very easy concept. And doing it all together is very uncomplicated as well. However, when it comes to soundproofing a dishwasher, the same cannot be said. A dishwasher is an electrical appliance and has its fair share of limitations. And you have to be very careful while soundproofing it. You would also want to utilize the best from all the little options. So without any further delay, let us learn how to soundproof a dishwasher.
TAKE THE DOOR OFF:
The first and foremost thing that you would want to start with is by removing the door or door cover of the dishwasher. Do keep in mind to turn off the dishwasher’s water source and power source before you start the process. Because safety is always important. And it is always better to be safe than sorry. Once you have shifted to a safe location take a simple screwdriver and loosen the screws that you will find usually at the bottom of the door panel. Once you have done that, you can easily remove the front panel of the door. Removing the door panel will open up the inside space and you will see loads of different foam materials inside. Do not be overwhelmed by all this. Because they are pretty useless and won’t help to soundproof or anything whatsoever. Rather they would cause problems and make it hard for you to install your soundproofing materials.
MEASURE IT OUT:
Now that you have taken out the door panel and also the foam inside, the next thing would be to measure out the depth and space inside. This is where most people make a mistake. They do not take the measurements beforehand, and go straight to installing the soundproofing material. This is not the ideal solution. So make sure to get the right measurements with a measuring tape.
WHAT SOUNDPROOFING MATERIALS SHOULD YOU USE?
If you are not very familiar with them, then I would like to let you know that there are many different types of soundproofing materials available out there. All different from each other with still one single similarity, and that is being able to block and absorb all sorts of noise and sound. No matter which soundproofing material you tend to go for. Be it acoustic foams, cell foams, vinyl sheets and what not. I can assure you that you will get a very good soundproofing experience. However, as I am talking about soundproofing a dishwasher here, the best material option would be to go for sound absorbing panels, cell foams or vinyl mats. You can even use insulating blankets as well.
If you are looking to use sound absorbent panels, then go for the ADW Acoustic Panels 24” X 24” X 1” Trapezoid. These are simple and easy to install soundproofing panels with excellent sound absorption capabilities. With an NRC rating of 0.85, it can absorb all different types of sound waves. And that includes the ones coming out from your dishwasher, they are also very cheap as well. Check out ADW Acoustic Panels 24” X 24” X 1” Trapezoid on Amazon. Secondly, coming to vinyl mats, you can get the TMS Mass Loaded Vinyl 4′ X 25′ (100 sf) 1 Lb MLV Soundproofing Barrier from Trademark Soundproofing.
They are about 1/8 of an inch thick and has a high-quality STC of 27. Giving it good sound deadening powers. Check out TMS Mass Loaded Vinyl 4′ X 25′ (100 sf) 1 Lb MLV Soundproofing Barrier from Trademark Soundproofing on Amazon.
So now that you have chosen what sort of material that you would want to go for, you will need to install them. Be very careful and gentle and insert your insulation or soundproofing material into the front panel. Make sure that the overall panel of the dishwasher is strongly stuck and does not have any sort of gaps and leaks. Otherwise, all of your efforts will go in vain. Once you have done that. Screw the front panel back in place and that would be it.
WHY NOT THE BACKSIDE?
Dishwashers as noisy they can be from the front, they also do make a lot of noise from the back as well. Because when a dishwasher is running, the back part tends to hit the wall behind. It doesn’t matter if you have a high-quality dishwasher or not, this is bound to happen. However, this is a very simple issue and can easily be fixed by adding some extra vinyl mats on the back of the machine. However, do make sure to cut the mats accordingly to the shape of the ports and plugs. Because you wouldn’t want to close them with soundproofing mats.
STILL NOT SATISFIED?
It is very possible that you might not like or think that the process I mentioned is not the ideal one. Well, sorry to say, but there aren’t actually many other options available out there. You have to realize that a dishwasher is an electrical appliance, and not any part of your house or anything. So soundproofing it is not as easy as it may seem. However, one last resort for soundproofing your dishwasher is to shift it completely to another different room. It can be in the basement, the garage, or whatever. Just shift it to another room where no activity takes place, and even if that doesn’t work, what you can do is soundproof the whole room itself. Soundproofing a room these days is as easy as it gets. I have written dedicated articles and guidelines on how you can soundproof a bedroom, garage or a basement room. Be sure to check them out. All you will need are a few basic tools and equipment to work with and most importantly soundproofing materials. Soundproofing materials are the most important thing here, as I mentioned before. They will either make or break your soundproofing solution. When you are soundproofing your home you can use acoustic foam panels, insulated blankets, plywood boards, vinyl mats and many other different sorts of materials to make sure no sort of sound penetrates through.
GET A TOOLBOX:
There are a number of different DIY soundproofing solution that you can do around the house. You will just need the right tools. Speaking of tools, it always helps to keep a handy toolbox around the house. It is something that always comes to help at all times. You don’t need to spend so much on one as well. You can get the Waterloo Portable Series Tool Box and it would be more than enough. It has all the required tools that you will ever need around the house. Check out Waterloo Portable Series Tool Box on Amazon.