Soundproofing Testimonials
Case Study Blind Pass Condos
When Hurricane Ian pummeled Sanibel Island in 2022, the Blind Pass Condominiums on the west end sustained extensive damage from 6-foot ground floor flood waters in all buildings. As plans progressed to rehab the complex, the Blind Pass Condos Board of Directors seized the opportunity to improve their circa 1970’s buildings. On every homeowner’s wish list? QUIETER SPACES. The old floor/ceiling and wood-framed construction provided no acoustic privacy.
ENTER HUSHFRAME. Contacted by the Blind Pass Condo Board and their contractor, Ron Bartomolucci of Barti Construction, we engaged in multiple interviews around our product and SOUNDPROOFING SOLUTION. There were extensive discussions about HushFrame’s applicability for this project, its acoustical performance in the old wood-truss floors and installation specifications before Barti decided to deploy HushFrame with Vi-Bridge technology.
Barti achieved KNOCKOUT ACOUSTICAL PERFORMANCE using HushFrame raft connectors in the rebuilt floor/ceiling assemblies. According to Ron: “We were nervous because although we understood the science, HushFrame was a new technology, and if it didn’t work, we would be crucified. After we finished the first building and approached the sound test, we held our breath. During the sound test, we stomped around, and there was remarkable impact noise
reduction—nothing like it was before we renovated the units. We also ran a hammer drill in the unit, and you could barely hear it in the adjacent units. It was SOFTER THAN A WHISPER. I mean, you had to really concentrate to hear it.”
THE PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING. The most important test was with the condo owners themselves. According to Ron, “We invited the condo owners in to test it, and they turned the TV up so loud we could barely be in the room with it; we then went to the next unit, and you couldn’t hear this at all. The HOMEOWNERS did a few tests themselves and after realizing how quiet their newly renovated units were with the installation of HushFrame they were SUPER EXCITED.” The results were a home run for the team: Barti, the Blind Pass Condos, and HushFrame.
Find out how your project could benefit from installing HushFrame. Contact us today to get HushFrame spec’d into your plans.
"I first used HushFrame five years ago for the ceilings in a three-decker in Dorchester and my framer resisted using it. He tried to sabotage the installation by putting the rafts upside down, short-circuiting the furring strips...And still I've never had a noise complaint from the tenants in that building. I've built hundreds of condos in Boston over the past 21 years and noise is the biggest reason my buyers left their previous homes. I've tried everything to control noise: resilient channel in the ceiling, crazy expensive insulation, resilient pads, Homasote, gypcrete on top of the subfloor, cushioned vinyl, you name it--but none performs like HushFrame.
For my last project, another classic three-decker, I asked Alan to specify the HushFrame installation and to inspect the work as we progressed. Alan told us to install the HushFrame and wood furring on all the ceilings before we built the non-bearing walls and then attach the top plates of those walls to the underside of the furring. It made such a difference! We left the drywall gaps he insisted on and caulked them, and attached all the mechanical stuff to the decouple furring--not to the joists. We just got this assembly acoustically field tested and the results speak for themselves: STC 60 and IIC 59. This floor was nailed-down hardwood over 3/4 plywood subfloor, 14" I-Joists 12" on centers, blown-in cellulose, double 5/8" gypsum panels over wood furring attached to the HushFrame. Superior results and no gypcrete or pads. I plan to use HushFrame soundproofing in all my projects going forward--installing the way Alan says because the details matter. And the guys using RC and gypcrete are struggling to make IIC 45."
- Dan Mangiacotti, Owner, Mangiacotti Design & Development, Boston
"Having been in the Entertainment and recording industry for 35 years, I've never seen a sound isolating product like HushFrame. HushFrame is so simple and elegant that I immediately recognized its extraordinary benefit in the studio recording space. I fell in love with what HushFrame can do and I knew that it was something that I wanted to be a part of. I work with some of the worlds best musical producers and have designed some of the worlds best recording studios. After speaking with the HushFrame team I decided to engage them to license HushFrame technology and create a brand of HushFrame isolators called "studio float IsoRafts". Overnight the music recording industry has changed and it's thanks to HushFrame. I can't wait to pioneer the sound isolation market in the studio recording space"
- Dave Malekpour, CEO, Studio Float Pro Audio Design
"The HushFrame Raft is the only decoupling product we have added to our line in the last 10 years. This product's value over the competition was immediately clear. One of the hurdles in convincing contractors to use resilient clips with metal furring hat channel is the introduction of metal products on to their project and into their ceilings or walls. The Raft removes that initial resistance, allowing for a quicker and easier sale. All while providing the customer with a superior product, it is a win for both sides ultimately. Then on top of that, a distributor that keeps significant inventory and is always responsive with intelligent and measured answers. It is clear that we have found not just a great product, but a great partner moving forward with HushFrame."
- Eric Pollard, Customer Support, Isostore
"I currently own a 44 Unit New construction luxury building in MA. I am a 15 year veteran of Development and Property Management. I was initially made aware of HushFrame through an acoustical consultant. I had been looking for a soundproofing/footfall solution specifically for 3/4" real hardwood flooring that was not cost prohibitive and also effective. Sound Travels through connections. Hush Frame appeared to be a simple cost effective solution compared to traditional methods of gluing mat to the subfloor and then gluing the hardwood flooring to the mat. HushFrame was easy to install and the customer service was a 10 out of 10. HushFrame was important to me as a builder because it provided a cost effective solution that actually works and allowed me to ensure I can build a quality property at a reasonable cost."
- Geoffrey Anatole
"We completed our project using Hush Frame back in November. The scope of the project was to minimize sound transfer between floor levels. The product worked phenomenally. You make an amazing product that helped me significantly."
- Issac Smith, Colorado
"Many builders mistakenly believe that stuffing very dense insulation materials into the joist bay cavities will stop the noise but often the very opposite happens. The very dense insulation material when pressed against the bottom of the floor above and the back of the ceiling below actually creates a “bridge” which helps the noise move across the cavity. Think of banging on a drum.
The solution for soundproofing these floors is to decouple the ceiling from the superstructure and HushFrame is the answer that you’re looking for."
- Sarah Buckley
"Manufactured locally. This is a product so simple that I wish I'd thought of it 10 years ago. Wow, that makes all the sense in the world. It's literally two little blocks of wood with a dense silicone between them and you screw one piece of wood to the structure above and you screw the strapping or the drywall to the other piece of wood and in between the (noise) energy is broken by that dense silicone. And it really does a wonderful job. We've tested it on that IIC noise--that impact noise which is just so pernicious."
- Marc Savatsky, The Real Estate Addicts Podcast