Old 12-20-2018, 04:20 PM   #1
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Default Choosing healthy acoustic treatment?

My studio is in my bedroom, so it's important for me to have treatment that's not going to give me medical issues later on.

At first I thought mineral / rock wool would should be healthier than the fiberglass pink stuff, but now I'm not sure. There's also Knauf Ecose, that's supposed to be better, but that's also made of fiberglass.

I'm not sure what to buy without breaking the bank.

Any help would be appreciated.
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Old 12-20-2018, 06:31 PM   #2
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I've been reading recently that cotton fiber insulation is great for sound and heat insulation and totally harmless to handle.
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Old 12-20-2018, 07:46 PM   #3
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I've been reading recently that cotton fiber insulation is great for sound and heat insulation and totally harmless to handle.
I was quoted $200 shipping fee for 6 cotton fiber 2-inch boards from LA to Texas. That was too much for me.

Trying to find another source.

Another place had them for $350 shipped for 7 panels. This stuff is expensive.
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Old 12-20-2018, 08:08 PM   #4
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It's probably cheaper at your local hardware store. Or at least won't cost you any shipping. I've never heard anything about rock wool being harmful to health. If you take precautions when installing fiberglass and cover it properly, it won't ever bother you. If you're trying to build panels for a finished room, layered towels can be effective and cheap if bought second hand.
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Old 12-21-2018, 03:49 AM   #5
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Rockwool is cheap and healthy
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Old 12-21-2018, 12:20 PM   #6
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BTW, I got an email from GIK Acoustics saying, "Yes, the Ecose material is the only boards we use in our products. It is the healthiest we have found."
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Old 12-21-2018, 03:07 PM   #7
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Just be sure to wear gloves, goggles and breathing mask when handling fiberglass. As long as it's not disturbed after installation, you should be fine.
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Old 12-21-2018, 03:23 PM   #8
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Just be sure to wear gloves, goggles and breathing mask when handling fiberglass. As long as it's not disturbed after installation, you should be fine.
With rockwool you don't have to. You can play in it! And they have it at Home Depot.
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Old 12-21-2018, 04:10 PM   #9
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Rockwool is not unhealthy in sound treatments, but one can be allergic to it or other similar materials. It would be good to see how you react to any of these, if you're concerned. But aside from personal reactions, which aren't common, it's safe and a good material to use.
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Old 12-21-2018, 04:19 PM   #10
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I'm doing mine all in gluten :-)
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Old 12-21-2018, 04:22 PM   #11
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indeed rockwool can irritate directly/physically but its not harmful per se these days.

to be honest a decent HEPA air filter is very beneficial in a bedroom anyway going forward even if you suspect you only have a hint of allergy - (it'll also clear up any tiny fibres from treatment)
took till my late 30's to realise its not normal to wake up with itchy eyes and stuffed up nose - as my room had become a dust fest... filter fixed that right away.

bear in mind allergies 'add up' to reach a threshold where you suddenly react, so the less 'burden' (i.e reducing dust allergens where you sleep) the more you can cope with of other allergens.

i was getting by with dust and pollen etc. but then added regular contact with a cat and that wasn't pleasant..

where you spend several hrs each day need to be a decent environment.
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Old 12-21-2018, 08:46 PM   #12
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I'm doing mine all in gluten :-)
Grass fed, free range insulation.
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Old 12-22-2018, 01:05 AM   #13
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I used one of the room kits made by Primacoustic in my little studio. The glass wool panels are encapsulated with micromesh and the edges are hardened to prevent any fibres from escaping.
I'm very happy with the result, sure you can make something yourself for less money using rockwool but I figured I'd spare me the hassle.
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Old 12-22-2018, 03:49 PM   #14
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indeed rockwool can irritate directly/physically but its not harmful per se these days.

to be honest a decent HEPA air filter is very beneficial in a bedroom anyway going forward even if you suspect you only have a hint of allergy - (it'll also clear up any tiny fibres from treatment)
took till my late 30's to realise its not normal to wake up with itchy eyes and stuffed up nose - as my room had become a dust fest... filter fixed that right away.

bear in mind allergies 'add up' to reach a threshold where you suddenly react, so the less 'burden' (i.e reducing dust allergens where you sleep) the more you can cope with of other allergens.

i was getting by with dust and pollen etc. but then added regular contact with a cat and that wasn't pleasant..

where you spend several hrs each day need to be a decent environment.
A lot of insulation has formaldehyde, which is highly toxic if it gasses out.
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Old 12-22-2018, 09:30 PM   #15
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A lot of insulation has formaldehyde, which is highly toxic if it gasses out.
Although formaldehyde is used in Rockwool manufacturing, it is nearly completely gone after processing until levels are nearly the same as the amount found in random location tests. There may be more of an issue with formaldehyde these days in cheap wood used in framing than in the Rockwool itself.

Once the Rockwool is covered and installed it doesn't gas by any significant amount. That's not to say there can't be an irritant effect for some, but with Rockwool, formaldehyde, once it's installed, isn't really a concern.
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Old 12-23-2018, 03:42 AM   #16
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Quote:
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A lot of insulation has formaldehyde, which is highly toxic if it gasses out.
But when would that ever happen?
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Old 12-23-2018, 05:33 AM   #17
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I live in Canada, so rooms get VERY dry in the winter due to heating.

I found the rockwool powdered just a bit when dried to the extreme, now use fibreglass, no more problems, YMMV.
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Old 12-23-2018, 10:41 AM   #18
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I've treated my studio with carpet padding. Not the rubber type but the cloth fiber padding stuff, reminds me of wool but it's not wool.. It's dense and not harmful.
I see you can buy it for about $100. Covers about 30 square yards.
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Old 12-23-2018, 01:16 PM   #19
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We use the Ecose Rockwool throughout our studio with many traps of different depths constructed of it in all the rooms. It does not use formaldehyde as a bonding agent.

This studio has been open for around 2 1/2 years and has around 50 to 75 people coming through each week. To date we've had no one have a reaction to the absorption materials - at least that I'm aware of.

Last edited by allstar; 12-23-2018 at 01:17 PM. Reason: spelling
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Old 12-23-2018, 06:03 PM   #20
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We use the Ecose Rockwool throughout our studio with many traps of different depths constructed of it in all the rooms. It does not use formaldehyde as a bonding agent.

This studio has been open for around 2 1/2 years and has around 50 to 75 people coming through each week. To date we've had no one have a reaction to the absorption materials - at least that I'm aware of.
Do you mean Ecose Knauf? That's fiberglass.
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Old 12-23-2018, 11:18 PM   #21
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For clarification, it's this product we used - https://www.knaufinsulation.co.uk/pr...ding-slab-rs45
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Old 12-24-2018, 05:35 PM   #22
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Who cares what you use as long as it's effective. There's no problem with fiberglass if you put it together
correctly. I haven't checked for a long time which substance gives the best over all frequency absortion, but
that would be my main concern. Plastic sheeting is cheap and if you build your panels correctly you won't have
any leakage.

I'm pretty much surrounded by 4 inches of 701 semi-rigid fiberglass. This is in my control room and it's been
there since 1980. If I had to do it again today, I might use rock wool or anything else that works as good or
better then fiberglass. But I'd sure research what's the most effective.
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Old 12-26-2018, 12:33 PM   #23
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Quote:
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Who cares what you use as long as it's effective. There's no problem with fiberglass if you put it together
correctly. I haven't checked for a long time which substance gives the best over all frequency absortion, but
that would be my main concern. Plastic sheeting is cheap and if you build your panels correctly you won't have
any leakage.

I'm pretty much surrounded by 4 inches of 701 semi-rigid fiberglass. This is in my control room and it's been
there since 1980. If I had to do it again today, I might use rock wool or anything else that works as good or
better then fiberglass. But I'd sure research what's the most effective.
I ended up buy a box of Knauf Ecose, which is fiberglass without the formaldehyde. Cross my fingers that it won't give me cancer. Next stop … the fabric store.
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Old 02-21-2019, 08:46 AM   #24
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Any particulate is bad if you disturb it, but when left alone (inluding asbestos, etc.) it's completely harmless.

I am surrounded by rockwool panels. I just don't smack them ; )


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My studio is in my bedroom, so it's important for me to have treatment that's not going to give me medical issues later on.

At first I thought mineral / rock wool would should be healthier than the fiberglass pink stuff, but now I'm not sure. There's also Knauf Ecose, that's supposed to be better, but that's also made of fiberglass.

I'm not sure what to buy without breaking the bank.

Any help would be appreciated.
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