Mass Loaded Vinyl (or MLV) has been around for several decades as a dependable, effective product that improves STC in industrial, commercial and residential settings. When it comes to building construction, MLV is used as a high performance, flexible noise barrier, offering superior acoustic transmission loss in a wide variety of settings.

As we’ve mentioned previously, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Whenever possible it’s important to plan for soundproofing during the construction phase in order to minimize noise in any type of facility as it’s exponentially easier to provide soundproofing at the onset of a building project rather than retroactively.

Noise Barrier Mass Loaded Vinyl

Designed to meet market requirements, Sonic-Shield® Noise Barrier Mass Loaded Vinyl has been effectively used to reduce noise in residential, commercial and industrial markets globally, and has been developed to be dense, thin, highly-flexible, tear-resistant and strong. These properties give our product high transmission loss throughout various weight ranges.

Its dense core mass layer blocks the transmission of sound through walls, ceilings, and floors, reducing noise, including noise generated from mechanical equipment, engine noise, and electronic technologies, such as radio and television.

How It Works

Think of MLV like this: If you take a baseball and throw it at a sheet hanging from a clothesline, in a very short distance the ball loses energy and drops to the ground. Why? The sheet absorbed the energy by moving three-dimensionally. However, if the sheet could not move, the ball would bounce, and the energy left in the sheet would result in vibration.

The same principle is true for sound. Sound hits a hard surface and bounces, and its transferred energy causes the hard surface to vibrate – and that vibration propagates sound waves. And while walls and other building surfaces can’t be fluid like a sheet, the soundproofing inside the wall can.  And in the science of acoustics, it’s called a ‘limp mass barrier.’ >

How It’s Installed

Mass Loaded Vinyl is generally installed against the studs and with drywall over it, allowing the barrier to move in three-dimensional space in order to bleed off the energy of the sound, resulting in greater net losses of sound propagation through the wall.

Applications for MLV Include:

• Inside cavities, over lightweight walls and ceilings.>
• Ideal for home theatre rooms, office partitions, meeting rooms
• Between the plenum chamber of a floor slab, the roof, and adjoining partition walls
• Isolate sound on doors for privacy>
• Automotive cabin application to reduce engine and road noise transmitting through to passengers
• Attach to lightweight structures to reduce airborne noise

… and more

At Sonic-Shield, we offer a full range of soundproofing products and our acoustic experts work with you to develop customized soundproofing solutions to solve even the most demanding noise problems. Contact one of our soundproofing experts today.