Apart from adding a classic and beautiful touch to our rooms, a headboard just above the bed can be a great support for the furniture. Plus, it also keeps a protective guard from your walls being scratched.
Yet, some people have an idea that having headboards can block noise inside a room. Is that possible? We’ll find out.
Do headboards block noise?
Although headboards cannot block sounds completely, they can reduce the noise levels effectively. Headboards made with the right acoustic panels, upholstered, or plush materials can often absorb sounds coming from outside. Walls, windows, and doors also play a part in reducing sound levels.
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Do headboards reduce noise?
For eons, it has been known that headboards reduce noise. And it’s true. While we know they cannot be solely responsible to block out all the sounds coming from the outside world, headboards with heavy padding can reduce noise.
This is because they can absorb the sound waves due to their thicker, softer materials, unlike walls. For this reason, sound travels without hindrance through solid walls, but when it comes to fabric, foam, or padded headboards, noise is somewhat diminished.
4 reasons why headboards do not block noise
Here are a few reasons why headboards do not block noise completely:
They cover a particular area:
So, you have got yourself a bed with the largest headboard with thick padding but still, the noisy neighbors are making you lose sleep.
Your headboard only covers the wall area above your head but what about the walls on the sides and opposite of the bed and the windows and doors?
While headboards like any other fabric will absorb a lot of sound waves, the other areas are not covered in the headboard.
Open doors and windows:
If you look around, where are the openings in your room? That’s right it’s the gaps in the doors and windows.
While headboards play a part in reducing the noise in the room, blocking the sounds completely should be teamwork. If the doors and window gaps are closed in, you will notice a significant obstruction in the outside noise.
In particular rooms, good headboards, enclosed doors, and windows make the room almost soundproof, at least for a good night’s sleep and study.
Walls and ceilings:
If your wall is not made with sound-absorbing materials, a headboard will only take in sound waves to a certain level.
In fact, how noisy your room can get will depend more on the walls and ceilings than a piece of the headboard above your bed. To the least, sound-absorbing panels on the walls would accompany headboards in blocking noise.
Lack of soft materials in a room:
Other than all the reasons stated above, your headboard can only do so much to diminish the noises if there are no other soft materials or fabric.
We are talking about carpets and curtains and a lack of these can also increase the sound input, whether you have a good headboard or not.
Are there any noise-canceling headboards for sleeping?
Although there are no noise canceling headboards for sleeping, you can modify headboards to absorb as much noise and reduce the sound coming from outside.
You may add soft plush materials to the present headboards or add acoustic panels to soundproof your headboard.
While headboards can clearly absorb some of the commotion coming out outside and the next doors, they cannot block the noise completely. It is rather a misconception that headboards all by themselves will make the room soundproof.
How to make a soundproof headboard?
Believe it or not, although it might seem like a challenging task at hand, making a soundproof headboard is actually pretty simple. Here are the steps you have to take:
Gather the tools:
At first, gather all the tools and materials you would need. You would need a thick plywood sheet, acoustic soundproof tiles, wood glue, super glue, and a strong hanging cleat.
Other than the basics, for tools, you would need, edge level, drill, pencil, and measuring tape.
Size up the plywood sheets:
Before anything, you need to size up the plywood sheets according to how big your headboard to be.
In this step, you can also get creative and add borders and frames along the boards to make them more aesthetic. Use wood glue to attach the boards.
Make sure tha panel the soundproof:
Now you will make sure your headboards are really sound-absorbing or soundproofing as you want them to be.
At this step, configure your panels, and don’t forget to decorate and be creative with them. On one side of each panel tile, you should apply glue on all sides, and the middle as well.
When you place the glue-filled panel on the plywood, press it down and hold on for a few seconds until it’s at least set. Do this for each panel tile.
Attach the headboard in its place:
Using your pencil and tape measure, spot and measure the mark to attach the cleat on the wall. Next drill in the cleats that will hold on the board on the marked spots. Remember, you’ll have to look for wall studs before this step.
For the final step, mount and attach the created headboard. And check for any loose ends.
What should I put behind my headboard?
Now that you know the way to make a headboard soundproof is by adding panels and fabrics to it, you may as well learn the materials that you need.
All of these materials are what absorb the sounds and make the headboard reduce that external noise effectively. Here is what you can put on your headboard:
Upholstered wall panels:
Upholstered wall panels are something that you don’t have to make. Thus, making it easy, as you just buy and fix them in place.
They come in different style options and are covered in either linen, cotton, or velvety fabric with foam inside of the panels.
The softer the material used, the better sound it will absorb. You can also vary the height of the headboard, going as high as you want.
Acoustic panels:
One of the easiest ways to make your headboard stylish and soundproof is by installing acoustic panels on your board.
You can either create the headboard from scratch using plywood or simply add acoustic panels on the one you have already. Use good glue to stick the panels.
Don’t forget to press and hold the panels to the board whilst the glue is drying.
Plush fabric:
Soft, plush materials are a hero when it comes to reducing the extra noise from next doors.
You can incorporate cotton, foam, wool, or other plush materials on your headboard. You can also style the headboard as you wish to give it a contemporary look while you play with colors and outer textures.
How effective is soundproofing a headboard?
Soundproofing a headboard is effective in reducing the noise coming from the adjacent walls that’s for sure. However, it would be unwise to expect a headboard to block all the noise coming in from the outside.
Soundproofing a headboard only reduces the noise level but does not block all the sound. The walls, ceiling, doors, and windows will all determine whether a room is free of all the noise.
The position of the bed and which wall the headboard is leaning against also determine how effective soundproof headboards can be.
Is a soundproof headboard worth the effort?
While we agree that making a soundproof headboard is not so challenging, some people wonder if it is worth the effort at all. Some will be confused over whether to spend a little extra on the acoustic panels.
Although it does not make a world’s difference, and you can still hear loud noises, soundproof headboards do diminish the noise to a noticeable difference.
The reduction in noise by the headboard will obviously depend on many factors and an important one being what materials have been used. Acoustic panels with plush material can actually do wonders.
How to stop the headboard from making noise?
Sometimes, not the neighbors making the noise, it’s the headboard itself. If your headboard is wobbly or bangling against the very wall, you’ll need to make a few fixes.
For starters, you can fix the nuts and bolts as they can loosen up over time. Tighten them up properly and you might notice the wobbling stop immediately. You can also add rubber bumpers and protectors which will reduce any rattling noise.
Other than that, if your headboard is one that is quaking all the time, you can also purchase an anti-shake tool and attach it to the headboard so that it prevents noise from the shakes. You can also completely remove the headboard and fix it into french cleats.
You’ll have to ensure that your headboard does not move, wobble or bang against the walls. As the only means, your headboard makes noise when it moves and collides with the wall.
What is the best material to block sound?
The following materials are most effective in blocking sound as they absorb most sound waves:
- Acoustic wool insulation
- Mass loaded Vinyl
- Metal or timber resilient channels
- Plasterboard or plywood
- Compressed and heated fiber
- Fiberglass acoustic
- Polyester absorption panels
- Wool, foam, cotton pads
We can say that headboards are not the only piece in your room that can or cannot block noise completely.
But with soundproofing materials and sound-absorbing walls and ceilings, it is possible to minimize the incoming sounds.