How to soundproof a room with blankets easily

How to soundproof a room with blankets easily

In this guide, you’ll find everything you need to know about how to soundproof a room with blankets, easily and cheaply.

Homes can be noisy places from toilet flushes and door slams to blasting TV sets and noisy neighbors which frequently keep their occupants up at night. 

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This scenario is doubly likely if you live in an apartment building or a house that was recently erected as modern construction tends to no longer account for soundproofing concerns. 

This means thin walls and creaking floors which can make your upstairs neighbors’ footsteps sound like thunder through your ceiling.

There are several ways to soundproof a room but the most effective way would be to use acoustic blankets since they don’t take a lot of expertise to install. 

These blankets provide excellent sound absorption and help dampen sounds to prevent them from reverberating through walls.

For those tired of being awakened at night by random noises, here are tips on how to efficiently soundproof any room in your home or workspace in some quick, easy steps. 

The resulting silence will be music to your ears in no time.

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Related: How to make your PS4 quieter

Contents: Skip to section

Ways to soundproof a room with blankets

In this post, I will walk you through the areas where you can use blankets to soundproof a room, as well as other related topics such as their benefits and how exactly they work. There is also an FAQ section down below. 

To save you time, you can have a look at the summary of the methods here. The details can be found in the sections after this. 

  1. Hang a blanket over your doors
  2. Cover the walls with blankets
  3. Use blankets in place of curtains on your windows
  4. Lay down blankets on your floor and underneath furniture
  5. Hang them on ceilings (low effectiveness versus acoustic panels or acoustic foams)
  6. Place blankets under kitchen appliances to muffle the sounds emitted
  7. Soundproof your dishwasher (using a purpose made insulation blanket would be better)

Hey, quick one. If you intend to start a soundproofing project soon, check out our Best Materials for Soundproofing post to get a headstart. Most projects require similar materials, so this post will save you a ton of time researching.

Why should you use soundproof blankets?

While it might be easy to control the amount of noise coming from your home, the same cannot be said for sounds which originate from outside. 

Soundproofing blankets are great at both dampening and absorbing sounds and are often a cheaper solution for noise pollution than any other product on the market. 

If used correctly, soundproofing blankets can considerably reduce noise levels by at least a quarter and are often decorative so they won’t unnecessarily clash with the interior design of the room.

They are also cost-efficient, simple to use and take almost no time at all to put in place. 

What else could you ask for in a soundproofing product?

Related: How to soundproof your bathroom

Are soundproof blankets for you?

how to soundproof a room with blankets

Many people can benefit from taking the time to soundproof their bedroom, bathroom or home office in order to block out noises and grant themselves more peace of mind.

More than just keeping sounds out, soundproofing blankets can also trap in noises, stopping them from escaping. 

The thickest acoustic blankets can even allow musicians to rock out in their own living rooms without disturbing their next-door neighbors a wink. In fact, it is a great way to improve sound quality of a drumming room (or home studio) by treating it acoustically.

Moreover, homeowners with loud appliances, such as washing machines, should be relieved to know that placing a few strategic blankets around these rowdy contraptions will remarkably aid in silencing them. 

Even students who reside in campus dormitories know that they can be very rambunctious places with disrupting sounds coming from everywhere. 

Soundproofing blankets can be a quick fix to a recurring noise problem for those looking to avoid off-putting distractions.

If you’re looking to turn any room into a tranquil oasis or need to make sure that you don’t bother anyone else in the vicinity with your more boisterous activities, soundproof blankets might just be what you need. 

Related: How to soundproof your garage

What do soundproof blankets do? How do they work?

For their price point, soundproofing blankets can be really amazing at absorbing noises and echoes without a steep cost. Not all blankets are good for soundproofing but normal, thick blankets can provide some noise isolation.

Still, the best soundproofing blankets are specially constructed to muffle sounds, absorb vibrations and reflect noises, and are typically made from polyester, cotton, vinyl, wool or flame-proof foil. 

These fabrics are thickly-woven together in multiple layers for the most effective soundproofing and some of the best models are interwoven with fiberglass to stop even the deepest vibrations. 

Professionally-designed acoustic blankets have an NRC (Noise Reduction Coefficient) of at least 0.8 on a scale from 0-1 which determines a blanket’s sound absorption performance.

By placing these blankets over key points in a room, the noise emission can be drastically reduced so before starting, it is best to locate the weak spots in your walls, floors, and ceiling. 

This way you’ll know exactly where to begin soundproofing the room one problem area at a time until you get the best sound reduction result. 

It includes placing soundproofing blankets over doors and windows that can easily transmit airborne noises through their gaps.


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Related: How to make a soundproof box 

Doors are always the first place to start soundproofing a room as interior doors are often hollow and tend to reverberate sounds when they open and close. 

This can be solved by throwing a thick blanket over the door but it’s better to use thinner, acoustic blankets specially made for doors.

For those who prefer a thicker blanket for the job, however, you can alternatively attach a blanket to your door frame to block sounds from escaping. 

This is best done with nail pins as they’re less likely to come loose with time than regular pins, especially when using heavier blankets.

Additionally, it’s advisable to soundproof the walls by adding thick layers over them. 

In this regard, it would be ideal to use blankets that already come with grommets ingrained into the fabric. 

These are little eyelets in the blanket that make them much easier to hang than blankets without them. 

If you decide to get blankets without eyelets, then make sure to use nails with wide heads to secure the blanket to the wall along the edges and down the center. 

This will be the most permanent solution but for those who are looking for temporary fixes, blankets can also be affixed with industrial adhesive or copious amounts of mounting putty for easier detachment in the future.

Furthermore, throwing blankets over furniture and appliances will also help reduce noise levels. 

Hard surfaces are prone to reflecting sounds and echoes so consider covering wooden and glass furnishings with decorative blankets. 

Placing blankets under noisy appliances, like dishwashers and refrigerators, will help curb their vibrations and you can even go one step further by putting other blankets between the apparatuses and the wall, or over the top of them. 

This is sure to help restore your inner peace in an otherwise noisy kitchen.

Related: Noise Blocking Window Film: How do they work?

soundproof your windows

Lastly, it’s recommended to soundproof the windows, floor and ceiling using blankets too.

For exterior windows, the blanket has to be fitted tightly to the window sill to effectively dampen sounds but many people might not want to entirely block the light from their windows. 

Using blankets as curtains could be an alternative compromise but they can be as effective as soundproof curtains, but at lower price point especially if you are recycling.

Soundproofing a floor is as simple as applying a floor blanket to its surfaces, especially if you want to be a good upstairs neighbor. Wooden floors can cause more noise than regular ones, so you might want to make use of some extra steps. 

A ceiling can be a bit of a challenge to soundproof, however, due to awkward angles and gravity. 

If you have control of the floor above the room, then you could first try placing a thick floor blanket there for better noise isolation. 

Otherwise, just be aware that sometimes ceiling blankets don’t add that much sound absorption from above. Still, a thicker blanket is sure to somewhat help prevent your tap-dancing neighbors upstairs from driving you crazy all night.

The thicker the blanket, the better its soundproofing capabilities, which might all sound great in theory but keep in mind that this also means that blankets can be incredibly heavy. 

It may be difficult for one person to single-handedly hang blankets to the walls and ceilings so this is something to factor in if you’re planning on taking on soundproofing on your own.

Related: How to soundproof on a budget

Recommended Gear


Audimute Sound Absorption Sheet


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Sure-Max Heavy-Duty Moving & Packing Blankets


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SOMIDE Moving Blankets


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Gorilla Heavy-Duty Construction Adhesive


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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the best soundproofing blanket for doors?

Moving blankets might be too thick to allow doors to close if used but Audimute Sound Absorption Sheets are thin enough and perfectly configured to fit over doors without getting stuck in the frame.

Can you use moving blankets for soundproofing?

Yes, moving blankets are a good way to soundproof walls as they are thick, durable and not too heavy to install by one’s self without too much expense.

Can I make my own soundproofing blankets?

If you’re looking for the cheapest way to soundproof a room by making your own blankets, then we suggest using old towels as they can easily be sown together and are usually thick, thus more sound absorbent than other fabrics.

Are soundproofing blankets removable?

It depends on how they were attached to a surface. If you would like them to have a great hold but still be easily removable, it’s recommended to use industrial adhesive or lots and lots of mounting putty. If you must use nails, then make sure to get long ones to allow some space to withdraw them later.

Related: Buying guide for the best earplugs for shooting

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How to soundproof a room with blankets: Verdict

In this modern day and age, there are plenty of methods for soundproofing a room with blankets, even those that are homemade. 

It is best to begin with the door and windows before focusing on the walls, ceiling and floor. 

Any one of these surfaces, as well as any other hard surfaces or appliances in the room, can be covered in blankets to help reduce vibrations, absorb sound waves and deflect echoes. 

Fabric blankets are ideally breathable to avoid attracting mold and other airborne contaminants, though moving blankets are one of the most affordable options out there. 

Whatever your soundproofing project, there’s bound to be an approach to suit your home, music studio or workspace that doesn’t break the bank. 

Serenity awaits you! 

Additional resources:

Bryant
Bryant

Bryant Littlewood is the Chief Editor behind SoundproofingHacks. He shares all the lessons he has learned in turning his home and office into quiet sanctuaries across the blog posts here. Bryant is also a part-time audiophile, and some of the posts here will reflect that passion of his too. Connect with him on LinkedIn or read more on the about page.