Iic Rating Of Carpet

A f iic and f stc rating.

Iic rating of carpet.

The preferred level of performance for stc and iic is 60 57 f iic. Some condos prohibit hardwood flooring entirely to make sure noise transmission into lower units is not increased. Iic values can range from as low as 25 for lightweight residential construction with no floor covering to over 65 for commercial construction with carpet. The subfloor ceiling assembly and presence of an underlayment during testing impact the rating from one manufacturer to.

The transmission of these sounds through floor ceiling assemblies such as those found in multi level homes and apartments will be inhibited by underlayments with higher iic and stc ratings. The highest rating is iic rating 65 which includes cork flooring and carpet. Iic 60 indicates a medium impact sound absorption quality and encompasses floorings such as wood laminates and some vinyls. A midrange level is iic rating 60 which includes some vinyl flooring as well as wood and laminate floors.

An iic and stc rating will generally be 5 points higher than. Surfaces and areas under the floor influence impact isolation class. The higher the rating the less sound gets through. The impact insulation class iic rating is a measurement of sound transmission from the floor to a room beneath it.

An iic rating 50 means that the flooring material has minimal sound absorption capabilities. The f iic and f stc is conducted in the field where sound is not as controllable hence the 5 point difference. So no 1 4 inch cork is not adequate on concrete. The main test done by flooring industry is the impact insulation class iic ad sound transmission class stc.

The iic rating is the determined by using a standard tapping machine with five steel faced hammers to strike a test floor material generating sounds between 125 hz 4000 hz. The iic rating of a condo unit floor above another condo unit should be 75 or more to match what is provided by carpet and reasonably thick carpet padding. When evaluating flooring underlayment sound deadening and acoustical ratings are one of the things homeowners or hoa considers. The iic rating measures impact sounds such as footfalls dropped objects etc.

More typical values fall between 35 and 55. The impact creates vibrations that travel through the flooring and produce sounds on the other side. For multi family structures some codes require an iic of 50 or more when tested in the laboratory or 45 or more when tested in the field. It all begins with how sound is generated and the medium it transfers through.

I hope this information was helpful for you.