MLV curtains are one of the best solutions available for warehouses, manufacturing plants, and other industrial spaces with loud machinery like compressors, generators, pulverizers, etc. The noise they create can range from disruptive to intolerable and is often loud enough to do long-term damage to your hearing.

Mass Loaded Vinyl Rolls

Second Skin mass loaded vinyl is extremely versatile. In industrial settings, you can create a hanging barrier in front of machinery with full coverage using either our Luxury Liner™ Reinforced Mass Loaded Vinyl Rolls or our Luxury Liner™ E84 Class A Mass Loaded Vinyl Rolls. They both have exceptional tensile strength to hang freely without tearing with the use of reinforced grommets and have an STC rating of 27!

Quiet Quilt™ Soundproof Blankets

Our sound blankets come in multiple colors, can be installed inside or outside, and have pre-installed grommets and Velcro to simplify the install. We have solutions that are pre-fabricated or we can completely customize the MLV curtains to meet your needs. Use them to create a portable partition or to enclose machinery. Because you can hang the curtains on any structure, the installation location and method is extremely flexible.

For indoor use, we have our Quiet Quilt™ Indoor Soundproofing Blankets designed to block sound with reinforced MLV sewn in. If you want to absorb and block, our Quiet Quilt™ 2-Sided Blankets is the best of both worlds; they make great portable partitions!

Our Quiet Quilt™ Portable Enclosures are easy to slip fit together and come with pre-installed casters you can wheel out of the way when needed. We also have Quiet Quilt™ Fixed Enclosures for machinery that you don’t need regular access to. We’ve installed these MLV curtains around generators, HVAC units, heavy machinery, construction projects, outdoor restaurants, pickleball courts, and more.

To learn more about our various lines of Quiet Quilt Sound Blankets, reach out to a Second Skin soundproofing professional today!

We get it. It’s such an attractive idea to just “shut the curtains” and shut out the noise. Then you open the curtains up whenever you want to let noise (and light) back in. Unfortunately, there’s just not a good solution out there to help you accomplish that goal.

Despite what you may read on the internet, mass loaded vinyl is not a particularly good solution for window curtains. MLV is dense, heavy, and has limited flexibility. You can cover a window, but the effort is significant relative to the results. This advice is coming from a company that sells a lot of MLV. And we’d like to sell more of it. But we also don’t want a new customer to hate us for giving them a challenging DIY curtain project that isn’t going to work better than cheaper and easier alternatives.

Here’s a quick table showing some DIY window soundproofing testing one of our team members did comparing some options over a residential double hung window. All testing was done with a consistent noise source outside.

You may have noticed in the previous chart that there are several options that soundproof a window significantly better than MLV. Let’s take a second and look at those options, because if you are serious about reduce noise in your home – these are the solutions you should be considering. 

For more mass loaded vinyl alternatives, check out our article on the subject!

Fantastic Frame™ Soundproof Window Inserts

Our Fantastic Frame™ Window Inserts are top performers in this category. They will reduce noise through an existing window by up to 80%. Not only are they extremely effective, but they are designed to seamlessly blend into your existing window frame, maintaining the aesthetic appeal of your windows. They are easy to install and can be removed when desired, offering flexibility based on your needs.

As an added bonus, they will stop drafts and significantly reduce thermal transfer through any window (50-100% improved R-value). When installed in all windows in a home, the average energy savings is about 40%. This combination means you can enjoy a quiet, well-insulated home without sacrificing natural light or views. Whether you want to soundproof just one window or want to insulate your entire house, the Fantastic Frame Window Insert is the best available solution.

Quiet Quilt™ Sound Blankets

Our soundproof blankets are heavy, so if you need a lighter alternative (20lbs vs 50lbs) our Quiet Quilt™ Indoor Acoustic Blankets — best for absorbing sound — are still heavy enough to block some sound (about 6-8 dB). We do see people choose a sound blanket to seal up a window (or door). While it won’t perform as well as a window insert, there are scenarios where a customer prefers it.

See our articles on soundproofing a window with blankets or soundproofing a door with blankets to learn more.

MLV curtains are an awesome and common industrial soundproofing product. While it would be great if they were as effective for residential applications, we just have better tools to reduce noise through a window than MLV. It can be done, but the results will be sub-par relative to the time and effort you put in. We’d recommend our Fantastic Frame window inserts for better performance.

At Second Skin, we want you to get the best possible solutions, or at least be informed before you start on your project. If you have more questions on your specific situation, please reach out to one of our soundproofing professionals for more help!