Soundproofing a garage is pretty similar to soundproofing a room in your home, the only difference is the addition of the garage door, which I’m assuming you don’t have in your bedroom. There’s a few ways to approach soundproofing a garage door, and here are the steps we would take to address each area of the garage:

1. Soundproof the garage door
2. Soundproof the interior door
3. Soundproof the windows
4. Soundproof the garage walls
5. Treat the garage ceiling with soundproofing
6. Treat the garage floor

Step one: Soundproof the Garage Door

Let's start with the star of the show, the garage door. The garage door is absolutely key to soundproof if the goal is to keep noise from getting to your neighbors. After all, it’s a literal wall-sized hole which isn’t exactly great for keeping things quiet. The first thing to consider is what level of soundproofing you need and what function your garage needs to serve.

If you don’t need to ever use the garage as a garage, you can simply stud out a wall across your garage door just like the rest of the room. The outside will still appear as a garage, but it will feel like a normal room inside. Be absolutely certain you won’t need the garage if you choose this solution, because you won’t be able to open the garage door without tearing down the wall.

If you still need your garage to open as normal, there are less permanent solutions but any that work well will still take you 10 to 15 minutes to put up and take down. If you can deal with a bit of effort to open your door, and don’t plan on opening the garage door frequently, we recommend hanging Quiet Quilt 2-Sided Blankets over the entire door. You can hang the soundproof blankets on cables or hooks, and then seal the sides and bottom using the Velcro that’s included on the blankets. It’ll take a minute to remove the blanket and reinstall it on the garage door, but it’s the most effective temporary soundproofing installation.

In some rare cases, the garage doors have 1” to 2” of clearance where you can add material to the door and it won’t interfere with the track. Be very careful because if you do block the track or add too much weight, your garage door won’t work, and you may accidentally break it. We don’t recommend MLV for garage doors, because it’s too heavy. But we have occasionally seen someone use the 1” or 2” thick  BlocknZorbe panels which are relatively lightweight but are rated for STC.

Step two: Improve The interior door

The door from the garage to inside the home is the biggest weak point when it comes to noise getting into the house. If your door is hollow core, replace it with a solid core door which has more mass and blocks more noise. The next thing you can do is seal the gaps around the door with a Sound Lock Door Seal Kit, which can turn any solid-core door into a soundproof door (about STC 45)! Check out our article on soundproof door sweeps for the do's and don'ts of soundproofing the bottom of a door.

Step Three: Soundproof the Windows

If you have a windowless garage then this section is not for you. But if you do have windows, it’s likely the biggest reason noise from your garage can be heard by neighbors (besides the garage door). For soundproof windows in a garage, you can cover the window with a soundproof blanket, but the highest performing and best looking solution is a Fantastic Frame Window Insert. These soundproof window inserts create a large air gap and airtight seal with an existing window, so not only does it help stop noise, but it reduces heating and cooling costs. The best part is your windows still get to be windows and don’t have to be covered up.

Step Four: Soundproof the Garage Walls

Depending on the layout of your garage, noise may be transferred through the walls both into your home or out to your neighbors. To soundproof the walls of your garage, the best method is to essentially turn it into a room like any other inside your home. This means you can’t keep the standard unfinished concrete, instead you’ll need to stud out the walls, fill with insulation, and add 5/8” drywall. Depending on the level of soundproofing you need, you can choose what works best for your project.

Good: Add a Mass Loaded Vinyl Sound Barrier directly to the studs and add ⅝” thick drywall on top of that. Finish out the room by sealing gaps around the perimeter and any penetrations with acoustical caulk. (STC 47-49)

Better: Decouple, or separate, the drywall from the studs with sound isolation clips. By decoupling the structure, vibrational energy cannot travel through the wall. You can do this by using RSIC-1, or other resilient sound isolation clips like RSIC-1 Low Profile, along with 25 gauge aluminum hat channel to ‘float’ the ⅝” drywall on top of the studs. (STC 55+)

Best: Add ⅝” drywall with RSIC like the method above, but in addition install a second layer of drywall with Green Glue. The additional mass along with the Green Glue sandwiched between the two layers makes a barrier that’s very difficult for noise to travel through. (STC 60+)

Step Five: treat the Garage Ceiling

If you have a suite above your garage, you may want to add soundproofing to keep interruptions from entering that space. In general, if you don’t soundproof the ceiling, sound is going to go right over your soundproof wall. You can make a soundproof ceiling mostly the same way you would your walls. Our recommendation is to add two layers of ⅝” drywall with Green Glue or use RSIC clips. We don’t typically recommend mass loaded vinyl on the ceiling joists because it’s heavy and a pain to install.

Step Six: Treat the Floor

If you’re using the garage for music or have bigger machinery, you’ll also want soundproof flooring. This is especially true if you are working with something that generates a lot of impact noise like drums. Like the ceiling, you don’t want sound flanking around your soundproof walls. Install flooring and add UnderBlock rubber floor underlayment to the subfloor. This will stop impact noise from traveling through the floor and also improve the overall soundproofing. This product is also great for golf simulator noise reduction.

Garages are like cardboard boxes for adults, they can be anything you imagine. If you have questions about soundproofing, or aren’t sure which materials to use, reach out to us. Whether you’re a musician, an entrepreneur, or are just looking for a comfortable getaway, we can help you find a tailored solution that works for you.