Acoustic Underlay for Open Plan Living — Does It Work?

Written by our acoustic insulation specialist — 15+ years experience. About our experts.

Open plan living spaces present a specific acoustic challenge: hard floors, high ceilings, and large open areas create significant reverberation and noise reflection.

The Open Plan Noise Problem

In an open plan kitchen-dining-living space with hard floors, noise levels during family activity can reach 70-80dB — genuinely uncomfortable. The sound bounces off hard surfaces repeatedly, extending reverberation time and making conversation difficult.

How Acoustic Underlay Helps

Our 6mm rubber underlay under your hard floor finish reduces impact noise (footsteps, dropped items) from transmitting to rooms below. It also absorbs some of the impact energy before it re-enters the room as airborne noise. In an open plan space, this is a real improvement to daily comfort.

Additional Measures for Open Plan

For reverberation in an open plan space, rugs over hard floors (even over acoustic underlay) add significant absorption. Soft furnishings, curtains, and acoustic panels absorb airborne reverberation. Our cork-rubber composite has particularly good absorption properties for open plan applications.

Browse our acoustic underlay range or contact our experts for a free recommendation.