It’s 2018 and I’m going to go ahead and assume everyone reading this has seen Office Space.
You know how Peter, the main character in Office Space, comes home from work every day and can have a full-blown conversation with his next door neighbor from his couch despite there being an entire wall between them?
Because I work at LockNet, I now know it’s because those walls have a Sound Transmission Class of about 20. It’s also because it was hilarious and an oft-repeated quote in my household, but for the purpose of this post we’re just going to talk about the Sound Transmission Class part of it.
STC Doors
Sound Transmission Class, or STC as it’s often abbreviated and what the cool kids call it, is the rating given to the door based on the amount of sound that can travel through it. The higher the rating, the less sound is able to travel through the door.
These ratings were developed at ASTM International. These are the guys who test the standards for tons of materials, products, systems, and services and develop technical documents based on their findings. Did you know that there’s over 12,000 standards that companies world wide are supposed to adhere to? It’s true and ASTM created all of those.
These guys are the ones who make sure everyone stays safe so it’s really good to have them.
STC doors can be made with a variety of different materials, but the most popular are wood and metal. Wooden doors naturally help dampen sound, which makes them a great option.
With metal doors, you have different options of which material can be filled with to help lessen the sound that can travel through the door. The insulation used in the door will change the STC rating.
When considering the purchase of STC doors, make sure you don’t forget about the frames. Wooden frames will be your best bet because they naturally help block sound, but if wood isn’t an option you can also use some sort of insulation such as spray foam or Rockwool.
LockNet assembles government doors with really high Sound Transmission Class ratings and if you have any questions, we’d be more than happy to help you out. Contact us today!