Thankyou all for the interest and commentary. BTW my name is Brandon Smoot, hence the tag. You may always feel free to call me by your choice of names. I often get "Smooter".
I do have some doubts, so let me lay out where my thinking has brought me so far organized as direct answers to the previous responses:
@ Rob Babock:
Thankyou Sir!
@ Decal:
There is no ventilation. Air Quality (considering both available oxygen and toxic CO2 levels) should be comfortable: CO-2 levels do not reach measurably toxic (harmful) levels until 1%, intoxication levels until 3%, lethal until above 8% (death in ten minutes at 10%). Prolonged exposure to even 2-3% is fine provided oxygen levels remain reasonable, and prolonged 1-2% exposure appear fine provided the subject has no respiratory-health issues. The 'net is full of sources that didn't do all their homework but provide lots of impressive figures and equations. My information is directly from sources such as OSHA. Sampling from the better sources, and taking the conservative measures, it looks like I'd have approximately 24 hours of restful behavior before CO-2 reaches even the lowly 1%. Divide that by the number of people in the room; So by myself I would have the full 24 hours, 2 people would have 12 hours, so on. It turns out CO2 poisoning becomes a concern in less than half the time Oxygen depletion becomes a concern, so we can pretty much end there.
Understand, I have chosen to be extra careful on this matter, because in order to convert this room I have installed a Murphy Bed. I will be sleeping, as well as possibly engaging in strenuous activity (quadrupling CO-2 production) and then falling asleep. I need to know I will wake-up, so I've been careful and concerned on the matter!
Lastly, on the off-chance that someone does not listen regarding the safety precautions (house-sitter?), I have decided to post them boldly in the room.
I'm now more concerned with comfort. I'm not sure how much heat that much GreenGlue will transmit, there will be no cold-mass to off-set the warm-bodies in the room, I will have a few Class-A pieces of equipment... I'm thinking I made need to just make the room very cold before entering for any real time, or enjoy the sauna!
I'm going to install a transmitter for a fire-alarm to function. Alternatively I may find an appropriate internet-based alarm system. Certainly I'll need a doorbell transmitter and/or a CCTV to watch the exterior of my apartment (bonus: essentially it becomes a panic-room). All this may be costly but necessary. As an extra measure I have already purchased 5 fire extinguishers; In this way I hope to be able to buy-back any time lost should I not be immediately aware of a danger.
I will have to install an internet connection and use text-to-mail for communication (I already receive poor recepetion in this apartment).
Much of this may actually be no different than work in a sound-studio. Those with experience in such environments please feel free to put me on the right track!
PS: While I've noted the sensitivity of some members across many forums...I will state for the record here that your conversing with one of the least sensitive you'll come across: My feathers don't ruffle easily, so no worries. I invite criticism with my post; As I see it, criticism is a primary reason for this or any post.
@ Jeffrey Hedback:
On the GreenGlue site there's an excellent discussion of 3-leaf walls and increasing the mass of the soundproofing wall as superior to adding multiple decoupling spaces. I've not come across the "mass-law principle" and am now interested in what you have to say...?
There are no structural alterations whatsoever; Not a single nail will go into a wall. It will be, literally, a big box sitting in the existing room, spaced about 3 inches from each wall. I will route all electrical outlets to the interior with heavy-duty extension cords (collected together from all four walls to fit through a single pipe/hole on the most protected wall, this conduit given extra acoustic treatment).
Damage to the apartment in not a concern save for the carpet. I was concerned about this when a purchased a Snooker-Table. I heard what turned-out to be bogus claims of billiard tables collapsing floors. Turns out modern building codes allow your basic flooring to literally support cars stacked to your roof. Collect anvils? No problem. The carpet may be compressed, however, much like by a heavy armoire, yet not relegated to a few spots against the wall (the armoire's feet) but rather spread throughout the room. I do plan to stay here another couple years at least.
OSB is cheap. I've considered MDF, etc. But it looks like 4 layers of OSB is more productive than 2 layers of MDF (same cost) though that may be wrong. I am waiting on GreenGlue to respond to a in-depth email on this and other particulars.
The decoupling is sheer space, afforded by the fact the structure is self-supporting. Think of it as building a house within a house. It ends short of every wall, and the ceiling. The flooring is tricky. I have a wealth of many thousand wine-bottle corks that for now seem my best option to provide a supportive but differing buffer. I also have several visco-elastic memory-foam mattress-toppers. Then there is the carpet. That said I'm more than open to suggestions on this matter as the floor is definitely the weak spot. I have heard, I hope correctly, that most bass will want to travel upward. The ceiling is easily the strongest point in the whole thing.
Going by GreenGlue's numbers, nothing in the audible range should be an issue. I could build this project for half the cost and scale (6 layers) and cover my needs there. The 12 (or even 24) layers is needed to try to attenuate the subsonic frequencies. If GreenGlue gets back to me with a "no-go" answer (ie., the effect will fall very short of what is needed) I may accordingly diminish the project.
I have of course repeatedly heard mention of spatial dynamics, but not consistently or in a cogent, illuminating fashion. It is regularly claimed that electrostatics need 'room to breathe'. It's hard for me to see why, especially given the manufacturers generally suggest far less distance-from-walls than do reviewers. Bass is a particular concern as 'room boom' is often referenced. I confess I haven't found a source that explains in clear terms what that is or why I can't have good bass in a small space just by lowering the volume. What I hear clearly stated is that a smaller driver is all that is necessary for a smaller space, but that does not by itself suggest that a larger driver--necessary or not--would be detrimental. Please enlighten me community because I have exactly zero bass experience beyond public cinemas.
I have cart-loads of curtains, the aforementioned corks, many potential wall-objects (mainly paintings) and over a thousand square feet of rugs (a collection of small rugs, most of them 3x4). I don't understand why when rooms are treated there is often a plethora of hard surfaces. I thought the point is to soften the reflections, but it seems this is done only selectively.Perhaps it reduces variables and creates predictable, repeatable layouts? Perhaps this is just for aesthetic purposes? Whatever the case, I am prepared to throw at it all the treatments necessary.
I've been looking for the most cost-effective option. Any ideas I'm all ears and all thumbs-up!
@ MaxCast
Definitely staggered. Not the easiest thing; It requires many more cuts. Thus the equipment I have will not suffice (I will need, for example, a meter saw). I will make the door simply a huge plug (possibly even two--one for each side interior and exterior). It will be constructed identically to the walls. The edges will be 'stepped'...each net sandwiched layer in-set from the others, so that they form a nested mass of overlapping seams (think of a water-ripple with even-spaced tight concentric circles...now make it a rectangle). The whole thing will have no hinge--it will weigh far too much. Instead it will roll on industrial castors (already purchased--12" Iron monsters @ $40 a pop!).
@ dm
That was my idea for years. I will too, eventually, but now that I'm in, I'm all-in.
@ HT cOz
Check out that GreenGlue 3-leaf article I mentioned. That goes further than I could to explain clearly why you might have more issues there than I would. Of course, it's not a straight-forward comparison, so I would stress "might".
@ WGH
Thank-you! I will immediately begin looking into this option...
To be clear, I will be creating 4'x8' sandwiches of OSB-GreenGlue-OSB then combing these with screws (whilst overlapping seams, all-the-while cutting to order as necessary) and so there will be no need to saw into afterwards--I'll just need a power-drill. I will be needing a few crossbeams to span the approximately 11' distance--but these too will be disassembled merely with screws. I do have to plan all this out in advance (nearly have) so that I don't find myself closing off a space about which I will need to have access.
@ Chormisdesigns
Social life is a big reason for this. Company doesn't enjoy even the nicest set of cans. Also the aforementioned 'strenuous activity' is important to sound-proof (especially with a younger-brother moving-in). I think the GAF will be kind to me. Down the road...the materials can just be reinstalled as a normal component of a house, in the normal fashion.
Hope I answered everyone well! My biggest worry is actually breaking fire-code. No matter how safe I make it, code-is-code. Annual fire-safety inspections may get me. For example, there is a sprinkler system in my apartment--they cannot be legally blocked. This box would be sufficiently below the spout if a piece of furniture--but as it is enclosed and any spray would only rest over it without penetration into the interior...? It will be very costly, but I may have to create a vaulted ceiling to this box in order to include the sprinkler (this would also create an acoustic weak spot as it would include part of the wall directly--to which I could only provide a few layers of protection--maybe 4 OSB or 2 sandwiches total).
