Puget Sound hoping (Concrete: home, transfer, where to buy)

[rkcarguy]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

That's not what rkcarguy said. He said the dorms only house about 1000 students, but around 8000 are enrolled. The new construction mentioned here would only add 5-600 beds, which is pathetic, if it's true they only house 1000 students in the dorms.

A 2018 article posted that WWU only had 700 ish dorms on campus. When Bellingham enacted mandatory rental inspections, they found students living EVERYWHERE...garages, walk in closets, basements, attics, and so on.
WWU was citing all the loopholes to Bellingham's "single family housing rules" on their site when you clicked on "housing" on their website and it is still a major issue as some of those that received scholarships can't afford any housing and end up staying in the "homes now" homeless camp. Since then, a lot of apartments have gone up and more are in process, but I'm not up to speed of what is actually WWU and what is privately owned. They seem to like to keep that on the down-low. That is why the ambiguity in the #'s of dorms we have today. Every unit helps, even if it is at 4000 "beds" we still have a long ways to go though. WWU is around 22,000 students when it's full up.

[rkcarguy]

Originally Posted by freepelican

I've considered a condo instead of a house but noise coming through the walls/floor/ceiling is a major concern for me as well. Can people comment on how you can tell how soundproofed a condo unit is?

I'm also a fan of privacy... so many condos seem to constructed in a way you can peer right into your neighbors windows/deck.

Even a lot of the new construction uses concrete over steel deck between floors, and it doesn't block sound well. A friend of mine lived in the apartments on Barkley and the occupants in a unit adjacent to them liked hardcore movies, and every moan and groan was heard through the wall by their family.
Soundproofing is expensive, so don't hold your breath that anything remotely normal priced is going to include it.
I think you've really got to spend an evening in the Condo/Apt when everyone is home to see how the noise is, if at all possible.

[freepelican]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

What a nice, informative post for the OP! I'm glad my suggestion inspired you to wax enthusiastic about Standwood. I was impressed with that Mt. Vernon co-op when I stopped in once, en route to B'ham. And could you give me the name of that bakery in Standwood? Ya think it's still there? It's been a long time since the 80's... I love to have fun in a good bakery.

Years ago, I visited the co-op in Mt. Vernon a couple of times and I've been yearning to go back. It was very impressive.... incredible produce, a variety of local products, etc.... and one of the best hot food/salad bars I've ever seen... a happenin' place for sure. I know the hot food bar/salad closed for covid so I've been hoping it would open back before I visit again. Also, to anyone interested in that area, that co-op seems to be a really well run co-op, unlike several others I'm familiar with (although I still liked them too) and seems to be more like food co-ops used to be. They smoke their own meats and have their own bakery too.

[freepelican]

Originally Posted by rkcarguy

Even a lot of the new construction uses concrete over steel deck between floors, and it doesn't block sound well. A friend of mine lived in the apartments on Barkley and the occupants in a unit adjacent to them liked hardcore movies, and every moan and groan was heard through the wall by their family.
Soundproofing is expensive, so don't hold your breath that anything remotely normal priced is going to include it.
I think you've really got to spend an evening in the Condo/Apt when everyone is home to see how the noise is, if at all possible.

What type of construction would have the best blockage of sound? How about the year built... how does that play into this?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by rkcarguy

Even a lot of the new construction uses concrete over steel deck between floors, and it doesn't block sound well. A friend of mine lived in the apartments on Barkley and the occupants in a unit adjacent to them liked hardcore movies, and every moan and groan was heard through the wall by their family.
Soundproofing is expensive, so don't hold your breath that anything remotely normal priced is going to include it.
I think you've really got to spend an evening in the Condo/Apt when everyone is home to see how the noise is, if at all possible.

Your post doesn't follow. You're talking about the floors being of concrete and steel, but then you say the walls are thin. it sounds like the floors DO block sound quite well, but the walls aren't of similar quality. It has nothing to do with the floors. Notice, that your friend didn't complain about being able to hear the people above him walking around, or didn't get complaints from the people below him. So the concrete works for sound-insulating between floors.

I think the US should switch to the Soviet method of apartment construction, which uses pre-fab modular apartment units of concrete stacked together. No noise issues. None. I was told by a Canadian construction company owner doing a project over there, that it's a very inefficient way to build housing, but how sound-proof are Canadian apartment buildings?

In the mad dash for "efficiency" you give up sound-proofing, it seems. For builders and developers, "efficiency" (=lowering costs) would be the priority. For the future residents of the buildings they're building, the priority would be sound-proofing of course.

[freepelican]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

In the mad dash for "efficiency" you give up sound-proofing, it seems. For builders and developers, "efficiency" (=lowering costs) would be the priority. For the future residents of the buildings they're building, the priority would be sound-proofing of course.

Yes, sound proofing should be one of the highest priorities in my opinion... people might be less hesitant to buy condos or live in apartments if this were true... I do wonder if those concrete walls might interfere with cell service and radio waves?? Is there any way to soundproof and not interfere with that?

[Alinka]

Very interesting and educational information for me regarding the Stanwood area, thank you Ruth4Truth and elkotronics. I will definitely search there.

It's been quite some time since I've lived in an apartment and have never lived in a condo. In NY I lived on the 18th floor with other apartments above, below and adjacent. Never heard a sound. It was across 57th from Carnegie Hall so must have been a very old building.

For no reason I assumed that condos are essentially sealed units. Kind of like the Soviet ones mentioned. As freepelican posted, I am looking forward to learning what types of construction are best- what I should look for and ask about.

The thought of having to buy a SFH fills me with dread.

[Alinka]

I actually found an interesting resource regarding soundproofing (as well as other condo issues). I guess links can't be posted here? In any case through google I found "Geoff Southworth". His article on sound issues was a tutorial for me. Initially I googled something like "how to find a soundproof condo" and followed some links. His name didn't come up right away- maybe a couple of pages into it.

[rkcarguy]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Your post doesn't follow. You're talking about the floors being of concrete and steel, but then you say the walls are thin. it sounds like the floors DO block sound quite well, but the walls aren't of similar quality. It has nothing to do with the floors. Notice, that your friend didn't complain about being able to hear the people above him walking around, or didn't get complaints from the people below him. So the concrete works for sound-insulating between floors.

I think the US should switch to the Soviet method of apartment construction, which uses pre-fab modular apartment units of concrete stacked together. No noise issues. None. I was told by a Canadian construction company owner doing a project over there, that it's a very inefficient way to build housing, but how sound-proof are Canadian apartment buildings?

In the mad dash for "efficiency" you give up sound-proofing, it seems. For builders and developers, "efficiency" (=lowering costs) would be the priority. For the future residents of the buildings they're building, the priority would be sound-proofing of course.

Concrete over corrugated steel or composite decking is the cheapest way to get a floor in, and common in apartment building. Its fairly thin, I think for "people" loading it only needs to be 4" thick. It's still quite "stompy" as the unit below was always complaining about my friends kids running around and jumping out of bed. Ideally, you have your floor, insulation, an air space, and dense sound absorbing materials. But that is expensive and not of concern for 99% of the apartment owners.....they want maximum rents for minimum investment. Only a few, like the newer buildings right along the tracks in Seattle and Edmonds, went to the expenditure of installing more sound resistant windows and insulation during construction.
The soviet method of construction works great...there. Here, they would collapse during an earthquake and become giant people squishing slabs of broken concrete......or you have to use so much more concrete and steel reinforcement that it's not cost effective.

[freepelican]

Originally Posted by rkcarguy

Concrete over corrugated steel or composite decking is the cheapest way to get a floor in, and common in apartment building. Its fairly thin, I think for "people" loading it only needs to be 4" thick. It's still quite "stompy" as the unit below was always complaining about my friends kids running around and jumping out of bed. Ideally, you have your floor, insulation, an air space, and dense sound absorbing materials. But that is expensive and not of concern for 99% of the apartment owners.....they want maximum rents for minimum investment. Only a few, like the newer buildings right along the tracks in Seattle and Edmonds, went to the expenditure of installing more sound resistant windows and insulation during construction.
The soviet method of construction works great...there. Here, they would collapse during an earthquake and become giant people squishing slabs of broken concrete......or you have to use so much more concrete and steel reinforcement that it's not cost effective.

Is there usually a wooden (or otherwise flexible) subfloor in condos/apartments? Walking/standing on concrete is something I want to avoid in a home as well.