With the components and systems hidden behind the walls being a crucial element of hotel bathroom design, Geberit’s Product Manager Simon Spridgeon discusses the importance of acoustics in making a good impression with guests.There are many elements that make up a successful hotel bathroom design and chief among them, aside from its overall looks and cleanliness, is the acoustics. Above all else, your guests want a good night’s sleep and it doesn’t matter how comfy the bed is or how plumped up the pillows are, if the noise from pipework in the bathroom keeps them awake the only impression they will be left with as they tiredly check-out is one of dissatisfaction.
Part E of Building Regulations aims to protect residents, including hotel guests, from the noise of activities in other rooms or adjoining properties. Helping developers comply with these requirements, Geberit offers a range of acoustic drainage, supply and sanitary systems specifically designed to be compatible with each other and to tackle solid and air borne noise at every potential point of transfer, guaranteeing that hotel guests won’t be disturbed by noisy plumbing in the night.
The first place to look in terms of reducing noise is in the choice of sanitaryware. Wall-hung WCs, with the cistern concealed in a duct, are much quieter than the floorstanding, close-coupled alternatives. The wall in front of the framework also acts as a sound barrier and the frames themselves can be insulated acoustically.
Geberit concealed cisterns are made even quieter with filling valves that are for low noise even at pressures up to 10bar, and polystyrene protection jackets that prevent condensation and further reduce noise transfer.
Of course, drainage and pipework is the other essential element of hotel bathroom design that can affect the acoustics in each room and in the building as a whole. The last thing guests want is to be woken in the middle of the night by someone in a neighbouring room flushing the toilet or washing their hands. Connecting on to the acoustically insulated pipe bracket on the Duofix frames, Geberit Silent-db20 is the ideal drainage system to solve this problem. It achieves outstanding levels of soundproofing with its patented high density material (PE-S2), ribbed fittings for improved sound dampening near impact zones, and acoustic brackets that are rubber lined to prevent solid borne noise travelling to the building structure.
When it comes to water supply, Geberit Mepla pipes and fittings also offer improved acoustic performance with a range of noise limiting parts including rubber lined brackets, pipe fitting sleeves and tap mounts.
The beauty for the developer is that all of these systems are simple to install and are backed up by the Geberit guarantee of quality and reliability, so everyone can sleep easy.
