Reducing footfall noise from a new apartment floor: what should you check?

Concept illustrations; not completed UNIT N projects.

1. Start with your building’s rules

Ask the manager or owners’ association (VvE) for the current deed and regulations governing the apartment building, house rules and any decisions or instructions about floor finishes. Check which provisions apply to your apartment, what evidence you must provide and whether prior approval is needed. Tenants should also consult their landlord. Where wording is unclear or old, record the board’s explanation and the document version it refers to.

Ask more than whether a material is allowed. Establish what evidence the VvE accepts: a product specification, a certificate for a particular assembly, a supplier’s declaration or an on-site measurement. The Dutch Noise Abatement Society (NSG) provides example rules for different base floors; those examples are not automatically your building’s own rules.

2. Identify the existing construction

A solid concrete floor, a timber structural floor and a solid floor with a resiliently supported screed respond differently to impact noise. Construction date is only a clue: earlier work may have changed the actual layers. Ask what drawings or inspection records exist and have uncertain layers assessed before ordering or scheduling work.

A product that performs well on concrete will not necessarily perform equally well on timber. Low-frequency thudding can be significant in timber structures; NSG cautions that a resiliently laid hard finish alone may not deliver the desired result. A resiliently supported screed requires a separate assessment: an additional resilient layer can even affect its performance adversely. Have the existing and proposed assembly reviewed together, particularly where structural or common elements may be altered.

3. Compare evidence for the whole assembly

Sketch the structural floor, screed where present, underlay, chosen finish and junctions at walls and fixed elements. Request the exact brand, range, thickness and current installation instructions for every product. Check with the relevant suppliers that the components can be used together, and ask what documentation your VvE requires.

The often-quoted “10 dB” in NSG guidance refers to an improvement in impact-sound insulation under a defined test arrangement; it does not promise that every sound in your home will be 10 dB quieter. Ask which metric and test method appear on the report and whether the tested base and finish correspond to your proposal. Do not assume a foreign ΔLw value is interchangeable with a Dutch ΔLlin requirement. Ask the VvE or an acoustic specialist to interpret uncertain evidence. A laboratory certificate is not the same thing as a measurement in the completed apartment.

4. Agree the junctions before installation

A floor touching a wall, pipe or fixed element locally can create a sound bridge. Ask the installer how edges, skirting, doorways and connections to fixed elements will be treated under the current instructions for the chosen system. Also check compatibility with any underfloor heating, finished height at doors and required movement space. Do not alter an existing screed or shared structural component based on a generic diagram; confirm authority and the proposed work in advance.

Agree inspection points before layers are covered. Dated photographs of the visible underlay, packaging and edges can support the handover record, but do not replace a certificate or any required measurement.

5. Keep one floor file

Keep the applicable VvE rules and any required approval; the identified existing assembly; exact product codes and thicknesses; current instructions and relevant reports; the quotation and invoice; and photographs of key junctions. Record who confirmed each point and which questions remain open. At handover, check that the installed products match the approved proposal.

If noise remains a concern, first discuss it with the neighbours involved and, if needed, your VvE or landlord. An acoustic specialist can help decide what information or measurement would be useful. A suitable assembly can reduce disturbance; it cannot guarantee complete silence.

Put the floor choice into your renovation plan

For the distinction between airborne and impact sound, see our technical explanation of sound. Our floors and walls guide covers questions about the condition of the base. Include the floor in your whole-home renovation and discuss your own circumstances with UNIT N.

Sources: Dutch Noise Abatement Society: sound-reducing flooring, NSG: flooring products and base floors, NEN: guide to good workmanship (2025), Dutch government: neighbourhood nuisance. Sources are in Dutch.

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