Given their recently acquired status as the people we most like to hate, how do Britain's bankers sleep at night? Rather well, actually, if they've invested in the latest sound-insulation technology - the room within a room (RWAR). The ultimate in noise reduction, originally designed for use in music studios, it is now being adopted by wealthy homeowners attempting to maintain a monastic hush in their bedrooms. As the name suggests, it involves putting up internal walls inside existing rooms, with insulated gaps in between - think Russian doll.
While building regulations now in force stipulate high standards of sound insulation in new homes, the rules do not apply to existing properties. Flat conversions of period houses carried out in the 1970s and 1980s are notorious - especially when the shag-pile carpet has been ripped up and replaced by wooden floors that amplify, rather than deaden, sound. Even those with an entire Georgian terrace or Victorian semi to themselves may be more familiar with their neighbours' private life than they would like. Pity the unfortunates living next door to Steve and Caroline Cartwright in Washington, Co Durham, whose bedroom antics were so loud that they ended up in Newcastle Crown Court last month, accused of breaching an antisocial behaviour order.
All of this means a lucrative business opportunity for the soundproofers - and their services don't come cheap. Lindsay Cuthill, a director of Savills estate agency, based in its office in Fulham, southwest London, recently handled the sale of a home with a separate room built within the master bedroom. "The vendor spent £200,000 on renovations, and a great deal of that went on sound insulation," he says. "The buyer was impressed to know they could be guaranteed an uninterrupted sleep, and by the fact that you couldn't see any of the sound insulation - it looks just like a normal room.
"Living in London inevitably comes with a degree of noise, and it's often tricky to work out how noisy a home is before you move in. Buying a home with high-tech sound insulation is one way of not chancing it."
Robert Bailey, a buying agent who specialises in top-end property, recently secured for a client a £6m home in Knightsbridge, central London. It was perfect, except for one thing: the loud, aggravating noise, regular as a metronome, from Tube trains. His client solved the problem by spending £50,000 on creating a room within a room in the basement. "If you went there now, unless you had super-sensitive hearing, you wouldn't hear a thing," Bailey says.
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How does it work? Essentially, a new inner wall is created out of maxiboard, a laminated material similar to heavy plasterboard. This is isolated from the existing wall by a 2in cavity loosely packed with mineral wool, which is like loft insulation, but denser. As well as keeping other people's noise out, all this insulation will keep your own noise in, making it ideal for those who want to crank up the volume of their own music or home cinema without upsetting the neighbours. Richard Groborz, technical director for Trim Acoustics, which provides RWAR technology, says treating a typical 12 sq metre bedroom would cost at least £13,000 - or £40,000 for the most sophisticated system. He warns that it is worth trying only if the room is sufficiently large: count on losing at least 2in, plus the width of the wall, from every side.
"If you really want to isolate yourself from noise, it's the best," Groborz says. "But, because it's expensive, our clients would typically only introduce this into one room, mostly the bedroom."
Toby Makin, technical adviser at Bolton-based Sound Reduction Systems, warns that no system, however sophisticated, can provide complete silence. "With a RWAR, you are creating an isolated box, like a Thermos flask," he says. "But you can't stop sound totally."
020 8443 0099, trimacoustics.co.uk; 01204 380074, soundreduction.co.uk
CHEAP WAYS TO CUT THE DECIBELS
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If you don't have the cash, or the space, to create a room within a room - and aren't trying to block out Motörhead-level decibels - there are some inexpensive, simple things you can do to help soundproof your home, writes Emma Wells. First, identify the weak points - windows, floors, walls or ceilings - and exactly what kind of noise is bothering you.
- To reduce plane and road noise, use secondary glazing on windows. Prices start at about £100 per sq metre; visit www.selectaglaze.co.uk for advice.
- Most glazing companies also provide window plugs - a kind of matting, cut to size, that acts as a crack sealant.
- Thick curtains deaden sound.
- Replace a flimsy, badly fitted front door with a solid wood or PVC fire-rated model.
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- To muffle aggravating noise between flats, or within a house, insulated floors, ceilings and walls are a must. SoundProofingUK recommends fitting a rubber and foam mat underlay beneath fitted carpets, which costs £37 per sq metre. It also has systems for acoustic wall insulation (020 8949 2700; soundproofinguk.co.uk).
- Scattering plenty of rugs and cushions will absorb noise.