If you’re one of the approximately 15% of American adults (37.5 million) aged 18 and over who report some trouble hearing, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, you’ve probably noticed that you have a harder time hearing in certain rooms in your house. Typically, kitchens, bathrooms and laundry rooms are more challenging listening environments due to their poor acoustics. But for some modern, trendy homes, the whole house can be a challenging listening environment.
In this post, we review why certain home-related trends make it harder to hear and how you can improve your hearing and the acoustics in your home.
Home Trends that Make It Hard to Hear
Some currently trending home aesthetics include open floor plans, bare windows, hardwood floors and vaulted ceilings. While minimalism may be both trendy and aesthetically pleasing, that doesn’t mean it’s conductive to good hearing. In fact, these trends cause sound to reverberate around your home, making it harder to follow along with what your family is saying to you.
How to Improve the Acoustics in Your Home
Here we review some ways to improve the acoustics in your home:
Add Carpet or Rugs
Adding carpet or rugs may be one of the best things you can do to improve the acoustics in your home. A soft surface that spans the floor of your home is great for absorbing noise. Just make sure, if you get a rug, to use carpet tape to prevent a tripping hazard.
Incorporate Padded Furniture
Padded furniture is another way to not only prevent sound from reverberating through your home, but also absorb sounds. Consider getting padded dining room chairs as well as investing in a comfortable sofa or recliner with lots of padding.
Use Fabric
Fabric can be used in many ways, from heavy curtains to tablecloths to decorative tapestries. These will all help absorb noise in your home.
Display Art
Whether it’s a painting from Santa Fe West Gallery or your child’s artwork they made at school, displaying it on your walls can also improve your home’s acoustics.
Put Up Room Dividers
If your home has a big, open floor plan, we recommend putting up room dividers, which will help prevent reverberation and absorb sound. For more information or to schedule an appointment with a hearing expert, call Southwestern Hearing & Balance today.