Gyms above or beside homes, hotel rooms and offices cause more noise complaints from dropped weights than from music. A rubber tile with a good lab figure helps, but it is only one part of the answer. This guide sets out what the Association of Noise Consultants' ProPG Gym Acoustics Guidance (March 2023) asks for, where Approved Document E fits, and what to ask a flooring supplier.
Approved Document E does not set a gym standard
Approved Document E (Resistance to the passage of sound) sets performance standards for walls and floors between dwellings. Its Section 0 says a higher standard of sound insulation may be needed between homes and communal or non-domestic spaces, that the right level depends on the noise made in the non-domestic space, and that specialist advice may be needed. So for a gym, Building Regulations give very limited guidance, and the acoustician's assessment becomes the real benchmark. ProPG also notes that soft floor coverings designed to meet Approved Document E are unlikely to give much isolation against vibration at the low frequencies people feel.
What ProPG gym guidance is
ProPG: Gym Acoustics Guidance (GAG) was published by the Association of Noise Consultants in March 2023. It gives acousticians, developers, operators and local authorities a standard way to assess a building for a gym and to specify mitigation. Results are usually reported as the maximum sound level from each impact (LAmax,F or Lmax,F, the "Fast" maximum level) in the room that needs protecting.
The two heavy-impact test methods
- Method 1 (default): a reference drop of a 20 to 35 kg weight from 0.5 m, ideally a kettlebell with a rounded, rubberised base, at least 3 drops per position. It gives a repeatable baseline that can be compared between projects. Anything heavier than 35 kg from 0.5 m counts as Method 2.
- Method 2: the heaviest equipment the gym will actually use, dropped or used the way members will. ProPG's typical worst cases are a slam ball around 10 kg from about 1.5 m, a dumbbell around 35 kg, a barbell around 150 kg, a treadmill at about 10 km/h for at least 30 seconds, and fixed pin-weight stacks around 50 kg dropped about 0.2 m. Results are site-specific rather than comparable between projects.
Test samples and drop positions
- Flooring samples should ideally be at least 1 m x 1 m so the weight doesn't rebound onto the slab and deflection is representative. For systems on wider centres (for example resilient cubes at 1 m centres), the sample should ideally cover twice that spacing.
- Use at least 3 drop positions per area, each at least 0.5 m from walls and columns, with one about 0.7 m from the worst transmitting wall or column and one where the floor will deflect most (usually mid-span).
- Drop height is measured from the finished floor level, and drops should not land on the joint between two tiles.
Specify the system, not a single layer
ProPG says the flooring system supplier should give independent evidence of final system performance in line with the testing carried out, and should work with the project acoustician to show the proposed floor:
- will give isolation in line with the site testing, with the supplier supporting that testing;
- can carry all the intended gym equipment;
- won't exceed the structure's capacity, with loading information supplied;
- allows safe access for all users, including people with disabilities;
- is properly detailed at walls and penetrations.
It also recommends giving the supplier the gym layout, equipment positions and loadings, and preferring site mock-ups to settle the final build-up. For covering layers it asks for the material and thickness of each layer, a heavy wear layer suited to adult gym use, and a build-up that stays stable underfoot. A thicker build-up also costs floor height, which affects thresholds and overhead lifting, so bring in the structural engineer early.
What the lab figures on a datasheet tell you
Lab impact-sound figures (tested to EN ISO 10140-3) compare coverings under a standard tapping machine on a standard slab. They are useful for choosing between products, but they don't predict the LAmax,F level from a 150 kg barbell drop in your building. Use them to shortlist, then let the acoustician's testing decide.
Superstrata acoustic build-up
Superstrata Pulse 20 mm rubber tiles reduce impact sound by 21 dB on their own. Adding Superstrata Shield 20 mm composite foam underlay (200 kg/m³) beneath them gives 28 dB. Both figures were tested to EN ISO 10140-3 on a 140 mm reinforced concrete slab by Daidalos Peutz (accredited to NBN EN ISO 17025). Pulse is rated for weight drops up to 140 kg, with 61% shock absorption (EN 14808) and Efl reaction to fire (EN 13501-1). The TDS for both products and the acoustic test report are in the specification pack. Installation is by others, to manufacturer guidance.
What to ask a flooring supplier
- The independent test report for the exact build-up you will install, and the slab it was tested on.
- Whether they will support site testing or a mock-up with your acoustician.
- Load and deflection data for every resilient layer.
- The reaction-to-fire class of each layer (EN 13501-1).
- Installation guidance for the system, and how worn wear layers are replaced.
FAQ
Often not on its own. For heavy free weights over homes, ProPG expects testing and an acoustician-led specification, which may mean a thicker build-up or a floating floor.
Independent evidence of system performance, support for site testing, loading information, and confirmation the floor can carry the gym's equipment without overloading the structure.
The highest A-weighted sound level measured with the "Fast" time setting during an event. ProPG uses maximum levels like this to judge weight-drop noise in the receiving room.
ProPG is written for acousticians, and Approved Document E says specialist advice may be needed where homes adjoin non-domestic spaces, so for a gym next to noise-sensitive rooms the answer is usually yes.
There's no single rule. Thickness follows the tested build-up, the heaviest drops planned, the structure's load capacity and the floor height you can lose.