Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 June 2015
1068. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if consideration will be given to the banning of hard flooring such as tiles and laminate floor covering in apartments due to the transfer of noise and sound between apartment dwellings. [22045/15]
View answerThe Building Regulations 1997 set out the legal requirements for the construction of new buildings (including houses), extensions to existing buildings as well as for material alterations and certain material changes of use to existing buildings and are divided in 12 parts (classified as Parts A to M). Technical Guidance Documents (TGDs) are published to accompany each of the parts and provide guidance indicating how the requirements of that part can be achieved in practice. Where works are carried out in accordance with the relevant technical guidance such works are considered to be, prima facie, in compliance with the relevant regulation(s). Compliance with the Regulations is the responsibility of the owner or builder of a building or works. Part E (Sound) of the Building Regulations 1997 sets out the legal requirements in relation to sound insulation in attached dwellings and apartment blocks and sets out requirements for certain constructions to offer “reasonable resistance” to both airborne and impact sound. In this regard, section 3 of the existing Technical Guidance Document E provides guidance on typical floor constructions which, if constructed correctly, should achieve the requirements to have “reasonable resistance” to both airborne and impact sound.
A comprehensive review of Part E of the Building Regulations 1997 was completed in December 2014. The recent Building Regulations (Part E Amendment) Regulations 2014 and the associated Technical Guidance Document E – Sound (2014), which come into effect on 1 July 2015, establish enhanced performance standards for attached dwellings, in particular airborne sound insulation of separating walls and both airborne and impact sound insulation of separating floors. The new measures also provide for mandatory sound testing on a proportion of new attached dwellings.
While these changes will lead to an improvement in the quality of sound insulation in housing and contribute to greater compliance with the requirements of Part E, in general, the requirements of the Building Regulations do not apply to the furnishing and internal décor of dwellings. Any new floor covering fitted in an existing dwelling should be installed in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and due care should be taken not to adversely affect the isolation of the floor covering from the separating floor structure. The installation of hard flooring in apartment dwellings post-occupation may best be managed by the house rules adopted by the management company of the apartment complex in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Multi-Unit Developments Act 2011.
