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Over half of UK adults would like a quieter home, Quiet Mark has revealed in its National Noise Report.

As a new report reveals a growing craving for quieter homes, we looks at what's behind the trend and how we can find more 'shhh' in our lives

Over half (57%) of Brits would like a quieter home, Quiet Mark has revealed in its National Noise Report. The independent global certification programme associated with the Noise Abatement Society charity has surveyed 2,000 UK adults, looking into attitudes towards noise in their home and work lives.

DURING 2021, SPOTIFY HAS SEEN A 26 PER CENT INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF UK PLAYLISTS WITH ‘KITCHEN RAVE’ IN THE TITLE. GARETH MAY PLUGS INTO MICS, SYNTHS AND DRUM MACHINES

With a blaze of Autumn glory and the arrival of colder weather, comes the shutting of windows and doors, the switching on of the central heating and more time spent indoors. We spend around 90% of our time indoors, yet indoor air can be up to five times more polluted than outside. Indoor air is made up of a concoction of particles including dust, mould, smoke, bacteria, viruses, VOCs and pet dander. Other indoor activities, such as cooking and cleaning with chemicals, contribute to poor indoor air quality along with outdoor pollution from transport that makes its ways inside. This causes a build-up of pollutants indoors, taking much longer to disperse than outdoor air pollution due to poor ventilation.

The level of sound an appliance makes while operating and how loud it is are important considerations for homeowners when choosing a new heating system. All Grant air source heat pumps have low noise levels with both the 13kW and 17kW Aerona³ models being awarded the Quiet Mark. In this blog, we interview Simon Gosling from Quiet Mark to learn more about the importance of quiet acoustics.

Established in 1988, Hawkins\Brown is now the seventh largest UK practice, working in a wide range of sectors including residential, infrastructure, education, workplace and CCC (civic, community and culture). QUIET TIMES spoke with Adam Cossey who leads Hawkins\Brown’s CCC sector which is involved in a number of projects including community and Higher Education libraries - most recently, Bristol University’s £100 million new library - as well as a number of Town Hall projects providing new workplace environments for local authorities.

Currys is one of Quiet Mark’s many Retail Partnerships. The Quiet Mark logo is clearly visible throughout their new-look website helping consumers source the quietest appliances available on the market and reduce unwanted noise in their homes.

Film and TV production is the fastest growing sector in the UK economy. The past eighteen months especially have seen a decrease in cinema ticket sales and an increase in demand for streaming services, sparked by the pandemic’s multiple effects on our lifestyle and consumption of visual and acoustic art.

Acoustics Academy is the new online platform to equip and empower architects and designers with a guide to expertly verified leading acoustic solutions

KB-Resource caught up with Poppy and she agreed to be interviewed. Poppy Szkiler is the founder and CEO of Quiet Mark, a third-generation family business. The global certification program campaign (founded in 2011) is associated to the UK Noise Abatement Society (NAS) charitable foundation, which was founded by Poppy’s grandfather, John Connell OBE in 1959 and led today by her mother Gloria Connell OBE. Today, her company is conducting expert acoustic testing and verification of products, and over the past 10 years has driven change in manufacturing worldwide to prioritize noise reduction within the design of everyday machines, appliances, technologies and house build materials, creating the first one-stop platform for third party approved noise reduction solutions for every living space to health and well-being.

New-build floors must achieve acoustic values as set out in Building Regulations Part E, and most new extensions must meet them too. The regulations apply to refurbishments as well, albeit with slightly less strict measures. Values for airborne sound insulation, such as speech or TV noise, and impact sound insulation, such as footsteps, must be met.

Price, quality and practicality are all essential when buying a fridge freezer. We review appliances from brands such as LG, Hotpoint, Samsung, Beko and more.

Adrian Passmore, Associate Director, leads ARUP's Acoustics’ 28 staff London team. He speaks to The Quiet Mark Podcast about ARUP's Soundlab, enabling stakeholders to hear how a building will sound, through 3D Technology auralisations, before it's even been built; avoiding mistakes and unnecessary expense.

Discover some of the best dishwasher brands, and find the right dishwasher for your household and budget, with the BBC Good Food dishwasher buying guide.

Discover the benefits of products designed to achieve low noise levels

The chugging, huffing, whirring or gurgling of our homes and interiors can feel deafening and distracting, but there is another way to live

The search for quieter home appliances was the topic of a recent news report on BBC Breakfast, featuring interviews with Quiet Mark founder Poppy Szkiler and Laurence Mitchell, technology director at John Lewis. 

Luckily, there is plenty of quiet appliances for the kitchen these days, from washing machines and dishwashers to extractors and microwaves – not to forget food processors, kettles and other smaller designs.

This piece highlights 8 Quiet Mark certified fridges and fridge freezers to suit a wide range of kitchen sizes and budgets.

Whether you're on the hunt for quiet fans for your bedroom or tower fans, Quiet Mark has uncovered the best ones that won't keep you up at night.