How To Soundproof Outdoor Pool Pump?

Now days I hardly come across a middle-class home that does not have a pool in the backyard. People, who cannot afford a constructed pool, purchase the portable pools, which are easy to assemble. My last home did not have a pool. So, my kids used to roam around in the house with long faces during the summers.

I was in no mood to spend a good amount of bucks on purchasing a portable pool. I knew that we are not going to stay in the small house for long, but still, I wanted to fulfill the most cherished dream of my kids. I still remember the joyous expression on my kids’ faces when they saw the beautiful pool. Even my pet Labrador did not wait a moment more and jumped into it.

Having a pool is the easy part. It is the maintenance of the pool that creates issues. When you have a pool, you need a pool pump to fill in and drain out water. It was this pump that made my life a living hell. When I turned on the pump, I was happy to see that water was gushing into the pool. But the irritating sound it made was too much to tolerate.

At first, I did not do anything about it, but when my neighbors started complaining, I had to take a decision about handling this problem. The best way to eliminate noise from pool pumps is by insulating and soundproofing the pump shed.

Kind of Pool Pump Noise you may face

Before I tell you how to I reduced pool pump noise, you need to know about a thing, or two about the nature of noise pool pumps produce.

• The first is the operational noise. It is produced when the motor of the pump is switched on. There is not much that you can do to prevent it. However, pool pump manufacturing companies have several models, which come with noise-cancellation gear, built in the pump.
• The second noise that causes irritation is the humming vibration sound. The pump needs to be placed on some surface. As soon as you place the pump on the ground, and switch it on, it will create vibration in addition to its operational noise. It gives rise to this annoying purring noise. 

Steps to soundproof outdoor pool pump

This is how I took up the task to eliminate this problem once and for all.

Step 1 – Acquiring the necessary materials

The material list required for this task depends on the type of pool pump you own. Mine is an ordinary pool pump, and it has a cover that I made myself. I purchased a few silicon mats, acoustic foam padding, nails, and fast fix glue from Amazon. My pool pump is rather large in shape. Thus, I decided to strike off rubber suction footers. If you have a small pump, you can use these footers.

Step 2 – Placing the silicone mats

When you place the pump on the floor and turn the power on, it will vibrate. This vibration causes the noise. If the pump is placed within an enclosed box, without any insulation, the sound will be multiplied. As I was unaware of this issue and had already installed the cover, I had to take it off, part by part. 

Once I removed it, I placed three silicon pads under the pump. These pads helped in absorbing a significant amount of vibration, thereby reducing the noise. But it did not solve the problem completely. You must choose silicon pads in several sizes.

Step 3 – Attaching foam inside the cover

I bought acoustic foam to line the inner surface of the pump cover. The foam lining I purchased was comparatively thick. Thus, one layer of insulation was enough to cut out the noise. If you purchase thin insulation foam, then you must place two or three layers, one on top of the other. To fix several layers, you can use super fix glue. I used thick foam pads and fixed these on the inner surface of pump shed with super glue.

Step 4 – Assemble the shed again

Once I lined all sides with the thick foam insulation pads, I assembled it again. Before that, I ensured that the glue should not come off due to the heat. So, I drilled nails to fix the pads permanently. I made sure to cut out a section of the insulating foam, to allow unhindered air flow. Without this, the inner part of the box would become excessively hot when a pump is operating.

Installing expensive soundproof boxes/Covers

If you are not in a mood to put in hard labor and have enough money to spare, then opting for metal soundproof boxes, which are readily available in the market is a timesaving idea. Though these are made of metal, they are so well insulated from within that you will not hear any vibration. 

I realized that it is not wise to spend so much, when I can get the same results, for a fraction of its cost. It took me only two weekends to get everything done.

Finally..

I was 100% sure that my soundproofing workaround would work. When I switched on the motor, I had my fingers crossed. To my and everyone else’s delight, the previously intolerable noises were totally muffled. Then I took around 20 steps away from the pump shed, the sound was almost inaudible. 

I no longer get complaints from my neighbors and we spend weekends together around the pool. More than socializing, I get a lot of appreciation for my handiwork with pump shed soundproofing.