Fluffy or rigid fiberglass

[bass man]

Hi

I am finishing my studio now and have few questions about absorb material for you :

I covered the ceiling with 3" fluffy fiberglass and then covered it with fabric and i also built 12 bass traps in the corners and filled the traps with 6" fluffy fiberglass . Is this fluffy fiberglass ok for insulation of the bass traps and the ceiling or is it much better to use rigid fiberglass for the traps ?

I am really confused about difference between this materials :

-fluffy fiberglass
-Rigid fiberglass
-Rock wool
-Mineral wool
-703
-705

Can somebody explain the difference and maybe post some pic of this materials ?
It would make our lives much easier .

Is there a rule about relationship between all these materials like

4" of rigid will absorb same frq. as 8" fluffy fiberglass or same as 16" of mineral wool etc ....

Thanks for your help

[bpape]

Fluffy can be used as a good substitute when you have lots of thickness. For 3", it's borderline down in the deep bass. Will do OK to 125hz or so though. Are you sure you want to do your whole ceiling like that? Is it a dual use room?

Bryan

[wesarvin]

http://www.bobgolds.com/AbsorptionCoefficients.htm

Go to this site for data on absorption. Fluffy won't look bad if you upholster it well, you just have to use at least 10in of the stuff to equal the effectiveness of 4in 703 or mineral wool. Compressed fiberglass is exactly what it's name implies. Use fluff if you're on a budget, or other options if you can allow more spendage.

[jwl]

Originally Posted by bass man

I am really confused about difference between this materials :

-fluffy fiberglass
-Rigid fiberglass
-Rock wool
-Mineral wool
-703
-705

The link above to the absorption coefficients site is invaluable.

703 and 705 are rigid fiberglass products made by owens corning. 705 is about twice as dense as 703. Fluffy fiberglass is nowhere near as dense as rigid; imagine 12" of fluffy compressed to 1", and you have rigid fiberglass.

Rockwool and mineral wool are the same thing; it's a different material than fiberglass but has (approximately) the same absorption specs for similar densities. It's not quite as rigid, ie, it doesn't hold its shape as well.

[Weasel9992]

Either 703/705 or mineral wool will work great for fabricating treatment given similar densities. If you work with mineral wool you'll see that it's easy to work with and holds it's shape just fine. 703/705 work well too, but they're a bit more expensive...the absorbtion coefficients are almost exactly the same.

Frank

[bass man]

So there are 3 different absorb materials :

-Rigid fiberglass
-Fluffy fiberglass
-Mineral wool

Right?

If so , i am not sure if i have Fluffy fiberglass or Mineral wool !
What is the difference , could you guys post some photos ?

This is what i have (see the pic)

[bass man]

one more

[Glenn Kuras]

That would be fluffy fiberglass I believe.

edit. Just did a search and I guess that stuff is mineral wool based. Either way though it will work if thick enough.

Glenn

[bass man]

Originally Posted by Glenn Kuras

That would be fluffy fiberglass I believe.

edit. Just did a search and I guess that stuff is mineral wool based. Either way though it will work if thick enough.

Glenn

Is 150mm - 6" of this material thick enough for the corner bass traps ? Or is 75mm - 3" thick enough for my low ceiling ?

Thanks Glenn in advance

[Zionpro]

Originally Posted by bass man

Is 150mm - 6" of this material thick enough for the corner bass traps ? Or is 75mm - 3" thick enough for my low ceiling ?

Thanks Glenn in advance

Hey I've been researching for a while and plan to build my own traps as well. Locally, I can easily find the fluffy stuff (R19) plus it's cheaper.

Anyway according to bob golds coefficient chart, there is a small difference between the 703 4" rigid and the R19 6.25" when hung on the wall, but not enough to justify the cost difference, imo. Basically, very close absorption.

search the forums for the chart to compare...hope this helps

[wesarvin]

The link is in this thread! But you might want to go thicker than r19, most likely r30. Look around and call. A friend of mine just got two MASSIVE packs of mineral wool for about 100 bucks.

[Zionpro]

Originally Posted by guitarwes

The link is in this thread! But you might want to go thicker than r19, most likely r30.

Yep, over looked it! I saw r-30 at the big box stores yesterday, as well. I haven't seen the absorption rate anywhere on the R-30, though I know it is better...any ideas where to this info?

[wesarvin]

Most r30 is between 10 and 12inches thick, so I'd imagine it's comparable to the 12in. un-faced data on the Bobgold's site.

[Zionpro]

Originally Posted by guitarwes

Most r30 is between 10 and 12inches thick, so I'd imagine it's comparable to the 12in. un-faced data on the Bobgold's site.

True...didn't think of it like that... Once I saw the R-30 was available, I questioned if the price difference would yield a worthwhile difference....Now I have something else to ponder. Thx!

EDIT: One more question for those who have worked with the fluffy stuff. How much does this stuff compress? Say I have some 6.25" R-19 and want to put it in 6" frames is that done easily? Does it compress more easily than that--what would be optimum width of frame using this material? Just trying to get a 'grip' on how it handles before I start buying materials(poor folks gotta budget like crazy!)

[wesarvin]

I feel ya man for the budget. Food is sometimes more important than music. I did two rooms (a total of 20 panels) for less than $250. I squeezed the 10in r30 into 4inch frames. It compresses ALOT. You have to really pull your upholstery tight in order to get it as flat as possible. There will be a bulge, but it'll only be about 6in total thickness at the center, which still looks pretty good.

Now to finish my Wal-Mart crayola foamboard & Elmer's school glue QRD diffuser!!
(the sad thing is that I'm actually building one right now, just waiting for the glue to dry...)

[Zionpro]

Originally Posted by guitarwes

I squeezed the 10in r30 into 4inch frames. It compresses ALOT. You have to really pull your upholstery tight in order to get it as flat as possible. There will be a bulge, but it'll only be about 6in total thickness at the center, which still looks pretty good.

Cool...exactly what I needed to know...and yes that is a lot of compression! good price too--This will work out nicely...