Blog

Mar 26, 2026

Why Better Noise Reduction Starts with Better Window Design

When people think about a quieter home or workplace, they often think about location first. The busy road. The nearby rail line. The aircraft overhead. The neighbour whose routine never ...

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Feb 3, 2026

Is Soundproofing Your Windows Worth It in Perth?

If you live in Perth, chances are you have had at least one of “that noise again” moment. Maybe it is early-morning traffic building up on an arterial road. Maybe ...

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Dec 8, 2025

Melbourne May Be Cold Now But Believe Us, It Can Get Hotter: A Practical Guide to Keeping Your Home Cool

Melbourne’s climate is famous for its mood swings. One week it’s jumpers and drizzle, the next it’s a dry northerly and a 35°C afternoon that lingers into a warm night. ...

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Dec 3, 2025

Sydney’s Heat Is Rising. Here’s How to Keep Your Home Comfortable

Sydneysiders are already feeling the heat, even though summer isn’t fully here yet. And with the festive season approaching, it’s only going to get hotter. Enjoying the sun by the ...

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Oct 13, 2025

A Practical Guide to Making Your Perth Home Quieter

Perth is changing. Urban developments are reshaping older suburbs, freeway upgrades keep traffic flowing (and humming), train services are busier, flight paths shift with the seasons, and weekend life in Northbridge, ...

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Sep 16, 2025

How to Reduce Noise at Home in Canberra: 4 Practical Upgrades That Work

Canberra wears a lot of hats: it’s a garden city, a growing city and (increasingly) a busy city. Between new builds in Gungahlin and Molonglo, the light rail hum, flight paths ...

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Aug 26, 2025

Sleep better for a healthier life

A recent study of national sleep habits found 1 in 3 Australian adults struggle with their sleep. Moreover, this study also suggested one third of Australians wake up feeling unrefreshed at least ...

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Aug 14, 2025

Practical Tips on How Australian Homes Can Reduce Their Electricity Bill This Winter

With energy prices rising across Australia, many households are bracing themselves for another costly winter. As heaters have been kicked into high gear and our shorter (very cold) days demand ...

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Jul 22, 2025

“We Tried Retrofit Double Glazing in Our Melbourne Home for a Month” - Here’s What Happened

Three things Melbourne is known for is its vibrant culture, great coffee and weather that can’t make up its mind. One minute it’s sunny, the next it’s windy, wet or ...

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May 25, 2025

How Do I Reduce Moisture Off My House Windows in Adelaide’s Winter?

Adelaide winters may be relatively mild compared to other parts of the world but for many homeowners, the colder months still come with a familiar, yet frustrating problem—moisture build-up and ...

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May 9, 2025

How Retrofit Double Glazing Windows Create A More Comfortable, Quieter Home

Retrofitting your windows is one of the smartest ways to improve your home’s comfort, without undergoing the cost or disruption of full window replacement. In Australia, where cold winters and hot, ...

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Apr 1, 2025

What to Ask When Buying Double Glazing?

Investing in double glazing is a smart decision for homeowners looking to reduce noise, improve thermal comfort and energy efficiency. However, there are various types of double-glazed windows in the ...

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Glazing Type	Cooling Stars	Heating Stars	Cool%	Heat%	Uw	SHGC
Single glazed 3mm clear glass*					7.4	0.77
Single glazed 3mm clear glass & 4.5mm Magnetite			35%	59%	2.9	0.67

Glazing Type

Cooling Stars

Heating Stars

Cool%

Heat%

SHGC

Single glazed 3mm clear glass*

7.4

0.77

Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite

35%

59%

2.9

0.67

Glazing Type	Cool%	Heat%	Uw	SHGC
Single glazed 3mm clear glass*	20%	28%	5.5	0.69
Single glazed 3mm clear glass & 4.5mm Magnetite	37%	61%	2.6	0.66
Single glazed 3mm clear glass with Solartite** and 4.5mm Magnetite	76%	45%	1.8	0.20

Glazing Type

Cooling Stars

Heating Stars

Cool%

Heat%

SHGC

Single glazed 3mm clear glass*

20%

28%

5.5

0.69

Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite

37%

61%

2.6

0.66

Single glazed 3mm clear glass with
Solartite** and 4.5mm Magnetite

76%

45%

1.8

0.20

Glazing Type	Cooling Stars	Heating Stars	Cool%	Heat%	Uw	SHGC	AI
Double Glazed 3mm clear glass/12mm air gap/3mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*			40%	55%	3.0	0.61	5.0
Single glazed 3mm clear glass & 4.5mm Magnetite			37%	61%	2.6	0.66	0.5

Glazing Type

Cooling Stars

Heating Stars

Cool%

Heat%

SHGC

Double Glazed 3mm clear glass/12mm air
gap/3mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*

40%

55%

3.0

0.61

5.0

Single glazed 3mm clear glass &
4.5mm Magnetite

37%

61%

2.6

0.66

0.5

Glazing Type	Cooling Stars	Heating Stars	Cool%	Heat%	Uw	SHGC	AI
Double Glazed 5mm Supertoned glass/6mm air gap/5mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*			54%	425%	3.30	0.461	5.0
Single glazed 3mm glass Solartite** and 4.5mm Magnetite			73%	38%	2.4	0.19	0.5

Glazing Type

Cooling Stars

Heating Stars

Cool%

Heat%

SHGC

Double Glazed 5mm Supertoned glass/6mm
air gap/5mm clear glass IGU (Insulated Glass Unit)*

54%

425%

3.30

0.461

5.0

Single glazed 3mm glass Solartite**
and 4.5mm Magnetite

73%

38%

2.4

0.19

0.5

Noise Reduction Technical Data and Results

Proven Results

Noise pollution is one the biggest problems faced in the cities today, particularly in a high-density living. Unwanted noise can be responsible for sleep loss and lack of concentration. This can lead to a deterioration of health through increased stress levels, headaches, high blood pressure and loss of hearing.

Noise penetrates windows through leaky seals or vibrations through the window structure. To reduce noise, a window should minimise air infiltration, hold enough weight to limit vibration and allow a large air cavity. This cavity, or air gap, is the key to secondary glazing.

Expert Advice:

CSIRO Research by John Davy shown an air cavity can effectively enhance sound insulation performance. The larger the air cavity the more noise the window system can reduce. Results show a wide air gap of 100-125mm will improve sound insulation by an average of 7dB(A) more than windows with a narrow gap of 8-13mm.

Window or Glass Door Type	Total Glass Thickness (mm)	Air Cavity Thickness (mm)	Sound Insulation (dB)
Single Glaze 3mm	3	0	23
Single Glaze 6mm	6	0	27
Double Glaze Narrow Gap	9-12	8-13	31
Double Glaze Wide Gap	9-12	100-125	38

Window or Glass Door Type

Total Glass Thickness (mm)

Air Cavity Thickness (mm)

Sound Insulation (dB)

Single Glaze 3mm

Single Glaze 6mm

Double Glaze Narrow Gap

9-12

8-13

Double Glaze Wide Gap

9-12

100-125

The human ear is less sensitive to low frequency sound. According to a study released by the CSIRO, the human ear needs a change of 3dB to detect a difference in noise levels and the human ear perceives a change of 10dB as a doubling or halving of the noise level.

If you double the thickness of glass in a window the noise level will decrease by 3dB the least amount possible to make a difference. If the glass is laminated there is no perceived difference in noise reduction.

National Acoustic Laboratory Testing:

Working with the principles of noise transfer, Magnetite® and Soundtite are designed for high performance, which is achieved by combining air tight seals with the ability to maximize an air cavity and the flexibility to vary glazing thickness to suit. Magnetite® is excellent at reducing general noise such as busy roads, commuter trains and noisy neighbours. Whereas, Soundtite works well to combat low frequencies noise such as garbage truck, freight trains or airplane during take-off and landing.

Test Code	Material Tested	Rw*	Improvement
ATF 707 (test window)	Aluminium sliding window, 3mm float glass with mohair seals	23	N/A
ATF 709	Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (4.5mm acrylic panel)	35	52%
ATF 1507	Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (10.0mm acrylic panel)	39	70%
ATF 817	Test window, 100mm air gap and Soundtite (6.38mm laminated glass)	41	78%

Test Code

Material Tested

Rw*

Improvement

ATF 707 (test window)

Aluminium sliding window, 3mm float glass with mohair seals

N/A

ATF 709

Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (4.5mm acrylic panel)

52%

ATF 1507

Test window, 100mm air gap and Magnetite System (10.0mm acrylic panel)

70%

ATF 817

Test window, 100mm air gap and Soundtite (6.38mm laminated glass)

78%

*The Weighted Sound Reduction Index (Rw) is a measure for sound insulation performance of a single building element such as windows. The higher the Rw rating, the better the sound insulation.

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