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Marine Generator Sound Proofing

2010-12-22

Here's my problem which is not unusual in the yachting world.
I'm the engineer onboard a megayacht which has a John Deere 35Kw Generator installed in the Lazerette. The deck overhead is fiberglass with the standard Teak decking on top of it.
The Lazerette was not sound-proofed at the time of build and now everything is installed and it is not coming out.
The sound of the generator running is more than annoying.
 
My options are to build a box around the generator, which is the last thing I want to do in any case.
There is also the acoustical foam that is used in many engine rooms,(1/4" foam base-a layer of heavy vinyl-a top layer 3/4" of foam with a Mylar covering on it.) This works to some degree, but it is not perfect.

I have seen a product called "SilentRunning 1000" on the website "www.silentrunning.us".
It is hyped as being the solution to noise and it is a "paint on" product. (Being able to paint on a coating will simplify my life greatly!)
I am not familar with this technology and want to know if anyone has any experience using an absorber like this product and if there are any products better than this or are they all pretty much the same under different brand names?
Are there any alternatives to reducing the noise aside from not running the generator?
The reason we use this one is that it is the smallest of three and consumes the least amount of diesel.
The other two generators, a 65Kw and a 100Kw are installed in the engine room along with the 3 CAT 3412's of 1300 hp.
The engine room is sound proofed and this room is not a sound problem at all. (the owner did this part right!)

I would appreciate any info if someone has time to spare in replying. You guys have more knowledge than I do in the book-learning and what products are out there...I'm too busy running around after the 11 toilets onboard!

When I worked in vehicle noise and vibration in the UK we were regularly plagued by sound-deadening-paint salesmen.

We never found any effect worth talking about. On a plain steel sheet they did help a bit, roughly proportional to the mass of paint applied. They didn't even seem to do much damping.

We use spray-on black goop under cars, mainly to reduce stone chipping noise, I've never seen it used for engine noise. It has to be thick.

I would suggest that you (a) mount the thing on rubber mounts (b) make sure the exhaust and intake are effective and structurally isolated and (c) build a box round it that is isolated both from the floor and engine.

Alternatively copy the details from the engine room.

AFAIK there are no shortcuts with engine noise.

If the noise is mostly transmitted by structure, then vibration isolators under the genset engine mounts would help.  The softer the better; elastic mounts with more than an inch of static deflection would be appropriate.  Most regular motor mounts are way too hard for this.  As an experiment, support the genset on plywood, put some truck inner tubes under the plywood, and inflate them just enough to keep it 'airborne'.

If the noise is mostly transmitted by air, i.e. the _noise_ is exciting the boat structure, then a really big muffler, on the engine's _air_intake_, should help.  I assume it's already got a muffler on the exhaust.

Of course you've got long hoses with gentle bends in them, or multiple flex sections, on all the fluid and other conduits connected to the genset already, right?Bellow Seal Valves  Exhaust, seawater, fuel, etc.

As Greg said, forget paint.

Start shopping for fuel cells.

 

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