The Decibel Squad – Are You Sick Of The Noise?
Nobody likes to dine in a cathedral where you can hear a pin drop. But the other end of the spectrum can be even more discomfiting – and not just for those that are hard of hearing. The charity Action On Hearing Loss found that noise levels in some restaurants on a busy night can reach 90 decibels, the equivalent of sitting next to a motorbike or lawnmower. And they want you to help do something about it.
As part of its Speak Easy campaign, the charity wants diners to monitor noise levels at restaurants by using their free app, Decibel 10, and posting the results on the Decibel Squad Facebook or Twitter page as well as feeding back to the restaurants direct. The aim is to get venues to understand this is a problem and to introduce remedies such as reducing the level of background music, incorporating sound-absorbent materials in the design and keeping diners a suitable distance away from the kitchen.
Stick on your headphones and compare these simulations of conversations in a restaurant before and after acoustic treatment. Clip 1 checks in at 90 decibels and Clip 2 at 80 decibels after simple noise-reduction measures have been implemented, in this case hanging sound-absorbing panels from the ceiling.
Restaurateurs that perhaps feel this is a non-issue would do well to take note of a survey of 1,200 members of the general public conducted by Action on Hearing Loss in February 2017:
- 79% had left a restaurant early because it was too noisy
- 91% would not return to a venue that was too noisy
- 75% would go to a restaurant more frequently if it was less noisy
- 43% would rather get a takeaway than go for a meal at a noisy restaurant
Download the Decibel 10 App – iPhone or Android
Decibel Squad Facebook page
Decibel Squad Twitter page
