Soundproofing an English basment rental unit in rowhouse

[gwill]

So we recently purchased a rowhouse in a big city--we live on the top two floors and rent out the unit in the basement. We have issues both with sound traveling up from below and the noise of our footfalls traveling down.

We'd like to come up with a solution on the relative cheap, and after doing a fair amount of reading, it sounds like the best option is to attach a sound mat to the existing basement ceiling, add some sort of acoustical channel (though the clips seem prohibitively expensive--would tape work as a poor man's option?) and then add another layer of drywall. Would be need Quiet Rock are would regular drywall be sufficient?

Other useful info: The apartment is approximately 700 square feet. Also of note, the ceilings are pretty high--about eight feet--but in the kitchen the cabinets go flush to the top. So we only have a couple inches to play with--the space between the top of the cabinet and the door. We'd rather not have to rehang the cabinets. There's currently no insulation between the joists of the current ceiling.

Any suggestions, including specific products, most appreciated.

[gwill]

One last thing, for what it's worth: There is recessed lighting down there. I know that will hamper our efforts. But as far as pulling down the lights another half inch-inch, I'm assuming that would be possible.

[gwill]

Okay, now that I've done some more research, I may as well weigh in with what we're thinking of doing. Take down the existing drywall. Add a layer of insulation. (What works best?) Use Isomax and then install a layer of QuietRock. Would using one layer of QuietRock obviate the need for two layers of drywall? Or adding a layer of drywall to the subflooring?

We're dealing with ambient noise--talking, TV, etc--traveling both up and down and footfalls traveling down. We don't expect to eliminate sound completely, we just want to be able to move around upstairs without disturbing someone downstairs, and not be able to hear someone downstairs on the phone. Which leads me to the question, is this overkill? Should we just add another layer of drywall to the ceiling? Or blow in insulation?

[gwill]

One last thing: Do we need to add any kind of damping layer to the subfloor? If so, any suggestions for a product?

[Randy S]

Ok Sorry for the delay in replying! you have a lot of issues at hand that nigate our efforts. My contact info is below, please call me direct so we can discuss your particular project.