How to Make your Generator Quiet [11 Tips]

The generator is a blessing when you have electricity shortfall issues or you are out, where you have no electricity but at the same time it´s a curse due to its loud sound. Do you want to know, How to Make your Generator Quiet, then read this article?

• Use a Soundproofing mat to quiet the generator
• Attach solid legs or rubber feet to reduce vibration
• Use a silencer/muffler to quiet the generator
• Using water bucket and hose pipe
• The generator should be far away
• Install sound deflectors to quiet the generator
• Buy a generator quiet box
• Angle the exhaust away
• Buy a new generator muffler
• Make sure that your generator is not overloading
• Invest in an inverter generator(aka quiet generators)

Below we have discussed these tips in detail on how you can reduce noise coming from your generator.

Use a Soundproofing mat to quiet the generator

This may seem obvious, but the generator vibrations are often the culprit behind a loud generator. The rubber foot is a simple solution to quieting down the noise and vibrations.

Place a soundproof mat underneath the generator. Apart from dealing with the vibrations, the mat will provide a secure footing to the generator.

If you don’t get a soundproofing mat, an old, thick rug can do the job. Soundproofing mats are more expensive, but it is worth investing if you need to invest in a generator.

In addition, the rubber mat will reduce how much dirt and dust your generator gets exposed to by providing some protection against debris.

Usually, this will be enough for people who want to reduce how loud their generator is but don’t have time or money for more complex solutions like installing an enclosure around it.

Attach solid legs or rubber feet to reduce vibration

The soundproofing mat alone cannot reduce noise to an acceptable level. You would have to combine it with other techniques.

If the generator doesn’t have a solid footing, it would frantically vibrate even if there is a mat beneath. Attach solid legs or rubber feet to reduce vibration.

They are easy to install, require little to no effort, and in combination with the soundproof mat, significantly reduce noise from the generator.

Use a silencer/muffler to quiet the generator

Generator silencers work in the same way car silencers work.

As the name suggests, a generator silencer is an attachment that can be fitted to your existing exhaust pipe and removes some of the sound generated by the engine.

Silencers are an effective but not the perfect solution as they will always reduce the noise, but never silence the generator completely.

Using water bucket and hose pipe

This is one of the cheapest DIY hacks to soundproof a generator. All you need is a water bucket and a hose.

One end of the hosepipe is connected to the exhaust of the generator and the other is inside the water bucket which is of course full of water (about 4-6 gallons).

Here comes the tricky part, you will have to drill a hole at the top of the hose so the generator won’t suck the water. You can imagine what a disastrous situation would it be.

Once everything is in line, you would only have to start the generator. The water dampens the noise thus making the generator considerably quiet.

The generator should be far away

It’s a no-brainer, the near the generator, the louder the noise would be. If you are using a generator on a camping trip, invest in a long extension cable. Keep the generator as far away as possible.

However, when you are using the generator for home appliances and live in a bustling neighborhood, be mindful of the local laws as you might be infringing on the right of your immediate neighbors.

How far away should you keep your portable generator from a dwelling or other buildings? Ideally, it should be at least 25 feet apart to considerably reduce the noise levels entering your room.

Install sound deflectors to quiet the generator

This solution works perfectly fine if you don’t have enough space and have to place your generator inside an enclosure like a shed or outhouse. You can also buy a generator soundproof box which we will discuss later.

Buy metal deflectors to cover the fan and housing of your generator. You can find these at hardware stores for about $20 each, but you’ll have to measure how many you need per side of the unit in order to get the length right.

The sound deflectors would absorb and deflect the soundwaves in a particular direction, and thus makes it harder for them to reach our ears. You would have to set them at the right angle to direct all sounds in one direction.

Buy a generator quiet box

Many companies these days offer quiet box enclosures that can muffle the noise and afford you much-needed peace of mind.

A generator quiet box is a necessary investment for someone who is looking to get away with minimal disturbance.

The box encloses the engine and muffles sound by absorbing it as well as reflecting back noise generated inside the enclosure. This kind of generator cover can be installed in a garage, basement, or any other enclosed space that does not have openings on its ceiling or walls.

More importantly, it doesn’t affect the airflow much needed for the generator engine to work properly.

You can build a soundproof generator box at home, but we recommend leaving it to an expert.

You need the following materials to build your own generator quiet box.

1. Mass-loaded Vinyl or MLV
2. Medium-density fiberboard sheets or MDF sheets
3. Green Glue
4. Ventilation ducts
5. Foam mats

You can find them at your local hardware store or can order them online.

Cut the MDF sheets into 6 pieces, and make sure their size is a few inches greater than each dimension so there is room to spare when the generator is inside the box. Drill holes for ventilation.

Next, you should apply the MLV on the inside of the sheets and add a layer of foam mat at the bottom. Assemble all the sheets except for the top but glue and screw them in place. Add a hinge at the top, to easily place and remove the generator.

Attach the ventilation ducts, and make sure there are curves and kinks in the duct to make it difficult for the soundwaves to travel through them.

Congrats, you now have a soundproofing generator box to deal with that grinding noise.

Angle the exhaust away

As we already explained, the closest you are to exhaustion the more would be the intensity of sound. To reduce the noise from your generator, you should angle it away from any living spaces.

Turn the exhaust pipe to face a sound-absorbing mat or other structure that can absorb generator noise.

We recommend that you talk with an expert about installing extra baffles around the exhaust outlet of your generator.

Buy a new generator muffler

A malfunctioning muffler can significantly increase the noise from the generator. If this is the case with your old generator, buy a new muffler for it.

A quality muffler will not reduce noise to an acceptable level, but it will also increase the life expectancy of the generator.

We recommend that you take your generator to a mechanic for a thorough maintenance check. If there is a problem with the muffler, he can guide you on what size and type to buy that meets your need.

Make sure that your generator is not overloading

If your generator is making a lot of noise, one sure cause is that it is overheating in use.

The generator is working hard to cool itself down, so it typically makes loud noises or exhausts a lot of heat as it operates.

Overheating is a common sign of an overload in your generator, or it may be due to insulation or other blockages.

Make sure that your generator gets proper airflow, and is not running appliances beyond its capacity. You should take active measures to run only those appliances that you need most, and not use the heavy-duty ones for extended periods.

Invest in an inverter generator(aka quiet generators)

It’s a fact that not all generators are made the same way. Some generators especially the modern ones come with a pre-built soundproofing mechanism. . When it comes to inverter generators, they are the quietest around.

The answer is largely contingent on your power needs and how you plan on using the machine in question.

If you’re just looking to take care of an essential need like running some lights or powering up a laptop computer then there’s no reason not to go with something small and inexpensive such as this Champion 2000W Portable Quiet Generator.

It has an automatic idle mode that kicks in when demand slows down so that fuel isn’t wasted by continuing to operate at higher levels of output. This in turn will significantly reduce the noise as the harder the generator work to produce power, the more noise it would generate.

Final Words On How to make your generator quiet

In this article, we have discussed how to make your generator quiet. There are many ways you can do it–a soundproof mat, a soundproof generator box, fixing an exhaust pipe, and so on.

Hopefully, these tips will help you in solving the noisy problem that has been bothering you all of these days.

However, if you are unsatisfied with all these fixes, it’s better to replace your generator with a quiet one.