Treadmill in HDB flat?

Question

I am thinking of getting a treadmill but I am living in a HDB flat, thus I am afraid that the pounding caused by running on the machine will disturb the occupants below my unit. Though all the sales people have been telling me that their machines can absorb impact and hence prevents noise from travelling downwards, I am quite doubtful. Can anyone, especially those who have a treadmill in their apartment or HDB flat, give me advice on this please.

Answer 1

I would take a look at this website. It has reviews and ratings of treadmills. As you said the you cannot trust the manufacturer to tell you the truth about the absorption quality of the treadmill. This website has a good selection of treadmills and breaks them down and will tell you the pros and cons and if they truly will absorb a lot of that pounding to the pleasure of your lower floor mates. I hope this helps and is what you are looking for!

http://www.treadmilladviser.com/treadmil...

Answer 2

I haven't lived in a HDB flat but it doesn't seem that there would be any concerns particular to their construction as compared to other types.

Having said that I think you are correct in mistrusting those salespeople. Treadmills operating at their full capacity (at a fast pace) are noisy. The motor is noisy, the sound of the belt is noisy and the sound of the runners feet making contact with the moving belt is noisy.

I owned an expensive gym quality Precor treadmill and used it in my home without any close neighbors. It was fairly quiet when I used it for brisk walks. But, when I increased the pace to a full run it was so loud that I could still hear it with my ipod at full volume.

I was told that the particular model I bought was particularly quiet and had advanced internal shock absorption. I also bought a special pad from them that the treadmill sits on to absorb vibration.

Here is a link to a discussion concerning strategies to keep treadmills quiet in apartment situations.