Earplugs

[Sam Thompson]

I know that, compared to many here, I have a rather gung-ho attitude to protective gear but... I've read of people using earplugs around machines. Please be careful, it's ever so easy to force swarf and other nastiness into places where only specialists with pointy things can retrieve them.

[welder19]

This is true, I prefer headsets (ear muffs) anyway since they are so much quicker and easier to put on and off.

welder19

[chyancarrek]

I'm not too fond of the foam plugs myself. I've known a couple of fellows who had troubles with "junkitis" of the ear because they didn't keep the ol' canals clean before they inserted the plugs and they didn't seem to get the concept that they're fairly cheap so you don't have to use the same pair repeatedly.

I use a set of muffs that have an FM radio in them - I keep it at low level so I can hear what's going on around me but still enjoy my ipod (it has an FM transmitter on it).

[Rob Browne]

I've seen too many older fellas, and quite a few my age (am I getting old??), who suffer industrial deafness. Plugs or muffs is the only question. Not will I use anything.

Personally plugs are my option.

[tzonoqua]

I can't bear the sound of grinding, so I wear big ear muff style ear defenders for that. I did try earplugs, but got grossed out that they got so dirty touching them to put them in my ears so I soon stopped... I may be a blacksmith, but I'm still a girl.. ok!!!???? I do wear the ear defenders for anvil work sometimes, my anvil rings like a bugger... but usually they get too hot and grippy on my head... will I be deaf by the time I'm 50? maybe?

[pkrankow]

I got those silicone earplugs on a string, look kinda like a couple mushrooms on a stick. You don't touch the part that goes into the ear. Work well, comfortable enough that I forget I am wearing them. I wash them with soap and water whenever they start looking gross, before anybody else notices they are looking gross.

I use them mowing the lawn, grinding, and sometimes when at the anvil, but I have made efforts to quiet my anvil.

I also have disposable plugs available and muffs, but find muffs uncomfortable. My nieces like the ear muffs because they can have their ipods on while mowing. If any activity makes my ears uncomfortable or causes a headache I find hearing protection.

Phil

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

I prefer the foamies myself since I have to wear them all day. The earmuffs get soaking wet after some time,especially during the summers here, and get in the way of some of the things that I have to do. Plus the foamies I use have a higher NRR than earmuffs do.

When I worked at Jelly Belly I wore them for 7 years in the plant. At the new shop they go in as soon as I clock in. I had annual hearing tests at JB, and it stayed the same, but I believe since leaving there it has gotten worse. I now carry a pair of foamies with me at all times. I have walked into too many clubs, bars, etc in Vegas where I ended up putting them in. The ringing in my ears that I do have sucks enough,I don't need it any louder.

My hot points are popping air lines loose, grinding, shop-vacs, pipe dropped on the floor, and any other high pitch noise maker.

[Bentiron1946]

I use the little wads of foam and use them only once. Once in they are there or were until I was finished with the day. Before they came on the market I use muffs/headsets, filled with an extra layer of foam. I lost a lot of hearing in the boiler room in the Navy. There we had no hearing protection at all, it was deemed unnecessary and unwanted by the powers to be. My ears nerver have quit ringing, I hope all them old buggers are stone deaf today, server them right. B)

[Glenn]

Do you ever use both foam ear plugs AND ear muffs together to eliminate the noise?

Sounds do not have to travel only through the ear channel. There has been no discussion on the effect of loud or constant noise on the body, even when wearing ear protection. I wonder if there are any studies out on what decibel rating is too loud for the body?

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Sound can be transmitted through the skull.

One competitive shooter wears plugs, muffs, and a modified motorcycle helmet to kill all of the sound around him. Other's muzzle reports were causing him to flinch some, which isn't good when you have a 1.5oz trigger pull.

The training we had, stated that if you are in an area that you have to raise your voice to someone 2' away, so that they can hear, you need hearing protection.

My Dad's hearing was toasted by the RB66's he worked on in the Air Force. He wore plugs,and muffs, but the sound was so high pitched from those engines it still wasn't enough. It was so cold out, that they warmed them up inside the hangers. I believe that was at Selfridge (sp?) AFB in Maine.

[Fe-Wood]

I use Peltor ear muffs with the highest decibel reduction rating. I can't wear the fomies, they give me a headache.

I have a good bit of ringing in my ears but I still hear better than my wife who has never spent time in a shop environment.

Even now, I don't wear them as much as I should...

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Hey FE, maybe the wife has "selective hearing" :D

[Wind Chapman]

I am a big fan of the foam ear plugs, I even sleep in them because of the combination of a coon hound that lives with us and all the nocturnal critters he adores here in the Chattahoochee National Forest. I put them in when I put on my apron and take them out when I take the apron off.

I nearly lost my hearing while in the service and have been paranoid ever since. I know the big noises can really get you, but in my humble opinion, even the sound of a muted anvil over time is just as bad if not worse.

[Francis Trez Cole]

I have a set of ear plugs I got back when I was in the USMC still use them muffs are to bulkey for me .

[Fe-Wood]

Hey FE, maybe the wife has "selective hearing"

I thought that was the mans job :lol:

[Michael]

I use the gel like plugs that are on a springy U shaped band that goes under your chin. I like that I don't touch the ear canal part and when taking them off they are right there around my neck, so I don't put them down somewhere out of reach when I start making noise again.

[Frosty]

Well, I WAS going to reply to Sam's original question with. . . HUH?

Truth is keeping your hearing is important and plugs can indeed pose a hazard from dirt on them. The easy trick is to only put them in when your hands are clean OR use a clean hanky, piece of tissue, etc. to keep from touching them with dirty fingers when you roll them.

If you feel discomfort wearing foamies you're probably wearing the wrong size. SIZE? Yeah, that's right they come in different sizes and you really NEED to get the right ones for YOUR ear canals. My ear canals are big bore, the regular size slip in so easily it's easy to touch my ear drums inserting them which is almost instant irritation and worse, they don't filter out enough loudness.

Have I worn both my foamies and my Peltors? I spent almost 20 years as an exploration driller and our CME-75 drill rig was powered by a 453 Detroit Diesel. Some of you will get this right away for those who aren't familiar with Detroit Diesels, they're two stroke engines and to develop full power you have to have them revved till they're "on the pipe." On the pipe is the sound you hear when the exhaust note of a dirt bike that's accelerating goes from merely annoying to piercingly LOUD. Well, from the driller's stand the exhaust pipe is less than 5' away and the intake is about 7' away.

What's with the intake you ask? A 453 Detroit Diesel like the one on our drill is a turbo charged unit so what you hear from the intake is the turbo which is a VERY loud (even if you can't really hear it) very HIGH pitched turbine whine. Think standing next to a jet engine.

So, anyway, you betcha I wore both, the engine noise was only the beginning as we forced steel into planet earth no matter what was in the way. Loud and piercing doesn't cover it worth spit. After a 10 hr shift on the drill wearing plugs and muffs your ears were left ringing. I'm thinking bone conduction played a part for sure, I sure wish I knew about it then.

Frosty the Lucky.

[jeremy k]

I use both the foam rollups and the hard muffs - depends on what I'm doing. - The foam ones last me a very long time - they go in the wash with the clothes and come out clean as new - let dry and re-use. Simple as that, they wash up very nicely. - JK

[HWHII]

I have been a victim of self stupidity and did not protect my ears for many years and now I have severe hearing lost. When I did start to use foam plugs on a daily basis I had to constantly take them in am out to talk to people and this lead to ulcers in my ear canal. I was at a motorcycle event and there was a booth that made custom ear plugs out of a putty they molded into you ear and let it harden for about 15 min. and then pulled them out with a string. The cost was $40.00 and I love them. Just clean with soapy water. They are very comfortable

[Grant]

Good Morning All

I was hoping Mark Aspery would chime in on this. He recommends ear defenders. My understanding is this is a fairly pricey device that is personally fitted to you at your hearing center. The type used by musicians and may be the device the NASCAR boys and girls use. They allow all usual sound through while blocking the harmful decibels. Is anyone familiar with these? I think this SOUNDS like a great idea. However, I saw MA demo in Colorado Springs and he repeatedly removed and replaced them, while on a Rocky Mountain Smiths conference video they were in the entire time with the normal conversation that accompanies a demo, including a decision about the ear defenders. I was hoping to clear this up. Can one install them in the morning wear them all day, san lunch, and carry on regular conversation, monitor machines, hear the birds chirp and be protected. Does one need to add muffs when using a power hammer, or Corkerizeing.

-tks grant

[SoCal Dave]

I use the hard ear muffs. They generally have some level of decibel protection. The main benefit to hard muffs is that you are not sticking something in your ear repeatedly, that might not be clean. Ear plug protection can vary depending on how well you've placed them in your ear and how they hold up to the compression while in your ears. When I have my hard muffs on, I can still hear the phone ring, and the wife calling me. So they're not perfect.

[nthe10ring]

Glad to see this topic come up, all should wear ear protection. Its not just hearing loss that needs to be protected. In addition to hearing loss you can incur Tinnitus, and believe me as one who has a severe case of it, its not just a ringing or humming noise. It is permanant and never goes away, its with you every moment of the day and night and there is no cure. Personally mine is the equivalant of a combination of a very high pitched hissing, frying sound, coupled with what sounds like a bearing going out, high pitched squealing , chirping sound . After a couple of years you learn to live with it, but it is most unpleasant to say the least. I wear plugs and muffs when I work around lound noise to keep from making it any worse. I state all this in the hope that everyone will take the precautions they need to protect themselves. All hearing damage is cumulative and mine finally caught up with me when I was exposed to an extremely large unepected sound blast.

Jerry Fisher

[Frosty]

I don't know what's meant by "Ear Defenders" I'd assumed (yeah, I KNOW!) our friends across the pond were familiar with a different term than this side. It's like calling suspenders braces if you're east of the Atlantic. Now you bring my thinking into question, no worries, this is a good thing, I truly appreciate different info especially if I'm wrong.

Anyway, what you describe sounds like "Noise Canceling hearing protection" These are ear muffs, I don't think anyone has developed plugs with this technology, What they do is electronically cancel sound above a certain level. This is done by producing a sound at the correct frequency to damp loud incoming noise. Bose makes a really top quality noise canceling muff and of course you can plug in almmost any music machine or radio and listen away in really damagingly noisy environments.

Okay, some good info. I Googled "noise canceling headphones" and this is the first hit of many. http://www.google.com/search?q=noise+canceling+headphones&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a

Okay, that's a clunky link but the search should turn it up fine. Seems there're lots of noise canceling headphones out there besides the Bose Quiet Comfort 2 units and most are a lot more affordable than the Bose units. Still, Bose noise canceling headphones are awfully good ear protection, I don't know of better.

Frosty the Lucky.

[Jymm Hoffman]

I went to my local audiologist and had the molded ear plugs made. They are supposed to be able to make them to certain decibel settings. I have a hard time hearing people speaking, but can hear voices better than when I use foam. First pair I had got hard after a few years and I developed tinnitus (ringing in the ear.) Audiologist said the first set were no longer any good, a little too loose (but I thought they still helped.) They ran a bunch of tests on me and said nothing could be done about my tinnitus at the time. Other than that I had good hearing for my age. I ordered another set of ear plugs and told the audiologist I wanted to be able to hear voices, she liked that. I have had the new set a couple years. After about a week with the new set the ringing went away, until about a week ago. Not as bad this time. The new set of plugs cost me $70.00. I had both sets made in "flesh" color so I could wear them at reenactments, especially when shooting, with out them being very noticeable. I have tried to wear them at public/reenactment type demonstrations and find it difficult to hear questions, especially since I put up a rope line and don't let people get too close to work area. I prefer these plugs over the any other at this time. I am not fond of ear muffs, but do have them and some times use them.

A friend that ran the repair shop for an equipment rental company was standing too close to an engine backfire. Hurt his ears enough for him to go to doctors. The doctors told him to eliminate caffeine to help reduce the ringing. Last year I decaffeinated when I had a cold. Unfortunately, I like coffee too much and needed the caffeine in a busy schedule. So now I need to try to cut back to see if it helps. I have not tried the new over the counter stuff to combat the tinnitus.

[Grant]

Frost Man -They looked more like this, http://earplugstore.stores.yahoo.net/jbcuearpl.html the orange ones, than muffs. Mark spoke of orchestra musicians wearing them and then told of his experience of picking up his original pair and wearing them out of the store; thinking they did not work until he got home, took out the trash, and noiselessly broke some glass bottles. Noiselessly to him anyway, of course there is the bit about the tree falling in the forest, you know about that. Also, I have seen the same thing in race car drivers ears as they put on their balaclava, of coarse they have the additional helmet, but they still carry on a conversation on the radio and can presumably hear it as the engine comes from-togetherness -grant

PS I thought I got "ear defenders" from Mark. It could be my misinterpretation of what MA said or I could of dreamed it.

PSS Please Excuse me Frost Man; I will not mention it again!