Work, jobsite & loud hobbies
Some of the loudest hours of the week happen at work, in the garage, or at the range. These answers cover protection that still lets you hear what matters, plus where OSHA draws the line.
Hearing and protecting at the same time
3 QUESTIONSWhat protection suits a teen who hunts and needs to hear his father?Asked: “I am looking for guidelines for selecting ear protection for a teenager with a pre-existing high frequency NIHL. What is an appropriate NRR rating? This is a teenager who hunts with his father. He is also concerned with being able to hear his father speak during this activity.”
Hunting needs listening and protection at once. Regular plugs block too much; musician plugs are not enough for gunfire. Electronic earmuffs pass normal sound and clamp down on blasts.
He’s right. Hunting requires listening and protection during the same exercise. He not only needs to hear his father, he probably wants to listen to the surrounding sounds. He needs good hearing function with “on-demand” maximum protection. Regular earplugs will probably give him reasonable protection when worn properly but not give him enough functional hearing. Musician’s ear plugs would give him his choice of how much attenuation he would like (so he could communicate) but the protection would be inadequate for gunfire. There is a third option developed especially for hunting. Electronic hearing ear muff type protectors allow the user to hear low-moderate level sounds, but are protected from dangerous levels by sound triggered attenuation circuits. Some systems provide increased attenuation as sound levels increase.
Where does hazardous noise show up off the job?Asked: “Who is affected by NIHL?”
Harmful noise is everywhere: target shooting, snowmobiles, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, woodworking and shop tools, not just factories.
More than 30 million Americans are exposed to hazardous sound levels on a regular basis. Individuals of all ages including children, adolescents, young adults and older people can develop NIHL. Exposure occurs in the workplace, in recreational settings and at home. There is an increasing awareness of the harmful noises in recreational activities, such as, concerts, sporting events, target shooting or hunting, snowmobiles, lawnmowers, go-carts, woodworking and other hobby equipment. Harmful noises at home may come from vacuum cleaners, garbage disposals, lawn mowers, leaf blowers and shop tools. People who live in either urban or rural settings may be exposed to noisy devices on a daily basis. Of the 28 million Americans who have some degree of hearing loss, about one-third have been affected, at least in part, by noise.
How do work hours and noise levels add up?Asked: “What are the factors affecting hearing loss?”
Risk depends on sound level and exposure time. NIOSH recommends 85 dBA as an 8-hour time-weighted average for work; each 3 dBA increase halves the time to the recommended daily dose. CDC/NIOSH
NIOSH’s occupational recommendation is 85 dBA averaged over an 8-hour workday, with a 3 dB exchange rate: 88 dBA for 4 hours or 91 dBA for 2 hours reaches the same recommended daily dose. These are workplace recommendations, not guaranteed safe listening times for everyone or all activities. CDC/NIOSH
General environmental-noise guidance and personal-audio listening allowances use different averaging periods. Compare NIOSH, EPA, and WHO guidance.
Protection that fits work & hobbies
Picked from our catalog to match the situations above. Every product page lists its Noise Reduction Rating.
Compare by situationCommon noise levels at work
From our workplace series. Explore sound levels, exposure time, and hearing conservation at work.
- 50Office · safe
- 85Heavy traffic · hearing conservation program required
- 90Forklifts · hearing protection required
- 112Chainsaws / jackhammers · double protection
- 135Firearms / jet engines · immediate damage
Ranges shown at their midpoint: chainsaws and jackhammers run 105–120 dB; firearms and jet engines 130–140 dB.