earmuffs

[thecfarm]

Wife needs something while she is mowing.
She does not want to listen to music.
Just a pair of earmuffs to deaden the noise.

Edit
Now she says she wants to listen to music.
I know she said no music at first.
Maybe that belongs in the, am I getting old thread.

[Magicman]

No muff help from me.  We both wear earplugs. LINK  This is the same earplugs that I wear sawmilling.

[Southside]

I prefer the style where the band goes behind your head instead of over it, makes wearing a hat comfortable. 

[Stephen1]

I have a pair that is nice foam, and I can listen to the music when no one is around. I am looking for something like what SS said so I can wear a wide brim hat. 

[doc henderson]

I have a variety of hearing protection.  many made by 3M.  I do have two that can Bluetooth to my phone and play music and let me answer my phone.  It also blunts gun shots, or sudden loud noises, but can amplify voice. 

[SawyerTed]

The 3M Peltor series offers up to 30 db noise reduction.   They are commonly available in both over the head and behind the head style.  

Be wary of bargain brands, the noise reduction rating is not always accurate.  23 db reduction is common in the lesser brands and consumer versions.  23 is sufficient for most mowing and residential/light industrial.

More noise reduction is better, less noise related fatigue for longer duration.  

Ear plugs aren't as hot and sweaty for me.   Noting the noise reduction of the ear plugs is important as well.  Not all are created equal.  

[Old Greenhorn]

My philosophy is this may (probably?) be wrong but at my age, as my hearing is still pretty good, I am just looking to take off the loud, sharp, damaging peaks in the sound wave, not block it all out. SO I don't get real picky, besides I only wear them for long periods at the sawmill. Shop work is usually short duration. I keep pairs of muffs hanging all over in a variety of brands including 3m and peltor.. I don't like the distraction of music when I am working, except running the log splitter.
 I stopped using plugs almost 2 years ago because of outer/inner ear infection issues. I may try them again now that it's been a while. I like muffs because they are easy on and off. I do not like muffs in the heat, the sweat can make the slide around. Also, they are not as effective with safety glasses on.
 Mostly it seems I use the cheapos from HF because I have a pairs hanging all over. I have a pair in the Mule, in the truck, hanging on the splitter, and various places in the shop. The band on those goes over the top or will swing down around the back of the neck. If I do it right, that band will hook over the adjustment knob on my hard hat and hooks in. This keeps the muffs up and the hat on when things get sweaty.
 YMMV, get what works.

[doc henderson]

older folks need hearing protection to reduce further hearing loss and to set a good example for kids and grandkids.  many old truck drivers were sad when they could not hear their grandkids.  some even wear earplugs under the earmuff style hearing protection.

[Texas Ranger]

In hunter safety we taught to wear plugs and muffs to protect our hearing, I think most hunters ignore that for one shot stuff, but any noise at a high level can use bones as a transfer of sound and the muffs supposedly reduce the impact.  I know it is a lot more comfortable on the range.

[Old Greenhorn]

An elderly man was having hearing problems and went to see a specialist. The doctor fitted him with some hearing aids that brought his hearing back to full strength.
After a few weeks the man came back to make sure the new equipment was working properly, which it was.
The hearing specialist said, "It all seems perfect. Your family should be delighted you can hear everything now."
"Oh no," the man responded. "I haven't told any of them. I just sit quietly, listening carefully. I've changed my will four times."

[SawyerTed]

Look for ANSI Standard S12.6 labeling for hearing protection devices in addition to the decibels reduction number.   

HF devices are ones I'd avoid for anything other than occasional use.  Mine did not hold up and the noise reduction rating was questionable.  When switching between HF earmuffs and 3M earmuffs of the same rating, the 3M muffs were noticeably quieter.  

A mower is some where around 90-92 decibels.     A chainsaw is 105 +/-.   

Hearing damage begins at 70 decibels.  The higher above 70 the shorter the duration before lasting damage occurs. 

So a 23 decibels reduction is at the margin on a mower and really insufficient with a chainsaw.   

Quality hearing protection is cheap compared to hearing aids ($3,000 plus for audiologist prescribed, fitted and tuned).  

How do I know this?  The Dept of Labor/OSHA required my last employer to implement a hearing monitoring plan, annual auditory testing and mandatory hearing protection.   Guess who "got" to write the plan?

[SwampDonkey]

I have used ear plugs for years because the muffs are too hot for me. I use them sawing or mowing. 3M usually. They come with a string, but I take that out. It would be alright to leave it on if mowing, but in the woods that strings gets caught on every twig. :D

[WV Sawmiller]

   I wear muffs when shooting (Except when actually hunting) and for mowing or running a chainsaw or the mill. The last pair I got was from Harbor Freight and the next time I am there I plan to buy several more to stage in convenient locations.

[Old Greenhorn]

I should have added in my last post that from time to time I get kids in the shop and they are more sensitive to noise at even low levels. One of my grandsons is right on the edge of the spectrum and he is very sensitive to noise. He always gets the best pair of muffs in the shop. But even for stuff that I don't wear muffs for  (TS, RAS, Sander, etc) I do put them on the kids, as well as safety glasses if they are that close or helping.
 Rarely I will grab a chainsaw and make one to two quick cuts without muffs. I just squint my ears. I always wear them when I shoot and sometimes ear plugs at the same time, depending on the rifle. But not when I hunt.

[barbender]

 I've worn ear plugs around equipment and firearms ever since I was around 18. Working on a paving crew, I always wore ear plugs all day long, even though most guys didn't. Regardless of whether I was on a piece of equipment or doing labor work, I preferred to keep things blocked out. This would sometimes irritate my coworkers that were trying to communicate with me, but I realized if I didn't wear plugs continuously I was often a very crabby guy by the end of the day.

 Like OG's grandson, I've started to figure out over the years that I am just very sensitive to noise. Vacuum cleaners and woodshop machinery are things I won't use without hearing protection. I'm not even being proactive about protecting my hearing, I just can't take the noise. Actually, it doesn't bother me to just have earplugs in around the house other than my family members trying to talk to me. I find I process it as just having the rough edges taken off the noise of a household. Of course, my wife is not impressed if I always have earplugs in around her😂

[Old Greenhorn]

BB raises a good point. Although I am not too picky about wearing the protection, certain noises do stress me out. Back up beepers are one of them and I have been listening to one about 1/2 mile from here for 4 days now, almost non-stop. Even at that distance, it's cut me like a knife, I can hear it in the house and in the shop. I know the guy is working hard on his own property and has every right to do that, but I wish he would shut that beeper off since he is working alone on the property. I can't hear the machine at all, just that beeper.

[Andries]

Tom, you just gotta, gotta post a photo of that. "I just squint my ears." 😄
I'm with you 100% on the backup beepers.
They drive me nuts.
 I put an in-line fuse to mine and the fuse comes out when I'm working alone.

[Corley5]

I prefer ear muffs. I've got Peltors with AM/FM, Bluetooth capability that I don't always listen to but I always wear around equipment. Too little too late but maybe preserving what hearing I have left. I don't like earplugs at all. I've gotten outer ear infections that I attribute to using them. New plugs, disinfected hands before handling the plugs, it doesn't matter. Wearing muffs especially in hot weather for extended periods will cause the same issue for me but not to the extent of ear plugs. OSHA recommends wearing both plugs and muffs for maximum protection.

[GRANITEstateMP]

I know Ray said that he didn't need ones that play music, but I have the 3m worktunes style muffs. I use them a lot, but as Corley said, I'm a bit late to that party also! Just trying to preserve what I got left

Ray, you may want to reconsider the worktunes, if your wife is rockin out then she won't hear that noise when the mower strikes one of your 

I like that mine are Bluetooth.  I'll link them to my tablet and listen to an audio book while stacking wood or running a tractor.  I can still hear if something starts to sound "off" on whatever piece of equipment I'm running with the music or book going, which gives me piece of mind.

When I'm at the racetrack, I usually have a headset on.  When I'm/we're done, I have a set of rubber ear plugs on a string that I keep handy. Like I said, trying to preserve whats left!

[barbender]

 Granite, I have bluetooth earmuffs as well. Listening to a podcast, audio book or just rocking out helps to pass the time when you're running a few cords through the processor or whatever else the chore is. I find I can still hear if something is off, as well 

 As an aside, I don't think there is any reason they can't have mufflers on stock cars. Man I hate the sound of those things. The local race track is at the county fairgrounds, right in town. I'm kinda shocked that they let them run races without noise controls. We used to have 4H dog obedience training at the fairgrounds on the same evening as the races. Many of the dogs hated it when the cars fired up, I know I did. I won't have much sympathy when the track gets chased out of town. 

[thecfarm]

Thanks to all have that posted.

Now she says she wants to listen to music.
I know she said no music at first.
Maybe that belongs in the, am I getting old thread.

She does very well with all the   around here. Considering she has to mow over and around many.

[GRANITEstateMP]

Barbender

We have to have mufflers on cars around hear because of noise ordinance stuff.  The problem is proximity... me head is usually under/in/right next to said noise maker

Ray, 

The 3m worktunes ones are pretty simple, I figured them out so they can't be too bad!

[Peter Drouin]

I will put extra foam in the muffs if they're not good enough.

[SwampDonkey]

Figured I'd try the 3M Peltor H10 Optime 105 Earmuffs to see how I like them. CDN $56 delivered. 

[Old Greenhorn]

Tom, you just gotta, gotta post a photo of that. "I just squint my ears." 😄
.......

Well Andries, I really tried, but every time I got my ears closed and tried to hit the button on the camera I would loose focus and the squint would relax. Finally I sort of got it. The technique requires combining the standard OSHA squint (for missing safety glasses) together with a firmly clenched lower jaw, hard to explain and you kind of have to move those lower jaw muscles around a bit before you find the sweet spot. It takes practice to hold it for any length of time. This was the best photo I could get showing all the attributes mentioned above. It's impossible for me to include the closed ear hole while getting the other stuff in the photos.