Hearing Protection

[greggh]

I wear the noise supression earmuffs with a radio that I purchased from Grainger. They seem to work fine.

 

[ragkar]

3 db is the smallest change that the ear can perceive.

 

[bigtiller]

If the sponge rubber or the foam ear plugs are not working for you then you are not inserting them properly. They have to be compressed by rolling between the finger and thumb. Smashing them usually doesn't work as well as rolling. And here is the tricky part, they have to be inserted by raising the top of the ear with the opposite hand and inserting until it tickles your throat. Then hold it in place until it expands. If it does not tickle you will not get the full benefit of them.

 

[NewToy]

Earplugs make me feel uncomfortable. I've been to too many concerts, AC/DC, Who, Nuge, Stones, ZZ, etc to worry about the tractor giving me any hearing problems. Besides this constant ringing pretty much blocks out all the external sounds.

John

 

[NewToy]

3 db is the smallest change that the ear can perceive.

I always wondered about tha 3db thing. Scenario: Jet engine running flat out and you decrease the sound pressure by 3db every 10 minutes or so. You would not be able to tell the sound pressure was decreasing until you went below the threshold of hearing, then it would just be like shutting it off all at once?

John

 

[RalphVa]

I wear ear muffs. They have a face shield, too. I wear them backwards while operating the tractor but put them on with the shield in front while putting stuff in my chipper/shredder.

I've had stapes replaced in both ears; so, I'm careful about my ears.

Chain saws make a horrible racket with my new stapes. Gotta wear the ear muffs.

Ralph

 

[WH401]

I wear the foam ear plugs when I use the tractor, which most of the time that's cutting grass. They work well, you don't notice that you have them on, and they don't interfere with my respirator or hat.

 

[srjones]

Earplugs make me feel uncomfortable. I've been to too many concerts, AC/DC, Who, Nuge, Stones, ZZ, etc to worry about the tractor giving me any hearing problems. Besides this constant ringing pretty much blocks out all the external sounds.

John

I assume you're joking, but if you're not..

Just because you have hearing damage, doesn't mean you're immune to further hearing damage through exposure.

I remember shooting guns with a guy with hearing aids. Instead of wearing hearing protection, he just turned off the hearing aids.

 

[kebo]

I have moderate hearing nerve damage and MUST wear hearing protection pretty much all the time I am around equipment. If you want to have decent hearing when you are older, take better care of it while you are younger. It's a slow and cumulative process that occurs gradually so you don't really notice the damage being done till it's happened. Once started, it never gets better only worse.

Oh yeah, very loud sharp sounds (like rifle fire or hammer blows) can actually be more damaging than continuous exposure to loud sound pressure levels that are constant.

 

[flusher]

Does anyone use hearing protection?
If so, what kind?
I tried the sponge rubber squishable ear plugs and they work a little bit. Nice and light and non-intrusive but not quite enough noise reduction.
Then I tried my shooting headset - A Swiss "Thunder 29" and it seemed to amplify the low frequency noises. So no-go on that idea.

This noise thing hasn't been a problem for me with older tractors, but recently we got a new TLB with a canopy and the exhuast right by the front wheel. That combo makes it sort of loud for the operator.
rScotty

Yep. My Mahindra 5525 really roars at pto speed (2060 engine rpm). So I use mouse ears from Home Depot for hearing protection.

Also, when the wind is in my face, I get a good dose of diesel fumes and have to put on a HEPA filter mask.