At What Noise Exposure Levels (dB) Do You Start Wearing Earplugs?

Hey guys, I was just wondering at what DB level are ear plugs deemed necessary? I tend to put them in when I'm exposed to sounds above 70 dB [which is pretty much whenever I go outside since I live in a city]. That being said, I want to make sure I'm not over protecting my ears.

 

Me too. 70+ makes me worry about more hearing loss or increased tinnitus so I plug up. I am using 20NRR musician's plugs (6.5 dB reduction) as a start. Then as things progress I will go up to 26NRR and then 32NRR foam plugs. I will wear 3M Peltor X5A muffs. (31NRR).

 

If you overprotect your ears, you might get some hyperacusis that will go away soon after you begin to expose yourself to noise. If you underprotect, you might get louder tinnitus that will last a lifetime. Your choice.

To answer your question, you don't want a random rule of thumb. You want to use trial and error to find out what noises cause tinnitus to spike for you, and then you will want to avoid all of the similar noises.

 

I start protection at about 80 dB or so.

 

Definitely anything 80 dB or above.

 

80db

 

It depends on the frequencies, if the noise has very high frequencies or it has disturbing frequencies, I wear earplugs also for 50/60 dB noise.

 

If you have hyperacusis it is very likely you need earplugs around 55 - 60 dbs or more. For T maybe 75 - 80 dbs.