Protect Your Hearing

Using hearing protection might seem like a hassle, but it has long-term benefits. The loudness of life can take a permanent toll on your ears. Regular or repetitive exposure to loud sounds is known to directly lead to hearing loss and ringing in your ears. Hearing protection can prevent this damage. ASH Audiology provides a wide range of products to best suit your individual needs.

Hunting/Sport

Gunshots create ‘impulse noise,’ or noise that is extremely loud but very brief. The average gunshot is about 140-160 decibels. That’s about 32 times louder than the average TV volume. Even though a gunshot is short, because it’s so loud it can still cause significant and permanent damage to your inner ear. It’s always recommended to wear hearing protection when you’re at the gun range or shooting outdoors.

Music

Enjoying music and protecting your hearing don’t have to be mutually exclusive. There are forms of hearing protection, for example, musicians’ plugs, which protect your hearing while still preserving the fidelity of the music. These types don’t block as much sound as possible from entering your ear, like other types of hearing protection do. Instead, they can protect you from the volume without making music sound muffled or unclear.

Power Tools & Lawn Equipment

Although power tools, lawn mowers, and woodworking tools aren’t as loud as gunshots, they are more long-lasting. The longer you’re exposed to noise, the more hearing damage is possible. Therefore, it’s important to protect your hearing when using these. Also, it should be noted that it is not advised to listen to music while doing these activities because you have to increase the volume of the music in order to hear it over the noise.

Types of Hearing Protection

Custom Earplugs

Custom earplugs are comfortable and fit perfectly because they’re created by making a mold of your ear. These are recommended for people who are regularly exposed to noise. Custom earplugs can come with replaceable sound filters so you can choose the protection you need for each situation.

Common uses include:

Shooting in the gun range or hunting

Attending live music events or listening through your headphones
Factory work, construction, farming, or manufacturing
Professional musicians
Using power tools, lawn equipment, or woodworking
Drown out a snoring partner
Create a quieter and more comfortable flight experience
Keep water out of your ears while showering or swimming
Riding a motorcycle
Attending a loud sporting event, like a Thunder basketball game

Electronic Hearing Protection

Electronic hearing protection is good for people who need to hear their surroundings AND protect themselves from impulse noises like gunshots or a nail gun. In a normal, non-noisy situation, they amplify your surroundings so you can hear speech, even though your ears are covered. This feature makes electronic hearing protection especially helpful for those with hearing loss. However, if a sound above a certain decibel level is detected, the amplification turns off, and your hearing is protected.

Common uses include:

Shooting in the gun range or hunting
Factory work, construction, farming, or manufacturing
Professional musicians
Using power tools or machinery

Earmuffs

Earmuffs are worn over the ears. They’re usually one-size fits all, and easy to put on. For the greatest possible amount of hearing protection, it’s recommended to wear earplugs and earmuffs at the same time.

Common uses include: