Earplugs?
Cruiser
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 162
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RE: Earplugs?
I wear them every time I ride. I buy the Howard Leight foam plugs, and once their in, I don't notice them. I have mild tinnitus from years of concerts, small planes, and bikes, and I don't want it to get worse. There's no cure. Some people claim ginkgo biloba helps.
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Road Captain
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 597
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RE: Earplugs?
ORIGINAL: BruceHarrisJr
GeorgiaBiker; you describe my symtoms exactly.
GeorgiaBiker; you describe my symtoms exactly.
Tinnitus...horrible! It crept up on me and I didn't realize it till it started getting bad. I started noticing it after being around loud noise, the ringing you would normally get for a bit lasted longer and longer and worse and worse. Then after a while it just stopped going away, instead of fading away after being exposed to noise, it just got lower but wouldn't go away. That was when I was getting out of the Army. Is has gotten worse since then even with me trying to protect my hearing. Now it is always there. It is like hearing a real old tv that makes a humming noise when it is warming up or like being underwater in a lake and hearing the echos of distant boat motors rippling through the water. I have had it about 9 years now. It is like breathing, if you don't think about it you don't notice it too much. But when you do, like now while I type this, I hear it and it drives me about crazy. Also bothers me a lot when it is really quite and when trying to go to sleep.
Cruiser
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 186
Likes: 2
From: Minnesota
RE: Earplugs?
If a guy would just lose high frequency hearing that would be a blessing. The problem in my case is that it hearing lose came with this damn ringing noise.
Wear the ear plugs for rinding, mowing the lawn, using air tools, etc.
OD
Wear the ear plugs for rinding, mowing the lawn, using air tools, etc.
OD
Road Master
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 801
Likes: 1
From: USA
RE: Earplugs?
[ul][*]Earplugs are illegal in Maryland and probably all states that restrict helmet speakers to only one ear. [/ul]
I wear them all the time... Tooooooooo many years as a 11B resulting in ringing ears and hearing loss.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 5,716
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From:
RE: Earplugs?
ORIGINAL: GAGirl
I'll check those out -the walmart ones first. My sister and her husband have custom plugs as they shoot sporting clays and I know they dropped a good bit of change on theirs. Worth it though if it preserves my hearing. It's not so bad on the back roads, but the interstates are hell.
I'll check those out -the walmart ones first. My sister and her husband have custom plugs as they shoot sporting clays and I know they dropped a good bit of change on theirs. Worth it though if it preserves my hearing. It's not so bad on the back roads, but the interstates are hell.
Intermediate
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 44
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RE: Earplugs?
ORIGINAL: georgiabiker
A good case of Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) that never goes away and 50% hearing loss, and you will reconsider ear plugs. My problems are from artillery, but you could do the same damage from wind noise. Nothing is worse than laying in bed hearing ringing that never, evergoes away. Wife thinks that is why I am a little crazy.
A good case of Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) that never goes away and 50% hearing loss, and you will reconsider ear plugs. My problems are from artillery, but you could do the same damage from wind noise. Nothing is worse than laying in bed hearing ringing that never, evergoes away. Wife thinks that is why I am a little crazy.
RE: Earplugs?
Thought I'd repost this for ya'
I had a person say to me once, “Harley’s are so loud”. I then explained that a stock Harley is relatively quiet. I told them you actually need to spend quite a bit of money to buy special exhaust pipes to make them loud. Then they asked, “How can I stand listening to the loud pipes all the time”. I replied “I wear earplugs”. At this point they looked extremely confused.
With that in mind I thought it would be appropriate to craft an article on a threat that is largely restricted to those of us that ride our bikes over long distances and over the years. That threat is to the loss of your ability to hear. As you read further you will find that it has already happened to you, it will get worse, and that your helmet is an inadequate defense against it.
I know, you're thinking that I am about to rag on the loud Harley pipes.Wrong! While it's true that loud pipes will result in faster and more profound hearing damage, it's not the motorcycle sounds that are the principal cause of that damage. Indeed, even if your motorcycle makes no sound whatever, long distant, long duration motorcycle riding will damage your hearing.
It turns out that wind noise does the most damage to your hearing. It is constant, loud, and very difficult to get away from.
At highway speeds you will find that wind noise is well over 100 db[/i], even when wearing a helmet! Wearing a helmet cuts the noise by only about 3 db, and then only if it is at least a 3/4 shell and properly fitted. (An improperly fitted helmet actually INCREASES wind noise!!!) ONE HOUR of exposure to 110 db will damage your hearing. At 115 db it takes only 15 MINUTES. The damage is relentless, irreversible, and cumulative.
What can be done about this? How can we protect our hearing from wind noise?
Well, first, you can make sure that you wear a helmet, that it is at least a 3/4 shell, and that it fits properly. A properly fitted helmet has a lining that presses against the skin on your cheeks as well as across your forehead. Not only does your helmet not shift around on your head when it fits properly,but it cuts wind noise from reaching your ears.
Second, wear earplugs! There are some problems associated with doing this; in fact in some states it is illegal. (You can legally drive a motorcycle if you are deaf, but not wear earplugs.) Aside from the law, many people simply cannot stand wearing them. And, if they are improperly inserted, provide very little noise reduction benefit and will hurt in no time at all.
Earplugs are cheap. You can buy good quality earplugs by the dozens and their cost will be less than $1 a pair when you do so. There are a few places that will even create a mold and custom fit earplugs for your ears. If earplugs are not for you, then try small pieces of cotton. They are more comfortable, though not nearly as effective.
Wearing earplugs of any kind, it seems to me, is counter-productive at speeds below about 40 MPH. But if you ride the highways for any distance at allyou will CERTAINLY be better off having worn them (and, by the way, you will actually be able to hear better with them in at those speeds.)
[size=2]On a p
I had a person say to me once, “Harley’s are so loud”. I then explained that a stock Harley is relatively quiet. I told them you actually need to spend quite a bit of money to buy special exhaust pipes to make them loud. Then they asked, “How can I stand listening to the loud pipes all the time”. I replied “I wear earplugs”. At this point they looked extremely confused.
With that in mind I thought it would be appropriate to craft an article on a threat that is largely restricted to those of us that ride our bikes over long distances and over the years. That threat is to the loss of your ability to hear. As you read further you will find that it has already happened to you, it will get worse, and that your helmet is an inadequate defense against it.
I know, you're thinking that I am about to rag on the loud Harley pipes.Wrong! While it's true that loud pipes will result in faster and more profound hearing damage, it's not the motorcycle sounds that are the principal cause of that damage. Indeed, even if your motorcycle makes no sound whatever, long distant, long duration motorcycle riding will damage your hearing.
It turns out that wind noise does the most damage to your hearing. It is constant, loud, and very difficult to get away from.
At highway speeds you will find that wind noise is well over 100 db[/i], even when wearing a helmet! Wearing a helmet cuts the noise by only about 3 db, and then only if it is at least a 3/4 shell and properly fitted. (An improperly fitted helmet actually INCREASES wind noise!!!) ONE HOUR of exposure to 110 db will damage your hearing. At 115 db it takes only 15 MINUTES. The damage is relentless, irreversible, and cumulative.
What can be done about this? How can we protect our hearing from wind noise?
Well, first, you can make sure that you wear a helmet, that it is at least a 3/4 shell, and that it fits properly. A properly fitted helmet has a lining that presses against the skin on your cheeks as well as across your forehead. Not only does your helmet not shift around on your head when it fits properly,but it cuts wind noise from reaching your ears.
Second, wear earplugs! There are some problems associated with doing this; in fact in some states it is illegal. (You can legally drive a motorcycle if you are deaf, but not wear earplugs.) Aside from the law, many people simply cannot stand wearing them. And, if they are improperly inserted, provide very little noise reduction benefit and will hurt in no time at all.
Earplugs are cheap. You can buy good quality earplugs by the dozens and their cost will be less than $1 a pair when you do so. There are a few places that will even create a mold and custom fit earplugs for your ears. If earplugs are not for you, then try small pieces of cotton. They are more comfortable, though not nearly as effective.
Wearing earplugs of any kind, it seems to me, is counter-productive at speeds below about 40 MPH. But if you ride the highways for any distance at allyou will CERTAINLY be better off having worn them (and, by the way, you will actually be able to hear better with them in at those speeds.)
[size=2]On a p
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Road Master
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 953
Likes: 8
From:
RE: Earplugs?
I have a couple of sets of Hearos. I like the black ones the best because they are easier to put in and fit better. I put them on whenever I go more than a few miles.
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