http://www.dangerousdecibels.org/education/information-center/decibel-exposure-time-guidelines/
WHAT??
Rear Plugs or re ear plugs.
Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) is a unit of measurement used to determine the effectiveness of hearing protection devices to decrease sound exposure within a given working environment. Classified by their potential to reduce noise in decibels (dB), a term used to categorize the power or density of sound, hearing protectors must be tested and approved by the American National Standards (ANSI) in accordance with the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). The higher the NRR number associated with a hearing protector, the greater the potential for noise reduction.
How does NRR change decibels of exposure?
When hearing protection is worn, your level of exposure to noise is based on the NRR rating of the protection device being used. Keep in mind, however, that while the NRR is measured in decibels, the hearing protector being used does not reduce the surrounding decibel level by the exact number of decibels associated with that protector’s NRR. For example, if you are at a rock concert where the level of noise exposure is 100 dB and you are wearing earplugs with an NRR 33dB, your level of exposure would not be reduced to 67 dB. Instead, to determine the actual amount of decibel deduction applied (when decibels are measured dBA which is the most common), you take the NRR number (in dB), subtract seven, and then divide by two. Given the previous example, your noise reduction equation would look like the following: (33-7)/2 = 13. This means that if you are at a rock concert with a level of noise exposure at 100 dB and you are wearing a hearing protector with an NRR 33 dB, your new level of noise exposure is 87 dB. If you are wearing a product with an NRR of 27 it would deduct 10 decibels (27-7/2=10).
*To maximize noise reduction, hearing protectors must be worn properly.
More at link
http://www.dangerousdecibels.org/education/information-center/decibel-exposure-time-guidelines/
You might want to post this later in the day. People old enough to have suffered hearing loss might not be up yet. Personally, I would wear both plugs and muffs. It is tiring to go through life constantly having to ask people to repeat themselves.
I’ve found that military issue earplugs are by far the best.
Good argument for suppressors. I prefer muffs as they seem to be more effective. Did a lot of shooting in my youth w/o protection and, other than the ringing, my hearing tests OK
I don’t think it’s accurate. I use ear plugs every day. I’d be stone deaf if your equation were true. Shooting, however, is a tough case because of the huge (how ever transient) pressure levels. I’d wear plugs and muffs.
Wore ear plugs and ear protection where I onced worked, a good set of ear muffs provide better protection because it covers the whole ear.
Ear plugs only block out some noise, not all.
After decades of using foam plugs and muffs I got some custom molded ones made. Huge difference in noise attenuation and comfort. It’s worth every penny.
The measurement is actual tested noise reduction in a lab.
Subtracting 7 is a fudge factor assuming an imperfect placement of the hearing protection.
Dividing by two is a safety factor introduced by government to further protect workers.
If you use the protection with attention to getting a good seal, you will get close to advertised noise protection.
That being said, even imperfect protection is better than none, always cover your ears and wear eye protection at the range. If I’m in an indoor range, I use plugs and muffs, it helps me shoot better when someone next door is shooting a magnum.
After 20+ years around Navy turboprops and jets as well as decades of shooting, at 65 y/o my audiologist tells me I have virtually no hearing loss. I do have some tinnitus but not much. I attribute this to the dedicated use of the military style, yellow, cylindrical E-A-R Classics made by 3M. They can be a bit coarse and a bit difficult to insert but fwiw I think they’re the best you can buy. 30 pair on Amazon for about $7.00.
No way you are getting the full sound level of a gun as long as you are behind it. Best ear protection for shooting is:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=noise+cancelling+earmuffs
Remember the dB scale is log. A 10 dB reduction is a significant reduction in sound level.
I found a place that sells sample packs of a bunch of different types of disposable ear plugs.
http://www.earplugstore.com/unfoamtrialp.html
This is an easy way to determine which plug works best for you.