Custom Hearing Protection in Marietta, GA
Noise-induced hearing loss is the only kind that is completely preventable, and it is permanent once it happens. This is the cheapest appointment in hearing care and the one we wish more people made twenty years earlier.
IN SHORT
We take an impression of your ear in the office and have custom protection made from it. We fit plugs for machinery and yard work, musician’s filters that reduce volume without ruining the sound, electronic protection for shooting and hunting, watertight swim molds, motorcycling plugs and sleep plugs. The impression takes minutes and the finished protection comes back in one to two weeks.
The one kind of hearing loss you can prevent
Age-related hearing loss arrives whether you like it or not. Noise damage is different: it is entirely avoidable, and once the hair cells in the inner ear are gone they do not grow back. There is no treatment that restores them. Protection is the whole of the medicine.
We fit a lot of hearing aids in this county to people who spent working lives around machinery, and to weekend shooters who never wore anything. Almost all of them say the same thing, which is that nobody told them, or that somebody did and they did not listen. It is a difficult conversation to have thirty years late.
How long before it does damage
The safe limit is about 85 decibels for eight hours, and every three decibels above that halves the time. That maths surprises people, because the numbers sound small and the times get very short very quickly.
| Sound | Typical level | Safe unprotected time | What we would fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal conversation | About 60 dB | No limit | No protection needed |
| Lawn mower, hair dryer | About 90 dB | Around 2 hours | Foam or custom plugs |
| Motorcycle at speed | 95 to 100 dB | 15 to 60 minutes | Custom plugs, or a helmet-friendly filter |
| Leaf blower, power tools | About 100 dB | Around 15 minutes | Custom plugs |
| Rock concert, nightclub | 105 to 110 dB | Under 5 minutes | Musician’s filters, so you can still hear the music |
| Chainsaw | About 110 dB | Under 2 minutes | Custom plugs, ideally with earmuffs over them |
| Gunshot | 140 to 175 dB peak | A single round can do it | Electronic protection such as SoundGear |
Two signs you have had too much
Ringing in your ears afterwards, or a sense that everything sounds muffled or underwater. Both usually recover within a day, and both mean damage occurred. Recovering is not the same as being unharmed, and the effect accumulates over a lifetime of Saturdays.
What we fit
All of these start with the same five minute ear impression. What differs is the filter or electronics that goes into the finished mold.
Shooting and hunting
Electronic protection such as SoundGear. It amplifies quiet sounds so you can still hear a conversation or an animal moving, then clamps down on the gunshot. Available custom molded or instant fit. More on shooting and hunting protection →
Musician's filters
Ordinary plugs muffle music because they cut the high frequencies hardest. Musician’s filters reduce the volume roughly evenly across pitches, so it sounds like the same music, quieter. Fitted for players, engineers, DJs and audiences. More on musician’s earplugs →
Industrial and yard work
For machinery, power tools, chainsaws and mowers. Custom molded so they seal properly and stay comfortable for a whole shift, which is the reason people actually keep them in. More on industrial protection →
Swim molds
Watertight, floatable, and genuinely worth it if you swim regularly or have a history of ear infections. Also the right answer for anyone with a perforation or grommets. More on custom swim molds →
Motorcycling
Wind noise at highway speed sits around 95 to 100 decibels, which is enough to cause damage on a long ride. Filtered plugs cut the wind roar while leaving engine note and sirens audible. More on motorcycle earplugs →
Sleep plugs
Soft custom molds shaped to be lain on. For shift workers, light sleepers and anyone sharing a room with a snorer. More on sleep earplugs →
Why custom, when foam plugs cost a dollar
An honest answer: for occasional use, correctly inserted foam plugs work. They are cheap and they are far better than nothing. Buy a box and keep them in the truck.
Custom protection earns its cost in three specific situations.
- When you need to wear it for hours. Foam plugs get uncomfortable, so people take them out halfway through, and protection you remove is not protection.
- When you need to hear something. Foam blocks everything indiscriminately. Musician's filters and electronic protection let speech, engine note and sirens through while cutting the danger.
- When the seal has to be reliable. Foam attenuates well in a laboratory and much less well in a real ear that was in a hurry. A molded plug seals the same way every time.
How the impression works
Quicker and less unpleasant than most people expect. Appointment or book a time.
- We check your ear canal first with a video otoscope, because we cannot take an impression past wax or an infection.
- A small foam dam goes in to protect the eardrum, then a soft silicone material is syringed in. It sets in about five minutes.
- It comes out in one piece. It feels odd rather than painful, and there is nothing to recover from.
- We send the impressions to the laboratory and the finished protection comes back in one to two weeks.
- You come in to collect them and we check the fit and the seal before you leave.
Common questions
How much do custom ear plugs cost?
It depends on the type. Basic custom molds are the least expensive, musician’s filters and swim molds sit in the middle, and electronic shooting protection is the most. We quote before taking the impression, so there is no surprise.
How long do they take to make?
One to two weeks from the impression. The impression itself takes about five minutes.
Do I need an appointment?
Call ahead and we will often take the impression at the same visit. Calling 770-590-8662 first means we can confirm your canal is clear and that we have the material ready.
Will musician's plugs ruin the sound?
That is the whole point of them. Standard plugs cut high frequencies hardest, which is why music sounds muddy through them. Musician’s filters attenuate fairly evenly, so the balance is preserved and it simply sounds quieter.
Can I hear anything with shooting protection in?
With electronic protection, more than you can without it. It amplifies quiet sound and suppresses the impulse of the shot, so conversation on the range is easier, not harder.
How long do custom plugs last?
Several years with reasonable care. Ears change shape slowly over time, so if the seal starts to feel loose, come in and we will check whether a re-impression is due.
I already have hearing loss. Is protection still worth it?
Very much so. Protecting what remains is the single most useful thing you can control, and it applies whether or not you wear hearing aids. We fit protection for plenty of patients who already wear devices.
It is never too early to start protecting your hearing
Five minutes for an impression now, against a permanent loss that no device fully corrects later. Bring your children and grandchildren too.