Ear protection

Ear protection and hearing loss is something that I never took serious until recent years. This is also an area where I find that young car mechanics also ignore protecting themselves.

I am guilty as of this as well. After almost 25 years of being an automotive mechanic, my hearing has been permanently damaged.

The first telltale sign was that my family kept telling me to turn the TV down. After a recent hearing loss, diagnostic test I was told that my hearing is at about 50%.

And once this damage has occurred it is permanent. This all could have been avoided by wearing noise canceling protection. The eardrum will not repair itself like a cut on your finger.

Protection against hearing damage

Exposure to very loud noise levels for extended periods of time can lead to hearing loss. The air wrenches and impact guns, and even the sound of a running engine under load in an enclosed area will generate harmful levels of noise.

Simple earplugs or headset type earphone ear protectors should be worn in environments that are constantly noisy. Ear protection and hearing loss should be respected even if you are just a weekend car mechanic.

One of the most damaging noises can be from striking objects with a hammer. The intensity and the frequency level of the noise is a leading cause of hearing loss.

Also the short duration of the sound created may leave the mechanic UN aware that he is actually doing damage to his ears.

You should also where ear protection when you are using an air powered hammer. An air hammer working on a metal object can produce extremely destructive levels of damaging noise.

Save your ears for your older years

I see them wearing their safety glasses and their protective gloves, along with their metal toe shoes, But with no earplugs.

I invited some of the young guys over to my house to speak with my family about how my hearing loss has affected our every day lives.

I can no longer watch TV without disturbing the neighborhood. I also can't hear the phone ring unless it is right in front of me or in the same room. And movies where people talk softly forget about it.

At least I was able to bring the test results home and show her that it was that I really had a hearing loss problem and that I was not just ignoring her.

But you can avoid this problem by wearing protective gear. It truly is the most underused, personal protection device in the auto repair field.


Give this ear protection and hearing loss page a come back and get some ear plugs!

Automobile repair safety information

This is just one short page about the practice of being safe when performing your own auto repairs. This next link takes you from ear protection to more auto repair saftey tips



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