Breakers and cut-off saws: when one set of plugs isn't enough

A demo laborer runs a 90-pound breaker on a slab all morning. Next to him, another worker is cutting the slab into pieces with a gas cut-off saw. Both tools are well over 100 decibels. The laborer has foam plugs that he rolled in a hurry at 7 a.m. and that have worked loose. By lunch his ears are ringing and voices sound muffled. He figures it'll clear up by morning. The ringing goes away, but a little of his hearing doesn't come back. After enough of those days, it stops coming back at all.

OSHA's noise rule has a table. You can be around 90 decibels for 8 hours. At 100 it drops to 2 hours, at 105 it is 1 hour, and at 115 it is 15 minutes or less. Breakers and cut-off saws can land in the top of that table. When noise is over the limit, the company has to try controls first, like quieter tools, distance, or changing who runs the tool and for how long. When that still isn't enough, hearing protection has to be provided and worn. Earplugs have to be fitted to each person by someone who knows how. Above the table, the company has to run a hearing conservation program. Our hearing protection talk covers fitting plugs and muffs. This talk is about the loudest tools.

Here is how we handle the loud work. Trade off on the breaker and the saw so no one runs it all day. Keep people who aren't on the tool farther away, because noise drops off with distance. Use the quieter tool when there's a choice, like an electric breaker or a wall saw. Fit your plugs right, all the way in, and check them after breaks. For long stretches on a breaker or saw, wear muffs over your plugs. Doubling up adds some protection, about 5 decibels more than the better one alone, not the two ratings added together. If you have to shout to someone an arm's length away, the noise is high enough to act on.