Noise levels in my workshop

[derekcohen]

I have added a Powered Tools and Machinery section to my website.


In this section I plan to add articles about the power tools and machines that I use in my workshop, with the modifications I have made over the years, along with the techniques which I hope others will find helpful in using them to dimension and create joinery.


The first article is just a baseline for the level of noise for the machines and power tools I have.


http://www.inthewoodshop.com/Powered%20Tools%20and%20Machinery/NoiseLevelsInMyWorkshop.html


Regards from Perth


Derek

[AlexS]

Thanks Derek. I'm fortunate in that, partly from my early apprentice training and partly from a dislike of loud noises, I've always worn hearing protection. Even so, I have slight hearing loss, noticeable when I compare the levels at which SWMBO and I need the television or radio volume.
I was surprised at the levels you found with the band saw and hand planing. I guess how irritating a noise is, is part of our perception of how loud it is.

[BobL]

I guess how irritating a noise is, is part of our perception of how loud it is.

It certainly is - I find the most irritating noises are the hissing noises made by Bellmouth hoods even though they're only round 72dB @50Hz
The fan on my welder is only about 70dB but I also find it very irritating,

I think it was Chris Parks who was irritated by a fan on a VFD (~50dB).

The loudest things I operate are chainsaws. The most common one I use is the 120+cc saw with the modified exhaust which generates 116dB, but I find this slightly less irritating than the 72cc saw which generates 108dB. I think it has to do with the the smaller one reving about 1000 rpm higher in the cut.

Our two dogs have slightly different frequency YAPs. The smaller one has slightly higher pitch yap that peaks at over 100 dBs while the bigger dog has a deeper pitch that is about as loud but is much easier to tolerate. The smaller dog was able to get a large (265mm) Al pulley I had on a motor on the back veranda ringing faintly with her bark.

[Chris Parks]

Yes the VFD noise irritates me no end and surprisingly others as well. Fletty thought initially it did not bother him but shortly after installing one he decided that it was a major annoyance also which was rectified by installing a temperature control sensor on the cooling fan which switches the fan on as needed. The one downside to this is I tend to leave the VFD on now as it gets forgotten about.

[Albert]

without going into detail I know my mortiser will make the loudest noise possibly at 110db+ under load
followed by the panel saw, and then the WB sander.

will do some measurement and report back my finding.

[BobL]

Anyone interested in following up on OHS noise levels might find this interesting
https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/system/files/documents/1702/managing_noise_preventing_hearing_loss_work.pdf

It goes into quite a bit of detail and including the role of things like acoustic shock, hand vibration, and ototoxic chemicals in contributing to hearing loss.

The bottom line is

The WHS Regulations set the exposure standard for noise at an LAeq,8h of 85 dB(A) and a peak noise level at 140 dB(C), which protects most but not all people.

The means workers should not suffer appreciable hearing loss if exposed to an average equivalent of <85 dB for an 8 hour period.
A certain amount >85 db noise can be tolerated. The chart below shows eg that 94dB for 1 hour is equivalent to 85dB for 8 hours.

484778
The gotcha here is "which protects most but not all people."
Seniors, kids, and people with underlying health (especially hearing) conditions may lose hearing at lower SPLs.

[Cgcc]

It makes sense. In a former life I was an army reservist. We used to run small generators at night. The smaller ones were objectively quieter but had a high pitched, tinny noise. The larger ones were a little louder but lower-pitched and steadier. Everyone hated trying to sleep anywhere near the small ones.

[Chief Tiff]

Howling gas turbines, thundering turbo diesels and booming ordinance; a healthy respect for hearing protection was beaten into me very early on in my career and I still follow it now.

Thanks Derek for naming that app; I installed it today and used it as a demo at the guild. I have a LOT of difficulty trying to get the members to use hearing protection on many of our machine tools; this particular app is really good at displaying the info in a simple and almost idiot-proof way. We have one room which contains a pair of DE’s, two thicknessers and a jointer; standing as far away as possible while the jointer was running still gave a reading in excess of 90db so I can use this now to propose the room is normally closed off and a “Hearing Protection To Be Worn Beyond This Point” policy applied.

[Aussiephil]

Interesting sets of numbers, thanks for the write up Derek.

It's been a lot of years now since I worked in the nightclub and DJ industry as a DJ but I used to run a pro sound level meter to check levels on a regular basis and especially if I was doing a function not at a regular venue, measurements would be taken inside and out. Inside in nightclubs was often above 100db for extended periods.
Interestingly noise levels can be relative to the general noise and one of the issues training DJ's was to not to crank the volume up as the crowd got louder, most could not hold it to 10db variance which for noise is a big swing.

If the ambient noise in the workshop is a very quiet 40dba then turning a machine on that measures 70 will sound loud and annoying, turn the same thing on in a shed with the ambient noise at 70 then you will hear it but it is unlikely to be considered loud but no less an issue for your hearing.

I just turned on a desktop PC in the office that i find annoying noise wise but the SPL reading is 54dBa... just my ambient in the room is closer to 41

Another good SPL meter for the iphone is SPL Meter on the App Store (https://apps.apple.com/au/app/spl-meter/id309206756)

I sold my calibrated SPL meter years ago unfortunately

[Lappa]

I use the Soundmeter App by faberacoustical.

At work we use a Calibrated Center 322 Data Logger Sound Level Meter.

[Chris Parks]

One thing I learnt from racing is using in the ears noise defenders causes issues with ear wax being compressed against the ear drum. My son found out about this the hard way after using custom made combined ear defenders/radio speakers over some time and it was fairly hard to remove.

[mannetje]

It certainly is - I find the most irritating noises are the hissing noises made by Bellmouth hoods even though they're only round 72dB @50Hz

At what distance did you measure the 72dB @50Hz from your BMH Bob?
Thanks

[BobL]

At what distance did you measure the 72dB @50Hz from your BMH Bob?
Thanks

Well I went back to my notes and discover its not 72 dB but 85 dB! :oo: which makes sense because I usually turn with ear muffs. Same with the big belt sander.
Measurement was done at operator ear distance so a bit less than 1m.

[derekcohen]

Hi Bob

Are you interested in putting together a couple of articles, one each on noise and dust, to publish on my website? These would be a great source of information, coming from someone who has more insight than anyone else I know. A lot would get to read and digest important safety material.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[BobL]

Thanks Derek. I will put it on my TODO list but at the moment can't say when I can get around to doing it. It depends on my health, while I can do physical thing I will do these but if I end up needing to sit around for some time it will give me something interesting to do.

[jpdv]

One can also take the alternative view... I'm significantly deaf at the high-tone end, courtesy of a long military career. I can't hear my wife calling me in from the shed, and tool noise doesn't bother me...:U

Joking aside, in my non-scientific but lived-experience world, it's prolonged exposure that does the damage (assuming you aren't letting off a mortar in the shed, in which case you have other problems...), and it is socially and professionally frustrating to live with. If it were me as a youngster now, I'd definitely invest in one of the bluetooth music/phone compatible headsets, and I'd try to make it a part of my shed start-up routine to put them on as I entered. The ears aren't as immediately terrifying to risk as the eyes, but why not take care of them for a relatively small cost?

(Edit: and having just had a look at Derek's link, I note that he argues against music/phone ones for distraction reasons - as always he's ahead of the curve... I'd go with that for the phone, possibly, but I actually like to have music playing while I work: in particular, I find that classical music as a sort of 'white noise' seems to encourage concentration and focus - I used it in that role for tertiary study as well... Your choice!)

[BobL]

One can also take the alternative view... I'm significantly deaf at the high-tone end, courtesy of a long military career. I can't hear my wife calling me in from the shed, and tool noise doesn't bother me...:U

Reminds me of the 80year old mens shed member using a blunt lunch box thicknesser screaming at 112 dB and not wearing any ear protection. When I waved the sound meter registering the 112 dB in front of his face he said "S'OK I've taken my hearing aid out". I tried explain to him that given he had so little hearing left he should be even more careful about hearing protection but he shrugged his shoulders and carried on.

A recent thing that has come out is the impact of hearing loss on even mild dementia sufferers. Apparent this makes them even more suspicious/paranoid/frightened leading to an even greater loss of quality of life. Given that many of us will end up this way should be a good enough reason to take care of our hearing

[Albert]

here are some of my noises, all taken 1m away from source, all under load.

Ambient: 40-45dB
Swing chisel mortiser (25mm chisel): 106-112dB
Piston Compressor in an enclosure (10hp):82-95dB
Baghouse Extractor: 62-75dB
SCM 5RCS WBS: 60-72dB
Felder AD951: 78-87dB
Festool Domino 700: 88-98dB

- - - Updated - - -

here are some of my noises, all taken 1m away from source, all under load.

Ambient: 40-45dB
Swing chisel mortiser (25mm chisel): 106-112dB
Piston Compressor in an enclosure (10hp):82-95dB
Baghouse Extractor: 62-75dB
SCM 5RCS WBS: 60-72dB
Felder AD951: 78-87dB
Festool Domino 700: 88-98dB