Ear plugs

[Karma13]

For shelter sleepers, what kind of ear plugs do you use? Is there a particular brand or type of plug that stays in and actually blocks noise?

I've tried the pliable/moldable blue ones, and I'm not a fan. Just figured I'd toss it out there, since I'm looking for other potential options.

Thanks for any advice or recommendations!

[88BlueGT]

You can use the disposable ones which seem to work okay for me... OR you can get yourself a pair of the earplugs that people use at nascar races, hardened earplugs that hang from a string, this will certainly help with not losing them.

[cabbagehead]

silicone_____

[Hosaphone]

Regular foam ear plugs... Any brand should do. I find the foam ones to be the most comfortable for sleeping.

If they aren't working for you, it's likely that you aren't putting them in correctly. There is a bit of an art to it - you need to roll them up and then put them in pretty deep, and then it will take like 30 seconds for them to expand and block out noise.

When they are in properly, you should get an "occlusion effect". Know how it sounds weird when you talk with your fingers in your ears? That's how it should sound when you have earplugs in properly.

[Hosaphone]

This video might help: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPNPZ...eature=related

[rhjanes]

++1 on the silicone ones.

[WingedMonkey]

Regular foam ear plugs..

If they aren't working for you, it's likely that you aren't putting them in correctly. There is a bit of an art to it - you need to roll them up.

Got to twist them and pull up on your ear while putting them in.

[cmich]

I find that the ear plugs with the little silicone post in the center work the best. Here

[RCBear]

I like earbuds attached to my iPod and listening to soundscapes. I can sleep through anything with those.

[Tipi Walter]

I'm a sort of earplug expert as I lived in them for years when camping in questionable areas, stealth camping, and trying to get a good night's sleep with active rodents scurrying about. Here's the best I found---



They get stiff in the cold but can be warmed in your hands if rolled repeatedly and crushed to a point which needs to be small in order to fit into the ear canal. When they warm up they fill out and form a dang good seal. In real cold weather they can be housed in the mouth for quick warming and quick insertion.

[rusty bumper]

I use those really cheap orange foam ones that are connected on a blue plastic "string". I cut off the string just so I don't get tangled up in it while sleeping. To get them in my ears properly, I twist and press them to make them as thin as possible, then quickly push them into my ears. As already said, it takes several seconds for them to expand and cut off the outside noise. Sometimes it helps to cover them with spit before insertion! I only used them the few times I stayed in shelters (mandatory due to others snoring), during thunderstorms, or during heavy rains when the beating of the rain on my tent was so loud it was impossible for me to sleep.

[leaftye]

One surprise may be that you find ear plugs actually cause you to notice chatting more than before. I certainly put them in correctly. If they went in much further, I wouldn't be able to pull them out. What I've found over the years is that ear plugs do an exceptional job of reducing wind and road noise, but that makes high frequency sounds like ticking machinery and voices more noticeable. In very noisy environments, ear plugs allow me to talk more easily than without ear plugs because of this effect. Even in quieter environments, all I might notice is voices, and because that's all I hear, it really gets my attention. If you find this to be the case, then you might want to listen to music with sealed ear plug style head phones, but do make sure your music player has a timer to turn off by itself.

Even if ear plugs might not be the solution you're looking for, it's still worth trying though because they cost very little, it's very easy to get a few free pairs, and they weigh almost nothing,.

The way I put ear plugs in is to roll them between my fingers, and very quickly opening my jaw, pulling down the front of my ear canal and insert the ear plug by pushing and spinning. There's only a couple seconds to get it in before the foam expands enough to have to start over.

Resist cleaning the ear plugs. I'm not sure why, but washing or even lightly wiping down ear plugs greatly reduces the time that they'll stay compressed, which makes it impossible to get them inserted quickly enough. Ear plugs can a week, or maybe much more. If you want to keep the ear plugs clean for a longer period of time, then clean your ears just before inserting the ear plugs. The ear plugs I use for riding a motorcycle typically last a week before I replace them out of concern that they might not be blocking as much sound anymore.

[RichardD]

For me Hearos brand were by far the best, they block out almost everything, they do become less effective after about a week of use. Walgreens stock them, at least in my area.
Roll them tight insert deep into ear and wait a minute or two for them to expand and quieten down

[Cadenza]

I like the "Air Soft" brand, baffled blue silicon attached to each other with string.
The string makes it easy to retrieve them when they fall inside my empty skull.

[malowitz]

A lot of good advice here. I see people with the foam plugs sticking out their ear all the time. It does no good. I place them such that if you were looking at me head on, you wouldn't see them. It should almost feel like you put it in too far and you might not get it out (but you will). There are some high-tech ones you can get too, but I would suggest the simple foam ones. You can review the noise ratings.

This is the brand I used on my thru - because its what we had in stock at work that was comfortable. I find ones that are really stiff to be uncomfortable and I just want to remove them. http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/HOW...174?Pid=search (obviously, you can find a smaller size package).

A recommendation: get a small ziplock style bag to keep them in. I used a pill bag - maybe 2x2 inches. You don't want to just throw them in a pocket because they'll pick up sand, dirt, etc.

[leaftye]

It should be noted that ear plugs come in different thicknesses for different sizes of ear canals.

[Karma13]

Update: I got a box of the Flents that Tipi Walter recommended... and they're awesome! They're staying in, they're comfortable, and they're even blocking out all the chainsaws that are out and about breaking down the hurricane deadfall.

I'm sold.

Thanks for all the input and great information, folks!

[bubonicplay]

Check out Lawsons website, I bought some earplugs and they were like 50 cents.

[Northern Lights]

I don't know what brand I have, but I don't hear a thing. I went to a medical supply store and asked them for the best they had. They said I wouldn't hear a chainsaw with the ones I bought.

Sure enough this year in the Smokies, apparently I was sleeping next to someone who kept everyone else awake and I slept like a baby. In the morning one of the guys asked me if the snorer kept me awake and I said no. He said we were hoping you would poke him to get him to stop. I tuck the ear plugs in the pocket of my sleeping bag so I don't lose them and they are always where I need them.