Foam Earplugs; Care and feeding?

Hello, gang. Once again my sensibilities (or lack thereof) have me wondering if I am the only one who re-uses foam earplugs. Technically, they are supposed to be used for one day only and then discarded. It seems to me the issue was bacteria that resides in the foam and multiplies to the point of being a danger to the ear canal and associated pieces. :scared:

I add some anti-bacterial hand soap (couple of squirts from the hand-pump style) to about a cup of hot tap water, put the plugs in (2 or 3 pairs) and submerge them with a convenient weighted object for about 10 to 15 minutes. Then I rinse them in hot tap water and gently wipe the surface while doing so. At that point, I lay them on a paper towel and let them air dry for about 3 days. I tried squeezing them dry once; bad idea. They stay permanently squeezed when they are wet.

Does anybody else do this, or know of a reason not to? I don't have a problem buying new ones; I just hate using something once and throwing it away.

 

Disposable Ear Plugs

Possible, but not a real good idea.

If you really NEED to do this, you can buy EAR brand by the box, maybe a 150 pair at a real reasonable price and carry a half dozen on trips. Reuse maybe once or twice and trash.

Personally, custom made silicone ones are easier, fit better, and are designed to clean and reuse.

But what do I know, I'm just a safety professional.

Larry

 

I hate to admit it, but I have never really thought about it. I wear them at work often, and always when I ride. Needless to say, they have gotten quite ugly before I tossed them. I am probably lucky that my ears haven't fallen off! A few times I have forgotten a pair in my pocket when my jeans went through the wash, they came out like new. I think I'll pick up a box this spring.

 

Care and feeding? Are you eating them?! get something you can wash from the shooting section of your local Walmart, the big box-o-foam, or use the stock exhaust and stay out of VTEC so the bike is shhhhhh quiet

 

I wear them until my wife goes "ewwwww", then I throw that one out and start a new one! ;-)

 

This is exactly why I was asking. Why is it a bad idea? Leftover bacteria, or ???

Or having to endure all of the abuse that I knew would be heaped upon me? :smash: :smile: :yield:

 

You're right, Stuka, I do. And for the record, I usually only use condoms once.

But you know, as long as I'm going to be washing the earplugs...

 

Yeah, I know what you mean. I am glad that you mentioned it in the chat room. I found a semi-reasonable size I could live with.

When I first read about Bill Gelbke and the Road Dog (not sure if that's one word or two), several things impressed themselves upon me:

1. That was one determined S.O.B.
2. Winters in Wisconsin must be longer than I thought
3. I wonder if he was just angry at his Chevy II

Ya' gotta love it!

 

I use the foam ear plugs every time I ride. I usually wear them for three or four days and get a new pair, we have them at work so its easy to grab a pair on the way out. The easiest way to wash them is leave them in a pocket when you wash your jeans. They'll go through the washer and dryer just fine. We used the EAR brand when I was flying and I always forgot to grab them out of my flight suite and they came out squeaky clean.

Action

 

Thanks for all the input, gang. For what it is worth, I just went to the E.A.R. website and found a PDF file that says they can be washed, but to contact an E.A.R. specialist for details. At least they didn't say to use a "mild detergent". That would have done me in...

 

I just have a dispenser in my garage
http://www.e-a-r.com/e-a-r.com/dispenser_main.cfm

once you buy the dispenser the refills hold 1,000 plugs, and work out to mere pennies per plug

plus since I am already deaf in one ear, they last me twice as long as all you two ear hearing folks! :tongue:

 

I reuse the purple 33 noise plugs that I buy at Wal Mart. I use them until they get enough body oil that the sound reduction is reduced. That is about a month. So far, I have not had any ear infection problems.

ExTex
1983 Nighthawk 650, 1983 Shadow 500, 2006 Ninja 500

 

Thanks, Spike. Rub some salt in my wounds... :smile:

 

Having worked on construction sites for a long time, I accumulated a supply of various types. I prefer the cylindrical shaped ones, but that's just me. Everyone has different ear canal shapes.

I might use them several times, until they start to look a bit funky, then toss them. Carry spares in all my suits and in the tankbags.

Around town, at city speeds (<45mph), I don't use them. If I anticipate reaching highway speeds, I put them in.

 

Sorry, I think I missed something, what wound???