Q&A: Washing Foam Earplugs - Good or Bad Idea?

Q&A Time: Questions from the HearForever Community...

Question: We have foam earplugs which we wash and reuse. Does washing them have any effect on their published attenuation? Will washing them diminish their strength?

Answer: Washing of foam earplugs does not have a major effect on strength or attenuation, but... foam earplugs do retain moisture. You can never "squeeze" it all out. And that has two negative after-effects:

• First, the moisture causes the foam to swell in size a bit (affecting fit and expansion time).
• Second, warm moisture becomes an easy target for bacteria.

For these two reasons, some manufacturers discourage end-users from washing and reusing their foam earplugs.

 

Do you have a question of your own? We'd love to hear from you.  Email us and we'll do our best to help.