I know that is a silly title. As many of us have worked with louder machines we likely have hearing protection laying around. I am wondering if the lovely people at Glowforge (@dan) have done any studies to determine the db that the Glowforge units are throwing off and what the “Official” recommendations are regarding hearing protection.
My Forge is a family affair and I want to make sure everyone is properly protected. I want to instill in my kids that work produces results and that we if employ our mental muscle we can build/make most anything. And honestly it isn’t always the end result, but what we learn along the route of creating that has the most value.
with my PRU I would have said it was loud enough to worry about children with long term exposure. With my forever forge, it’s way quieter, so while I wouldn’t stick my head into it (well honestly for multiple reasons) it’s not so loud in the room that I would worry.
Just checked my Basic in the middle of a 2-hour engraving run: 73.1 dB(A) at ~1m.
That being said, I use hearing protection during long jobs. My shop is ~3 x 4 m with hard walls and ceiling, so the echoing drone of the GF seems pretty loud. By the same token, I also wear hearing protection when vacuuming the house, working with most power tools, etc.
For what it’s worth, OSHA hearing protection (while not completely straight-forward) is based on 85dB being the action level. Exposure limits use time weighted averages, but they aren’t applicable here because the Glowforge falls well below the threshold.
Just did a quick cutting job…75 to 80 dB up to a foot away. 73 and lower a meter away.
The higher values came up when the cutting head came closest to the front.
