Hearing Tools and Lookups

Nine lookups against published tables: what an audiogram threshold is called on both scales, what a decibel level sounds like and how long it is safe for, which battery size a device takes and how long it lasts, which dome and receiver suit a fitting, how often a wax guard needs changing, and what a device costs to run.

There are nine of these rather than sixteen, on purpose. Hearing is a reference subject rather than a calculating one: the questions people actually ask are what a decibel level means and how to read an audiogram, not what to compute. Every tool below is a lookup against a table that already exists on this site, and each one shows whether its answer comes from a published standard or from a trade convention, because those are not the same kind of fact.

Audiogram

• Convention What category does this threshold fall in Enter the thresholds from an audiogram you already have at 500, 1000 and 2000 hertz to see the pure tone average and what both the clinical and WHO scales call it.

Noise

• Published What does this decibel level sound like Enter a level in decibels A-weighted to see the everyday sounds that sit at it and whether it is above the level where the NIOSH exposure limit begins.
• Published How long is this noise level safe for The permissible exposure time at any level under the NIOSH recommended limit and the separate, more permissive OSHA enforceable limit.

Batteries

• Published Which hearing aid battery size do I need Identify a hearing aid battery from its tab colour or from the style of device, with the IEC designation and dimensions for each of the four sizes.
• Convention How long will a hearing aid battery last Capacity divided by current draw, for each of the four battery sizes at four rates of use. Arithmetic from a trade capacity range, not a manufacturer specification.

Fit

• Convention Which dome style and receiver power Which dome style suits a hearing pattern, and which receiver power range a threshold typically falls in. A trade convention, not a fitting.

Care

• Convention How often should a wax guard be changed How often a wax guard needs changing at each level of earwax production, and roughly how many that is per year for a pair of devices.

Cost

• Convention What does a hearing aid cost to run each year The yearly cost of batteries, domes and wax guards for a pair of hearing aids, worked from real catalog prices and the published replacement intervals.
• Convention Comparing over the counter and prescription cost Put an over the counter price and a prescription quote side by side over a realistic service life, including the consumables and what each route actually includes.