DIY Sweat Bands for Sound Protection Ear Muffs

Sound protection while you are using power tools is important.  The whine of a power saw or the roar of a chipper-shredder can permanently damage your hearing, and almost always leaves you with a headache.

I wear earmuffs.  But the foam ear pads produce sweaty ears!  I hate sweaty ears!  So I made these washable, cheap sweat-soakers out of cotton socks. They work well on my wireless headphones too, and don't block the movie sound. They lower the efficiency of noise cancelling headphones a bit, but it's still better than sweaty ears.

MATERIALS:
White cotton crew sock or socks, men's multi-size or large. Look for the highest cotton content as you can find in cheap socks.

Socks and Scissors

Slide the top of the sock over the foam pad to decide how wide the bands should be.

Testing the size

Cut the socks crosswise into rings. I made two rings from the cuff and two from the foot. Discard the heel and toe sections.

4 strips from each sock

To use the sweat band, pull it over the foam padding and tuck it into the inside of the earmuff.

Band over the foam earpiece

I keep dry bands in my pocket and replace them when I take a break from a noisy project.  They are washed with my t-shirts and other work clothing.

NOTE: The cuffs of crew socks are the last part to wear out. If the heels have holes, you can salvage the cuffs as sweat soakers.