Driving a Car in Heavy Rain/Storm — Decibels?

[MilesD]

Hi,

Can anyone knowledgeable on decibels etc. give their opinion. I am aware that I will not have any certainty about damage. I am still worried.

I had to drive for about 45 minutes in heavy rain and I am in panic. The rain was not the same intensity all the time and there was no hail, so no damage on the car, but heavy rain and a lot of it. I was driving 30-50 mph. My car without the rain at this speed is 60-70 dB, I measured it without rain with several apps and several websites state these decibels. During the storm ride I was still able to hear the person sitting next to me in the car. Radio with weather notifications was on and could be heard with no problem. I don't assume the radio was overly loud.

Unfortunately I had no hearing protection with me.

How much was I exposed to during the ride in heavy rain/storm in your opinion?

Could this have exceeded 85-90 dB? Is there high risk of permanent damage?

Thank you!

 

[Julien87]

85-90 if very heavy rain maybe yes, but certainly not more.
If it was only 45 min it was within the permissible exposure limits anyway.

 

[MilesD]

Thank you so much!

I have been reading different threads and if I understand correctly 85-90 db would equal a moderate to noisy restaurant. And there would not be a high likelihood for permanent damage even with compromised ears even for one hour or more. Yes?

I am somehow fixated on the type of noise the rain made. It was not ambient sound but it sounded like millions of bomb explosions but I am not sure whether or not that is sth. to be worried about or if it is only my perception.

 

[Julien87]

Yes it can be noisy, but not enough to damage your ears in 45 minutes - whether you're a T sufferer or not - in my opinion. I will take my dBmeter next time there is heavy rain just to check, but I am pretty sure it can't be over 90 dB. Plus it's not the type of noise that is especially dangerous (not an impulse-type noise, not a high pitch noise).

 

[Rubenslash]

It will not damage your ears, probably about 80-85 db max. I am happy if it rains while being in the car, it's a good mask for my tinnitus.

 

[MilesD]

Thank you both!

I will definitely get a dbmeter and hope to not become too obsessed, although I seem to start to obsess a bit.

 

[kelpiemsp]

I actually did this a few months ago. A few peaks of 88 dB but an average of 82 dB. Car is a 2016 Mazda CX 5.

 

[Kriszti]

Do you have any idea how loud a hail storm (around 3-4 cm hailstones) can be while traveling in a car?

 

[PeteJ]

I actually did this a few months ago. A few peaks of 88 dB but an average of 82 dB. Car is a 2016 Mazda CX 5.

I think most modern cars are 75 dB (really low, car probably has expensive, sophisticated soundproofing - mostly expensive luxury cars) to 85 dB.

I used to be concerned with the interior noise but not so much now. I don't think it can harm hearing or contribute to serious spikes. Might get a spike if you drove all day, across country, without a break but seems relatively harmless. The sound is not sudden and comes from the car. It gets into the cabin but in a jolting manner.

I wouldn't listen to the car stereo on a loud setting though. I guess rain or hail will contribute to more noise but again, short periods of exposure should be okay. I doubt there's any tinnitus research on this.

It shouldn't damage hearing or cause permanent spikes. At worst, maybe temporary spikes if you are really sensitive (reactive tinnitus). Like someone said, the frequency of sound probably makes a difference.

 

[Juan]

Do you have any idea how loud a hail storm (around 3-4 cm hailstones) can be while traveling in a car?

I have driven under those conditions. It's very loud. Hailstones clanking on the car... pretty bad. Use hearing protection.

 

[Deamon22]

Do you have any idea how loud a hail storm (around 3-4 cm hailstones) can be while traveling in a car?

Hailstorm in the car is pretty loud (no idea of the dB, but I imagine high 80s?). I would wear foam earplugs in that situation. I also wear them for very strong rain.

 

[Kriszti]

I have driven under those conditions. It's very loud. Hailstones clanking on the car... pretty bad. Use hearing protection.

Thank you, guys.

It was actually just a chance of a hailstorm, weather forecast issued a warning of heavy rain and hail storms, I panicked and ended up not going anywhere... Of course, it was a false alarm and the sun is shining now.

 

[Kriszti]

I'm really glad @dan that I made you smile, but not quite sure what was funny.

I'm perfectly aware that my baseline tinnitus is nothing compared to yours currently, but it's reactive, spikes easily, so I do have severe anxiety and maybe even phonophobia about it. I feel deep respect for everyone who copes much better than me with more severe symptoms, but I guess, many of us here know the fear and urge to avoid making it worse.

Hailstorm arrived later and I'm relieved that I was inside the house.

 

[whatdidyousay]

Are these quoted NIOSH charts for a single exposure? For example, it says 100 decibels for 15 minutes. If you went, say half an hour at 100 dB, and then let your ears rest for a few days, would that still be a good chance for permanent hearing loss? I thought these charts were more for workers who are continuously exposed to louder noises and I thought I recalled even the more loose OSHA allowances as working for "around 90% of people." I'm confused.

I still try to obey those NIOSH limits if possible but it's a noisy world and sometimes there will be instances where I may not be in situation where I can immediately use earplugs or run away from the noise, etc. I've even had bad luck with my earplugs lately and a pair of ER-15s I recently bought off of Amazon are already lost because the flimsy plastic carrying container broke off my keychain and I didn't notice when it happened.

 

[Tau]

Are these quoted NIOSH charts for a single exposure? For example, it says 100 decibels for 15 minutes. If you went, say half an hour at 100 dB, and then let your ears rest for a few days, would that still be a good chance for permanent hearing loss? I thought these charts were more for workers who are continuously exposed to louder noises and I thought I recalled even the more loose OSHA allowances as working for "around 90% of people." I'm confused.

I still try to obey those NIOSH limits if possible but it's a noisy world and sometimes there will be instances where I may not be in situation where I can immediately use earplugs or run away from the noise, etc. I've even had bad luck with my earplugs lately and a pair of ER-15s I recently bought off of Amazon are already lost because the flimsy plastic carrying container broke off my keychain and I didn't notice when it happened.

Well, I stayed under their limit when I suffered my trauma and it still left me with permanent synaptopathy. It was under 15-ish seconds of 110 dB sound. It depends on the individual.