You don't need to wear hearing protection when using a snow blower, but you should, as they can be loud. For example, gas snow blowers can reach up to 85 decibels. Eight hours of exposure to that decibel level is considered safe. However, at 100 decibels, the safe exposure time drops to 15 minutes. Although snow on the ground isn't permanent, hearing loss is. If you're looking for hearing protection that you can use year-round, check out our best earplugs for concerts. You can rock them under your hat when you're outside using your brand new snow blower, and rock out with them when seeing your favorite band in town.