Care

Common mistakes when using custom earplugs

Fons van den Oord28 July 2025Updated 23 October 20266 min read

Audibling custom earplugs for sensory overload

Custom earplugs only protect you well if you use them correctly. The fit and the filter do most of the work, but small habits decide whether you actually get that protection. According to the Agroarbo catalogue, a Dutch occupational health and safety guide for agriculture, attenuation drops sharply if hearing protection is inserted incorrectly or does not fit properly. Below you can read about eight common mistakes and how to avoid them. You can read more about cleaning in our article on cleaning custom earplugs.

Don't have custom earplugs yet? A partner hearing care professional takes the impressions of your ears. The ear impressions are included in the price and you pay at the hearing centre.

1. You do not insert the custom earplug correctly

If a custom earplug is only halfway in or at an angle, sound leaks past the edge. Starkey, a manufacturer of custom earplugs with interchangeable filters, writes in its manual that a custom earplug must sit fully and correctly in the ear canal to reach the stated attenuation. How to insert it in four steps and check that it is in place is explained in how to insert and remove custom earplugs correctly.

2. You mix up left and right

Your left and right custom earplugs each have their own shape. In the wrong ear, an earplug is uncomfortable and does not seal well. A handy convention from the world of hearing aids is red for right and blue for left. If you choose the same colour for both ears, always put them in the case the same way. You can read more tips in which colour earplug goes in which ear?

3. You use the wrong filter, or the filter is not fitted properly

The filter determines how much sound gets through. Audibling works with interchangeable membrane filters in four series. DR is for general use, DM for music and communication and DI for industry, production and construction. DIM is the level-dependent filter for impulse noise from shooting, hunting and fireworks. If you wear a light DR filter on a building site, you get too little attenuation. That calls for a DI filter, which comes as standard with 26 dB SNR in the earplugs for construction. If you choose the strongest filter in the office, you understand colleagues less well and take your earplugs out sooner. So more attenuation is not always better. Which filter suits which situation is explained in how the DR, DM, DI and DIM filters work.

Also check the filter itself. In the same manual, Starkey advises checking before insertion that the filter sits properly and fully in the filter opening. If you swap the filter yourself, press the new filter in straight and all the way. If you are not sure whether it is fitted properly, contact us.

4. You do not wear them during short bursts of noise

Quickly cutting through a panel without protection, or standing next to a running machine for a few minutes. It feels harmless, but those moments count. BeSWIC, the Belgian knowledge centre for well-being at work, calculates that an earplug worn only half the time lowers the average noise level by just 3 dB. That applies no matter how much the earplug itself reduces sound. With bangs it matters even more, because a single loud bang can already cause damage. Read more in hearing protection against impulse noise from shooting, hunting and fireworks. So put your custom earplugs in before the noise starts and keep them in until it is quiet again.

5. You share them with someone else

A custom earplug only fits the ear it was made from. In someone else's ear, it does not seal properly and so does not protect as intended. It is also a matter of hygiene. The Dutch Working Conditions Decree (Arbobesluit) says that personal protective equipment is in principle intended for use by one person. So do not lend your custom earplugs to anyone, not even briefly at a festival. If someone else needs protection, single-use foam earplugs are a better emergency solution.

6. You carry on too long with a worn earplug or a poor fit

Ears change and materials age. Starkey mentions a significant change in body weight, children's growth and wear and tear, among other things, as reasons why a custom earplug fits less well over time. According to the same manual, small cracks and splits reduce the protection. So look out for these signs.

The custom earplug feels loose or moves when you talk or chew.
You clearly hear more noise than before, even though the filter is clean.
You get pressure points or irritation in your ear.
You see cracks or damage in the material.

A fit check shows whether your custom earplugs still seal properly. The Agroarbo catalogue advises having custom earplugs checked by the supplier every year. How long custom earplugs last and when to have new ear impressions taken is explained in how long do custom earplugs last? If you get pressure points, read what to do when custom earplugs hurt. Do you have pain or an infection in your ear? Then stop wearing them and contact your GP (huisarts).

7. You do not have them with you

The best hearing protection is the protection you have in your ears at that moment. Custom earplugs on your bedside table do not help when a drill starts unexpectedly or a concert comes up at short notice. So give them a fixed place, for example in your work bag, your coat pocket or the glove compartment of your car. Do not leave them on the dashboard in the sun, because heat is bad for the material and the filters. Your custom earplugs come with a cord, a clip and a storage case. With the cord, they hang around your neck during your break instead of loose in your pocket.

8. You clean them with alcohol or heat

Cleaning is good, but not with every product. In the manual for its custom earplugs, Starkey writes that you should not clean the filters with harsh chemicals or alcohol, and that you should never use solvents. According to the same manual, heat and moisture can also affect how they work. Hans Anders, a Dutch hearing aid retailer, also advises against using alcohol, solvents or ordinary cleaning products on hearing aid earmoulds. So do not put your custom earplugs in boiling water, do not put them in the dishwasher and do not dry them on the radiator. Only use products intended for custom earplugs. How to clean them daily and weekly is explained in cleaning and caring for custom earplugs.

Need help with the fit or the filter?

Do your custom earplugs not fit properly, or is it time for a new impression? As a personal customer, you go to a partner hearing centre through Find a hearing centre. For companies with 10 or more employees, we take the ear impressions on site. Smaller teams go to a partner hearing centre. See Audibling Business.