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Hi All, Can anyone recommend a noise monitoring device to give good indicative occupational noise levels. I note there are a lot available on Amazon in the £30-£50 price range. We do annual third party noise monitoring but it'd be good to have something we can use internally without breaking the bank. Any recommendations greatly received. Peter
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I prefer to hire one so that I don't have the trouble of getting it calibrated.
I get them from here: https://www.castlegroup.co.uk/
They sell as well as hire.
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 1 user thanked Kate for this useful post.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Hi Peter What do you actually want to do with this meter? If you want to measure individual exposure to compare against the exposure limit values and action levels set ou out in the Control of Noise at Work Regs 2005, then a cheap meter is unlikely to do what you need as it measures in simple decibels without A weighting across the range of frequencies so as to mimic the impact on human health.
....and you might want detailed octave band analysis to give you indications as to what types of noise sources contribute to the exposure and thenc how best to mitigate one or more of these sources.
So, to do all that you probably need an intergrating sound pressure level meter which costs a lot more than £50! In contrast if you only want some ballpark numbers then a very simple meter might give you a hint as to whether you might have a problem that needs more sophisticated analysis. ...and may be if you have someone coming in to do the sophisticated analysis on an annual basis, then perhaps the cheaper solution may be appropriate. Might depend on how much processes change over time.
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1 user thanked peter gotch for this useful post.
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Originally Posted by: peter gotch  Hi Peter What do you actually want to do with this meter? If you want to measure individual exposure to compare against the exposure limit values and action levels set ou out in the Control of Noise at Work Regs 2005, then a cheap meter is unlikely to do what you need as it measures in simple decibels without A weighting across the range of frequencies so as to mimic the impact on human health.
....and you might want detailed octave band analysis to give you indications as to what types of noise sources contribute to the exposure and thenc how best to mitigate one or more of these sources.
So, to do all that you probably need an intergrating sound pressure level meter which costs a lot more than £50! In contrast if you only want some ballpark numbers then a very simple meter might give you a hint as to whether you might have a problem that needs more sophisticated analysis. ...and may be if you have someone coming in to do the sophisticated analysis on an annual basis, then perhaps the cheaper solution may be appropriate. Might depend on how much processes change over time.
Thanks for the reply it has focused my thinking on this. It would mainly be to get an indication of sound levels and I'm guessing that I can use a Noise Meter app on my phone for that just as well (which I currently do) and let the experts do the proper technical analysis when they come for noise monitoring. Just to clarify we have a relatively low noise profile with some loud activities.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Originally Posted by: PHurley Thanks for the reply it has focused my thinking on this. It would mainly be to get an indication of sound levels and I'm guessing that I can use a Noise Meter app on my phone for that just as well (which I currently do) and let the experts do the proper technical analysis when they come for noise monitoring. Just to clarify we have a relatively low noise profile with some loud activities.
This is exactly what I do. The free Apps are surprisingly accurate and are great for providing a quick indicative level. If there is any concern then something more specific is then appropriate. Not used them for a while but, as kate suggests, historically I have found Castle Group to be excellent for all things noise and vibration.
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Rank: Forum user
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The free Apps are surprisingly accurate
Good to know. Do you have a favourite? I use two - both called "Sound Meter" helpfully!!
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Rank: Super forum user
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Originally Posted by: PHurley
The free Apps are surprisingly accurate
Good to know. Do you have a favourite? I use two - both called "Sound Meter" helpfully!!
NIOSH Sound Level Meter is the one I have but mostly its our install team that use them in the field. On a couple of occasions calibrated professional meters had the same result as the Apps (I seem to remember they were different Apps).
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1 user thanked Holliday42333 for this useful post.
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Casella are worth a look.
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