HVAC Unit Sound Ratings

Common Sounds

This decibel (dBA) table compares some common sounds and shows how they rank in potential harm to hearing. In many industries, workers are exposed to dangerous noise levels. This is particularly true in the construction, lumber, mining, steel and textile industries. Consider these volumes in context of your air conditioner replacement or furnace replacement or other heating system service or cooling system services.

Since the sensitivity of the ear to sound is not the same for all frequencies, weighting or attenuating filters are included in the sound level meter’s circuits to simulate the ears’ response. A noise level meter gives an instantaneous measurement of the noise present, but cannot measure the duration of the exposure. To measure the amount of noise a person is exposed to over a period of time, a “dosimeter~ or an integrated sound level meter must be used. Sources for above include the American Medical Association and the Canadian Hearing Society of Ontario. Decibel table developed by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. January 1990.

If you have any questions about the sounds or volume being emitted by your HVAC equipment, just contact us and we can look into it. As a leading local HVAC company, we are always interested in our customers having a comfortable home environment.