Review of Mack’s Silicone Earplugs for Sleep

Mack’s Pillow Soft silicone earplugs are a highly moldable material that sits right at the opening of the ear canal. The silicone sticks to the ear and provides an excellent seal to reduce the sound going into your ear. As a swimmer, I have used Mack’s silicone earplugs for many years. The silicone is easy to shape and stays in place even during athletic activities and blocks out water. But what about sleeping? Do Mack’s earplugs block enough sound to be used while sleeping? In this review of Mack’s earplugs, we discuss the ease of use, sound blocking characteristics, and care guide and how well they work for sleeping. 

Earplugs Design / Comfort

Invented in 1962 by Mack’s founders Ray and Cecilia Benner, they are the first silicone earplugs. The earplugs come as small discs of silicone. It takes a little prying to get out a disc shape as they tend to stick to each other. Once removed, form the silicone into a ball with your fingers. Gently push the silicone into the ear. The silicone ball is firm and may take some force to get a good seal at the entrance to the ear canal. Once in place, the silicone provides a seal that protects anything from getting in or out. The silicone will last up to five uses. After multiple uses or too much handling, the stickiness of the silicone wears off, and the earplugs need replacement.

As far as comfort goes, the silicone provides a good seal and remains comfortable throughout the night while sleeping. The comfort is because the silicone sits on the outside of the ear rather than inside the canal. The silicone should not go deep into the ear canal. 

Sound Filtering of Mack's silicone earplugs

On the box of Mack’s makes bold claims of being “Water Proof” and “Snore Proof.” I can attest to them being waterproof when used correctly. As far as snore proof that isn’t entirely accurate. Mack’s silicone earplugs will NOT block out all sounds but will do a decent job to muffle the snoring sound. Individual results may vary. It will depend on how loud your partner snores and how sensitive you are to varying sounds. The noise reduction for Mack’s Silicone earplugs is 22dB, which is about the same as the wax sleeping earplugs but about 10 dB lower than the foam earplugs such as Laser Lite and Drift to Sleep we have reviewed. Mack’s blocks out quite a bit of snoring noise, but I definitely wouldn’t go as far as to say they are snore proof as there aren’t magic earplugs.

Price

$12.99 for 12 pairs ($1.08 a pair)	Check Price

Caring for your earplugs

How to use

Cleanliness is essential whenever using earplugs. Getting bacteria into the ear can cause various complications. (See our sleeping earplugs guide) Only touch Mack's silicone earplugs with clean hands.

1. Remove the silicone from the plastic box. 
2. Roll the silicone into a ball. Please keep it in a ball, never elongate it, or split it. Try and make it into a ball without touching it too much as the touching will reduce its longevity. 
3. Insert silicone ball into the outside of the ear. Seal the opening of the ear canal with gentle pressure. Avoid getting hair stuck in the silicone.
4. Earplug Removal: Remove the earplug slowly by moving your ear with one hand and picking or pulling the earplugs to break the seal and remove it. 

Earplug Care

Mack’s Earplugs with silicone claims that the earplugs have a life for up to 5 uses or until they are dirty. After about five nights, the material will become less sticky and less effective at staying in the ear. Keeping your hands clean will lengthen the life of the earplugs. While using the silicone, we found that it picks up a lot more debris such as dust or hairs than other materials such as wax. 

Case / Packaging

Mack's silicone earplug pairs come in a plastic storage case full of twenty-four silicone discs (12-pairs). The case is small enough to pack in a toiletry pack on trips but too bulky for your pocket. For an overnight trip, consider putting a pair in a pill case. 

Guarantee / Warranty

Mack's® brand offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee on all it's products. If you have any issues or concerns regarding the product or it’s use, including questions about returns, contact Mack’s® directly.

Summary

Mack’s silicone earplugs are easy to fit in your ear, they block a reasonable amount of sound, are comfortable while sleeping, and are reasonably priced but have limited re-usability. 

Features

• Moldable to fit any size/shape of the ear
• Non-toxic / Non-allergenic
• Silicone Rubber
• 22 dB noise reduction rating

Pros as sleeping earplugs

• Secure seal when added to ear correctly
• Fits a wide range of ear sizes/shapes
• May last multiple weeks
• Great for side sleepers
• Earplugs block a decent amount of noise from a snoring partner. 
• Comfortable

Cons

• Mack's silicone earplugs will easily collect dust, hairs, or other materials. It should be stored in its supplied storage case.
• It is limited to five uses per set of earplugs. Proper care may allow for the use for a week or two.  
• Some reviewers complained about hair sticking to the silicone earplugs.
• No single-use carrying case.

Have you tried Mack's pillow soft earplugs for sleeping? Let us know what you think as a comment below.