How to Reduce Table Saw Noise: Keeping the Neighbors Happier.

by Kevin Hays August 9, 2021

If you have any power tools at all, then you know how loud they can get. Not only can it cause hearing damage to you, but it can disturb your family or even your whole neighborhood. A table saw is no different; everyone in the area knows that someone is using a table saw.

To reduce table saw noise, insulate the base of your table saw stand using rubber pads. You can quieten the saw by keeping it sharp and setting its height only slightly higher than the piece you’re working on. You can also buy special blades that are manufactured to be quieter than regular blades.

Throughout this article, I will discuss why a table saw makes noise and how to reduce the noise from your table saw, including how to quiet the motor and the blade itself. Lastly, I will go over the importance of protective earmuffs.

Table Saw Noise

A table saw is a machine that contains a circular saw mounted underneath a table, with just the blade sticking out through the top of the table. Table saws make a lot of noise, and from different places too, so, to understand how to quiet a table saw, we first must go over what exactly is making noise on the machine.

The motor of a table saw, for instance, makes one noise, while the blade itself cutting through the air, or the piece you're working on, makes another.

Therefore, one of the ways to reduce noise from a table saw is to quiet the motor. While you can't exactly quiet the motor itself, you can quiet the vibrations made from the motor.

The Nickel Test

To find out if your motor is vibrating too much, you can perform the nickel test.
Place a nickel on your table saw tabletop on its side.
Then, turn the motor on.

If the nickel stays in place, you're good to go. However, if the nickel falls, your motor is vibrating too much.

Reducing the Noise of Your Table Saw Motor

If you've done the nickel test and your table saw has failed, or your table saw is just vibrating way too much, causing excess noise, your motor is definitely the culprit. You can easily find tools for aligning your table saw on Amazon. Other options to reduce noise caused by your table saw motor are:

Insulate the Base

The motor from your table saw is causing vibrations throughout the whole apparatus. This can be loud. To quell these vibrations, you should insulate the base of your table saw. You can do this in two ways:

Rubber Pads

One way to insulate the base of your table saw is using rubber pads. This will absorb any of the vibrations made from the motor. Wedge the rubber pad in between the mounting plate and the frame of the motor. Typically One side is foam, and the other side is felt with adhesive attached so you can stick them almost anywhere.

Isolation Mounts

Another way to insulate your table saw is to use isolation mounts, which are rubber mounts with studs and nuts. They have a universal design and are extremely easy to install.

Reducing the Noise of Your Table Saw Blade

Another reason your table saw may be making a lot of noise is the blade itself. While cutting through a wood piece, the blade can cause excess noise, creating a high pitched ringing sound. Or, the blade could be off-centered, causing vibration in your table saw. Follow these tips if you want to quiet your table saw blade:

Buy a New Blade

Table saw manufacturers are making quieter blades, so your best bet is to look into purchasing one. It will most likely be sharper than your current blade anyway so that it will be extra quiet. A Makita MakBlade 10-Inch 70 Tooth Quiet Crosscutting Saw Blade with 5/8-Inch Arbor from Amazon is an excellent choice. It boasts quite cutting with less vibration.

Sharpen Your Blade

A sharp blade is much quieter than a dull one. There can be a 3-decibel difference in noise levels. One option is a 120 Volt Circular Saw Blade Sharpener you can buy from Amazon. It includes a motor block that tilts 25 degrees left and right so you can adjust the sharpener to fit any configuration of the blade tooth.

Set the correct Height

To reduce the noise of your table saw blade, you can adjust the blade's height to just slightly higher than the piece you're working on. So, if you're cutting a 2 x 4, don't set the saw blade at its highest height. Set it just high enough to reach the edge of the piece of wood. Cutting your wood this way can actually reduce the noise by a whole 2 decibels.

Use a Blade Stabilizer

Using a blade stabilizer can quiet your table saw blade by another 2 decibels. It can help stabilize the blade of your table saw, reducing the amount of vibration, and therefore noise. Make sure to purchase the correct size blade stabilizer for your table saw blade.

Change the way you use the saw.

Don't cut your wood too fast. This can cause excess noise. When you cut your wood, make sure to do multiple passes if the wood is too thick. Don't try to cut thick wood with just one pass, as this could also increase the noise.

Wearing Protective Gear

Table saws can get as loud as 120 decibels, which is pretty dangerous, considering eardrum rupture can occur at 150 decibels. It won't stop the noise from reaching your family or neighbors, but wearing protective gear is an important step in tool safety.

A pair of 3M WorkTunes Connect + AM/FM Ear Protection Headphones from Amazon works great for me. They not only protect your ears from the harsh noises of your table saw, but they also come equipped with Bluetooth technology, allowing you to listen to your favorite music, movie, and tv shows while working. They also include AM/FM radio and have a noise reduction rating of 24 decibels.

If earbuds are more your style, A pair of OSHA approved Mipeace Safety Hearing Protection Industrial Ear Plugs Headphones is another good option. These sweat-resistant earbuds have a noise reduction rating of 29 decibels. They also have a universal headphone jack, so you can plug them right into your smartphone.

Conclusion

Not only are they annoying to listen to, but table saws can produce noise that comes close to a dangerous level of decibels. So, it's important to try to reduce the noise it makes as much as possible.

We discussed quieting your table saw motor by using insulation, like rubber pads and isolation mounts. We also discussed how to reduce the noise from the blade itself. You can sharpen it, set the correct height, use a blade stabilizer, buy a new blade, and even change the way you cut.

We also talked about protective headphones for your ears. Using headphones while cutting may not reduce the noise of your table saw for the people around you, but they will protect you from the dangerous level of noise that a table saw can produce. Some headphones can reduce noise by almost 30 decibels, which will create a much safer work environment.

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