Your hearing aids should help you hear better right? When your hearing aid stops doing its job, it can be extremely frustrating. Here’s the good news, with regular maintenance, your hearing aids should continue to function efficiently.
Before you do anything extreme, look at this list. If it’s not one of these common issues, it may be time to pay us a visit to ensure there isn’t a larger issue. Your hearing might have changed, for example, or you may need a hearing aid recalibration.
Potential Pitfall: Low Batteries
While hearing aid batteries have gotten significantly smaller and lifespans are improving, the batteries still need to be occasionally replaced or recharged. So keeping up with charging your batteries is important. If it seems like the sound is fading or coming and going, check your battery first.
The fix: Keep ‘em Fresh
A battery tester is a worthwhile investment, especially if you like to stock up. Batteries have a shelf life so the last batteries in the pack may not have as much voltage as the first few even if they stay sealed. Another trick: Wait five minutes after you open new batteries before you put them in your hearing aids. This gives the zinc time to become active, and can possibly help the batteries last longer.
Potential Pitfall: Gross Things Like Wax And Grime
Regardless of how clean you keep your ears, and if you have difficulty hearing, you’re a lot more likely than the average individual to stay on top of earwax, your hearing aids are going to collect dirt and debris. You may find yourself with a dirt issue if sounds seem a little off or distorted.
The fix: Clean Them Out—And Keep Them Clean!
There are plenty of products available specifically for cleaning hearing aids, but you can DIY it with things you already have around the house. You can use a microfiber cloth, like the kind you use to clean your cellphone or glasses, to wipe your hearing aid down after disassembling it.
Simple hygiene practices will really help with keeping your hearing aids clean. Wash and dry your hands before you handle your hearing aids, and remove them while you’re doing anything, like washing up, styling your hair, or even shaving, that may put them in danger of being spritzed, sprayed, or splattered.
Potential Pitfall: Trapped Moisture
Moisture can be a real problem for hearing aids, and it doesn’t take very much to do so (think sweating, not deep-sea diving). Even humidity in the air can be a problem, clogging up the hearing aid’s air vents or draining more quickly. Depending on how much moisture’s entered, you could experience problems from sound distortion to static, to crackling. They may even seem to quit altogether.
The fix: Keep Them Dry
Make sure that when you store your hearing aids, you open the battery door; and if you’re storing them for longer than overnight, take out the batteries entirely. Any captured moisture will be able to evaporate and air will be able to circulate with almost no effort on your part.
Store hearing aids in a cool, dry spot. Don’t store them in the kitchen or bathroom. Keeping them in the bathroom may seem convenient but there’s just too much moisture. If you live in a humid climate, you may want to think about getting a hearing aid storage box. Most versions use a desiccant in the form of a small moisture absorbing packet, but some more expensive models eliminate moisture with electronics.
None of the above are working? It may be time to consult us.