It most likely seems like a simple thing to care for your hearing aids. After all, you were probably given a set of care guidelines when you originally bought your devices. Most hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step how-to in regard to routine hearing aid maintenance. But it’s quite likely that you might forget some of that information that you got all at once. So you may still have questions like, how often should I clean my hearing aid? How about my service schedule? How can I get the most life out of my hearing aids?
These five, easy-to-follow tips can help provide some answers, as well as easy ways to help in taking care of your hearing aids so they function better longer.
Tip #1: Try not to allow your hearing aids to get wet
Moisture and electronics don’t really get along that well. Hearing aids are somewhat water resistant but aren’t at all waterproof, so they should be kept as dry as possible. Beyond the obvious, this means you should do things like the following:
- Keep your hearing aids somewhere cool and dry. Many individuals question what the best way to store hearing aids is. Well, don’t, for instance, keep them in your bathroom (which gets nice and steamy at least once a day). It also helps to store them in the same place every day so you aren’t wondering where you put them. In the same way, don’t leave your hearing aids just lying around, dogs like to eat them and cats love to play with them!
- When you have your hearing aids in your ears, avoid using hair care products. That is, remove your hearing aids before using a lot of hair spray or hair gel. Your hearing aid can really become gunked up from these types of products.
- When it’s humid outside, run a dehumidifier. Even indoors, high humidity means your hearing aids might be more damp more frequently. And that moisture can compromise the delicate electronics inside. If you want to get the most life out of your hearing aid as possible, get that dehumidifier running!
Tip #2: Keep the earwax filters nice and clean
The human body naturally produces earwax in a healthy way. It’s also something that hearing aid designers understand is going to take place. Most modern hearing aids incorporate features that are designed to cope with a modest earwax production.
It’s up to you to be sure there isn’t too much earwax on your hearing aids. So make changing out your wax guard, when needed, a routine element of your cleaning regimen. You can purchase and utilize special cleaning tools for this, depending on your hearing aid model (ask us for guidance here).
What is the replacement schedule for earwax guards? Well, for the majority of models, it will be around once every month or so.
Tip #3: care for the batteries
Your Hearing aids count on your batteries for power. Your hearing aid will last much longer if you keep your batteries fresh. The following are some tips for battery care:
- Get a battery charger or a rechargeable hearing aid: This will save you lots of money on wasted batteries.
- Keep all of the contact points on the battery dry and clean. If they are dirty or wet, you can use a clean, dry cloth to wipe them. This is yet another place in your device where moisture is the enemy.
- When you’re not wearing your hearing aids, remember to turn them off. Or else, your battery will just sit there and drain. And that means your hearing aids could quit working when you really need them.
Tip #4: Clean your hands before handling your hearing aids
Your hearing aids are going to be in your ears most of the time. But they depend on you to put them in. Your hands (which are required in order to handle your hearing aids) could be covered in all sorts of offending materials. Your hearing aids are delicate devices by design, so crumbs aren’t really great for them.
It’s important that you don’t touch your hearing aids with dirty hands. So before you put in or take out your hearing aids, give your hands a quick cleanse.
Tip #5 Stay in touch with your hearing specialist
You may presume that you won’t need any help from us once you’ve purchased your hearing aids. But… this isn’t typically true. Here are a number of very good reasons why scheduling regular appointments with us is still significant.:
- To clean and maintain your hearing aids.
- Keep track of the status of your hearing loss (making sure it’s not advancing faster than expected).
- To help you ensure your devices fit well.
When something breaks, what should you do?
Occasionally, despite your best efforts, something goes wrong with your hearing aids (maybe you accidentally step on them). When this occurs, you should get in touch with us as quickly as you can.
If your hearing aid requires any repairs, or you need to get a new one, we can help with that.
Schedule an appointment with us today to talk about your current or next pair of hearing aids.