Taking care of your hearing aids probably feels simple enough. When you first got your hearing aids, you most likely got a set of care instructions, after all. With regard to regular hearing aid maintenance, the majority of hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step instruction tutorial. But it’s quite likely that you might forget some of that information that you got all at once. So you still might be wondering, what should my cleaning routine look like? Or, how often should I have my hearing aid serviced? How can I make my hearing aids last as long as I can?
If you want to keep your hearing aids in tip-top working order, check out the following tips.
Tip #1: Keep your hearing aids dry
Electronics usually don’t like wetness. Hearing aids are slightly water resistant but are by no means waterproof, so they need to be kept as dry as possible. Beyond the obvious, this means you need to do things like the following:
- Find a cool and dry spot to keep your hearing aids when you aren’t using them. Knowing the best way to store your hearing aids can be somewhat of a challenge for lots of individuals. So the steamy bathroom isn’t going to be a very good place to store your hearing aids. It also helps to store them in the same spot every day so you aren’t trying to figure out where they went. Also, cats like to play with hearing aids and dogs will sometimes try to eat them, so don’t just leave them lying around.
- Keep a dehumidifier running during those more humid months. When it’s very humid, your hearing aids can have more moisture than you would want even inside. And that moisture can compromise the delicate electronics inside. Prolonging hearing aid life may mean keeping that dehumidifier running.
- Don’t use hair products while your hearing aids are in. That is, remove your hearing aids before using a lot of hair spray or hair gel. Your hearing aid can really get gunked up from these kinds of products.
Tip #2: Check (and clean) those earwax filters
The human body normally generates earwax in a healthy way. Hearing aid makers are well aware of this. Most modern hearing aids incorporate features that are created to cope with a moderate earwax production.
Your task is to be certain your hearing aids don’t become overloaded with ear wax. This means examining and replacing the wax guards when needed (and making that part of your hearing aid cleaning schedule). Depending on what model hearing aid you have, you can invest in specialized little tools for this and we can assist you with that.
What is the replacement schedule for earwax guards? Well, for the majority of models, it will be around once a month or so.
Tip #3: Keep your batteries charged and fresh
Your Hearing aids rely on your batteries for power. The healthier your hearing aid batteries are, the longer your device will last. The following are some tips for battery care:
- Invest in a rechargeable device or a battery charger: 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. As with most electronics, moisture will result in a bad outcome here.
- When you’re not using your hearing aids, remember to turn them off. This just drains the battery for, well, no good reason. And that means your hearing aids might quit working when you least want them to.
Tip #4: Only use clean hands to handle your devices
The majority of the time, your hearing aids should be in your ears. But they depend on you to put them in. You use your fingers to put your hearing aids in, and those hands could contain all types of things (salt, maple syrup, Cheeto dust, and so on). Your hearing aids are delicate devices by design, so crumbs aren’t exactly great for them.
Generally, you should only touch your hearing aids with clean hands. So before you put in or take out your hearing aids, give your hands a quick cleanse.
Tip #5 Keep up with your hearing specialist
It may seem like, once you have your hearing aids, you can leave your hearing specialist in the dust. But… this isn’t usually true. Here are a number of very good reasons why scheduling routine appointments with us is still important.:
- Cleaning and maintenance.
- To help make sure your devices fit well.
- Check the status of your hearing loss (making certain it isn’t progressing quicker than expected).
When something breaks, what should you do?
Sometimes, something could go wrong (perhaps you accidentally step on them) despite your best effort. When this occurs, you should contact us as quickly as possible.
We will be able to help you repair your devices, or get new ones if necessary.
Schedule an appointment with us today to talk about your current or next pair of hearing aids.