Taking care of your hearing aids probably feels simple enough. After all, you were probably given a set of care instructions when you initially purchased your devices. In regard to regular hearing aid maintenance, the majority of hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step instruction tutorial. Still, getting that much information at once means you most likely didn’t retain some of it. So you still may be wondering, what should my cleaning schedule look like? Or, how often should I get my hearing aid serviced? How can I get the most life from my hearing aids?
These five, simple-to-follow tips can help provide some answers, as well as easy ways to help in maintaining your hearing aids so they work better longer.
Tip #1: Try not to allow your hearing aids to get wet
Moisture and electronics don’t really get along that well. While your hearing aids might provide a certain level of water resistance, you typically want to keep moisture away from them. Here are a few ways to do just that:
- Store your hearing aids someplace cool and dry. Knowing the best way to store your hearing aids can be a bit of a challenge for lots of individuals. So the steamy bathroom won’t be a very good place to keep your hearing aids. It also helps to keep them in the same spot every day so you aren’t trying to figure out where they went. Also, cats love to play with hearing aids and dogs will occasionally try to eat them, so don’t just leave them lying around.
- Keep a dehumidifier going during those more humid months. Even indoors, high humidity means your hearing aids may be more moist more often. And that moisture can compromise the sensitive electronics inside. Prolonging hearing aid life might mean keeping that dehumidifier running.
- When you have your hearing aids in your ears, don’t use hair care products. When you’re going to use hair spray or gel, remove your hearing aids. Your hearing aid can really get gunked up from these kinds of products.
Tip #2: Check (and clean) those earwax filters
Earwax production is a healthy and normal thing for the human body to do. It’s also something that hearing aid designers know is going to take place. The majority of modern hearing aids incorporate features that are created to cope with a modest earwax production.
It’s up to you to make sure there’s not too much earwax on your hearing aids. So make swapping out your wax guard, when necessary, a routine part of your cleaning schedule. Depending on which model hearing aid you have, you can invest in specialized little tools for this and we can help you with that.
What is the replacement schedule for earwax guards? You will swap these wax guards approximately once every month on the majority of models.
Tip #3: Keep your batteries charged and fresh
Your batteries keep your hearing aids going. The healthier your hearing aid batteries are, the longer your device will last. So there are several battery-care steps you can take:
- Get a battery charger or a rechargeable device: This will save you lots of money on wasted batteries.
- Don’t forget to switch off your devices when you aren’t wearing them. Or else, your battery will just sit there and drain. For this reason, when you need your hearing aids the most, they might not be charged enough to function.
- Be certain all of the battery contacts and components are dry. If they are dirty or wet, you can make use of a clean, dry cloth to wipe them. This is yet another part of your device where moisture is the enemy.
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 don’t get there by themselves. You use your fingers to put your hearing aids in, and those fingers could contain all kinds of things (salt, maple syrup, Cheeto dust, and so on). Your hearing aids are delicate devices by design, so crumbs aren’t really 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 wash.
Tip #5 Stay in touch with your hearing specialist
You might assume that you won’t need any help from us once you’ve purchased your hearing aids. In most cases, though, this isn’t the case. Most individuals with hearing loss will want to schedule regular appointments with us for the following reasons:
- Keep track of the status of your hearing loss (making sure it’s not progressing faster than expected).
- To clean and maintain your hearing aids.
- To help you ensure your devices fit well.
When something breaks, what should you do?
Occasionally, something could go wrong (maybe you accidentally step on them) in spite of your best effort. You should get in touch with us as soon as you can in cases like this.
If your device needs any repairs, or you need to get a new one, we can help with that.
Make an appointment with us today to discuss your current or next pair of hearing aids.
