It most likely feels like a simple thing to take care of your hearing aids. After all, you were probably given a set of care instructions when you first bought your devices. Most hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step how-to in regard to regular hearing aid maintenance. Still, getting all of that information at once means you probably didn’t retain some of it. So you still may be wondering, what should my cleaning routine look like? Or, how frequently should I get my hearing aid serviced? How can I make my hearing aids last as long as I can?
These five, simple-to-follow tips can help give you some answers, as well as easy ways to help in taking care of your hearing aids so they work better longer.
Tip #1: Keep your hearing aids dry
Moisture and electronics don’t really get along that well. Hearing aids are somewhat water resistant but are by no means waterproof, so they should be kept as dry as possible. Beyond the obvious, this means you should do things like the following:
- Store your hearing aids someplace cool and dry. Understanding 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 keep your hearing aids. It also helps to store them in the same place every day so you’re not wondering 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 about.
- Keep a dehumidifier running during those more humid months. Even indoors, high humidity means your hearing aids could be more damp more often. And the delicate electronics inside of your device will be compromised. If you want to get the most longevity out of your hearing aid as you can, get that dehumidifier going!
- When you’re wearing your hearing aids, 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
The human body naturally produces earwax in a healthy way. It’s also something that hearing aid designers understand is going to happen. Most contemporary hearing aids include features that are created to manage a moderate 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 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? You will swap these wax guards approximately once every month on most models.
Tip #3: care for the batteries
Your batteries keep your hearing aids working. The healthier your hearing aid batteries are, the longer your hearing aid will last. So there are a few battery-care steps you can take:
- Don’t forget to turn off your hearing aids when you aren’t wearing them. This just drains the battery for, well, no good reason. And that means your hearing aids could quit working when you least want them to.
- Invest in a rechargeable device or a battery charger: That way, you won’t be chucking batteries (and money) away again and again .
- Keep all of the contact points on the battery clean and dry. You can wipe them down with a clean cloth if they aren’t. As with electronics in general, moisture will lead to a bad outcome here.
Tip #4: Only use clean hands to handle your devices
Most of the time, you should be wearing your hearing aids. But they don’t get there on their own. 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 handle your hearing aids with clean hands. So give your hands a quick wash before you need to take them out and handle them.
Tip #5 Keep us in the loop
You might assume that you won’t require any assistance from us once you’ve purchased your hearing aids. Generally, though, this isn’t the case. Most people with hearing loss will want to make regular appointments with us for the following reasons:
- Cleaning and maintenance.
- To help you fine-tune your fit.
- To track and monitor the progression of your hearing loss.
What should you do when something breaks?
Occasionally, something could go wrong (maybe you accidentally step on them) despite your best effort. You should get in touch with us as soon as possible in situations 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 talk about your current or next pair of hearing aids.