It probably seems like a simple thing to care for your hearing aids. After all, you were likely given a set of care guidelines when you originally bought your devices. The majority of hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step how-to when it comes to routine hearing aid maintenance. But it’s very likely that you may forget some of that information that you got all at once. So you could still have questions like, how often should I clean my hearing aid? What about my service schedule? How can I make my hearing aids last as long as I can?
These five, simple-to-follow tips can help provide some answers, as well as simple ways to help in maintaining your hearing aids so they function better longer.
Tip #1: Try not to allow your hearing aids to get wet
Electronics typically don’t do well with wetness. While your hearing aids may offer a certain amount of water resistance, you typically want to keep moisture away from them. Here are a few ways to do just that:
- Keep a dehumidifier going during those more humid months. Even inside, high humidity means your hearing aids could be more damp more often. And that moisture can compromise the sensitive electronics inside. If you want to get the most longevity out of your hearing aid as you can, get that dehumidifier running!
- Find a dry and cool place to keep your hearing aids when you’re not wearing them. Understanding the best way to store your hearing aids can be somewhat of a challenge for lots of people. So the steamy bathroom isn’t going to be a very good place to store your hearing aids. And in order to keep track of your hearing aids, keep them in the same spot every day. Also, cats like to play with hearing aids and dogs will occasionally attempt to eat them, so don’t just leave them lying around.
- Don’t use hair products while your hearing aids are in. That is, take your hearing aids out before utilizing a lot of hair spray or hair gel. These kinds of products can really gunk up your devices.
Tip #2: Keep the earwax filters nice and clean
Earwax production is a normal and healthy thing for the human body to do. It’s also something that hearing aid makers know is going to occur. Consequently, most hearing aids are created to deal with a modest amount of earwax.
It’s up to you to make sure there isn’t too much earwax on your hearing aids. So make changing out your wax guard, when necessary, a routine part of your cleaning schedule. Depending on what model hearing aid you have, you can get specialized little tools for this and we can help you with that.
How often should wax guards be replaced? Well, for the majority of models, it will be around once every month or so.
Tip #3: Keep your batteries charged and fresh
Your batteries keep your hearing aids going. Your hearing aid will last much longer if you keep your batteries fresh. The following are a few tips for battery care:
- When you’re not using your hearing aids, remember to switch the power off. Otherwise, your battery will just sit there and drain. And that means your hearing aids may stop working when you really need them.
- Keep all of the contact points on the battery clean and dry. If they are dirty or wet, you can make use of a clean, dry cloth to wipe them. This is yet another place in your device where moisture is the enemy.
- Get a battery charger or a rechargeable hearing aid: That way, you won’t be throwing batteries (and money) away over and over again.
Tip #4: Only use clean hands to handle your hearing aids
The majority of the time, you should be wearing your hearing aids. But they depend on you to put them in. Your hands (which you need to handle your hearing aids) could be covered in all kinds of offending materials. By design, hearing aids are very delicate and probably won’t do well with things like crumbs.
It’s essential 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 wash.
Tip #5 Keep us in the loop
It may feel like, once you purchase your hearing aids, you can just forget all about your hearing specialist. But… this isn’t normally true. Here are a few very good reasons why scheduling routine appointments with us is still significant.:
- To keep track of and monitor the advancement of your hearing loss.
- Cleaning and maintenance.
- To help you calibrate your fit.
When something breaks, what should you do?
Sometimes, 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 possible.
If your hearing aid needs any repairs, or you need to get a new one, we can help with that.
Want to speak with us about your next set of hearing aids? Make an appointment today!