Caring for your hearing aids likely feels easy enough. After all, you were probably given a set of care guidelines when you initially bought your devices. With regard to routine hearing aid maintenance, most hearing specialists will give you a step-by-step instruction tutorial. Still, getting all of that information at once means you probably didn’t remember some of it. 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 from my hearing aids?
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 function better longer.
Tip #1: Keep your hearing aids dry
Moisture and electronics don’t really jive. Hearing aids are somewhat water resistant but aren’t at all waterproof, so they should be kept as free from moisture as possible. Beyond the obvious, this means you should do things like the following:
- When it’s humid outside, run a dehumidifier. When it’s really humid, your hearing aids can have more dampness than you would want even inside. And the fragile electronics inside of your device can be damaged. Prolonging hearing aid life may mean keeping that dehumidifier running.
- Avoid using hair products while your hearing aids are in. When you’re going to use hair spray or gel, take out your hearing aids. These kinds of products can really gunk up your devices.
- Store your hearing aids somewhere cool and dry. Many people wonder what the best way to store hearing aids is. So the steamy bathroom won’t be a great place to keep your hearing aids. It also helps to store them in the same place every day so you aren’t trying to figure out where you put them. Also, cats love to play with hearing aids and dogs will occasionally attempt to eat them, so don’t just leave them lying around.
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 manufacturers understand is going to occur. The majority of modern hearing aids incorporate features that are designed 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 needed, a regular element of your cleaning regimen. You can buy and use 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 most models, it will be around once every month or so.
Tip #3: Keep your batteries charged and fresh
Your batteries keep your hearing aids working. Your hearing aid will last much longer if you keep your batteries fresh. So there are a few battery-care steps you can take:
- Get a battery charger or a rechargeable device: That way, you won’t be throwing batteries (and money) away over and over again.
- Make certain all of the battery contacts and components are dry. You can wipe them with a clean cloth if they aren’t. This is yet another place in your device where moisture is the enemy.
- When you’re not using your hearing aids, don’t forget to turn them off. Or else, your battery will just sit there and drain. For this reason, when you most need your hearing aids, they might not be charged enough to function.
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. Your hands (which you need to handle your hearing aids) could be covered in all sorts of offending materials. By design, hearing aids are very delicate and likely 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 cleanse.
Tip #5 Keep us in the loop
It might seem like, once you have your hearing aids, you can just forget all about your hearing specialist. Typically, though, this isn’t the situation. Most people with hearing loss will want to make regular appointments with us for the following reasons:
- To clean and maintain your hearing aids.
- To help make sure your devices fit well.
- Check the status of your hearing loss (making sure it’s not progressing quicker than expected).
When something breaks, what should you do?
Sometimes, something could go wrong (maybe you accidentally step on them) despite your best effort. When this takes place, you should contact us as quickly as you can.
If your hearing aid requires any repairs, or you need 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.
