It probably seems like a simple thing to care for your hearing aids. After all, you were probably given a set of care instructions when you initially purchased your devices. With 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 remember 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 out of my hearing aids?
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
Moisture and electronics don’t really get along that well. Hearing aids are slightly water resistant but are by no means waterproof, so they need to be kept as dry as possible. Here are several ways to do just that:
- When you have your hearing aids in your ears, don’t use hair care products. 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 types of products.
- Keep 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. Well, don’t, for instance, store them in your bathroom (which gets really steamy at least once every day). And in order to keep track of your hearing aids, store them in the same spot every day. Also, cats like to play with hearing aids and dogs will sometimes try to eat them, so don’t just leave them lying about.
- When it’s humid outside, run a dehumidifier. When it’s extremely humid, your hearing aids can have more dampness than you would want even indoors. And the delicate electronics inside of your device can be compromised. If you want to get the most longevity out of your hearing aid as possible, get that dehumidifier going!
Tip #2: Check (and clean) those earwax filters
Earwax production is a healthy and normal thing for the human body to do. Hearing aid manufacturers are well aware of this. As a result, most hearing aids are designed to deal with a modest amount of earwax.
Your task is to make sure your hearing aids don’t become inundated with ear wax. This means examining and swapping the wax guards when needed (and making that part of your hearing aid cleaning schedule). You can purchase and use specialized cleaning tools for this, depending on what model you have (ask us for guidance here).
How often should wax guards be swapped? Well, for most models, it will be around once a month or so.
Tip #3: care for the batteries
Your batteries keep your hearing aids going. Your hearing aid will last a lot longer if you keep your batteries fresh. The following are some tips for battery care:
- Invest in a rechargeable device or a battery charger: That way, you won’t be throwing batteries (and money) away over and over again.
- When you’re not using your hearing aids, remember to switch the power off. This just kills the battery for, well, no good reason. And that means your hearing aids could stop working when you really need them.
- Make 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. As with electronics in general, moisture will result in a bad time here.
Tip #4: Only use clean hands to handle your hearing aids
The majority of the time, your hearing aids should be in your ears. 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 types of things (salt, maple syrup, Cheeto dust, and so on). By design, hearing aids are very delicate and probably won’t do well with things like crumbs.
Generally, you should only handle 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 us in the loop
It may seem like, once you purchase your hearing aids, you can leave your hearing specialist in the dust. Generally, though, this isn’t the case. Most individuals who have hearing loss will want to schedule regular appointments with us for the following reasons:
- To clean and maintain your hearing aids.
- To help make sure your devices fit well.
- To track and monitor the advancement of your hearing loss.
What should you do when something breaks?
Sometimes, something could go wrong (perhaps you accidentally step on them) despite your best effort. You should get in touch with us as soon as possible in cases like this.
We will be able to help you repair your devices, or get a new set if necessary.
Want to speak with us about your next set of hearing aids? Schedule an appointment today!