Owning a hearing aid is a big responsibility.
It is in your best interest to check your device periodically to ensure that you don't have any problems.
Since listening devices are very small and delicate instruments, you need to be careful about how you care and handle them.
If you care for them well, they will last and perform much longer than expected, which is approximately five years.
If you learn how to recognize the signs of a problem that will interfere with your ability to use your device, you need to bring it into a hearing center for service.
Since the strength of your hearing aid relies on how strong your batteries are, you need to make sure that they are always properly charged before you go to use your listening device.
Something that you can't have enough of is batteries for your hearing aid.
If you have trouble determining when your batteries are low, you may want to purchase a battery tester.
If you get in the habit of testing you batteries, you can prevent unexpected problems with your hearing.
If you happen to notice that your new batteries suddenly don't last as long as they should, you need to make sure that your listening device isn't the culprit.
Sometimes a listening device can malfunction and drain your batteries prematurely.
To make sure that is not the case with your device, take it into an audiology center to have it tested.
If you start to notice that your listening device seems to be picking up muffled sounds, you should inspect the ear tubes.
Chances are there is some ear wax that has accumulated and clogged up the tubing.
You can attempt to clean this structure on your own.
Make sure you use something small and thin like a tooth pick or a pin to remove any bug globs of ear wax.
If your ear piece is an over the ear one, remove the molding from your hearing aid and gently cleanse it with some warm water and a light soap.
Allow the molding to dry completely before you put it back onto your listening device.
If you don't feel comfortable cleaning your device this way or your device is an in ear one, you can always purchase a cleaner from your audiology center to remove any built up gunk and ear wax to improve the sound quality on your device.
You should make it a habit to clean your ear piece at least once or twice a week.
Don't forget to make sure your hearing aid is turned on when you start your day.
It is not uncommon for people to assume that their device is not working or broken because they forget to power the device on.
If that doesn't work, check your batteries.
Make sure that your batteries are fully charged so the device will work.
If you find that your device still doesn't function properly, don't hesitate to take your audiologist so it can be serviced.