Archive for April, 2010
Dead or Weak “In The Ear” hearing aid repair:
Video coming soon!
If your “in the ear” hearing aid is dead, the first step is always to replace the battery, just to make sure it isn’t a bad battery.
Next, you will want to make sure hearing aid isn’t plugged with wax or debris.
Start out by visually inspecting the tip of the earmold – the part that is first inserted into your ear. If there is a visual blockage, use your earwax cleaning loop to remove the wax. Hold the tip angled down to avoid any earwax or debris falling into the receiver (speaker). Insert the loop at the edges of the tube and pull it out.
If there is no visual blockage, or you have already tried cleaning the tubing, open the hearing aid’s battery compartment and inspect the battery contacts on the inside edges. You should see two gold battery contacts, one on either side. They usually look like an arch with a thin arm connected to one side, and positioned horizontally through the middle. The arms can get bent sometimes, to the point where they no longer touch the battery.
Using your wax loop again, you can gently pull the horizontal arms inward, toward where the battery will go. Place the loop behind the tip of the arm on the end that is not connected to the arch. Now gently pull it inwards, toward the battery compartment.
Don’t pull too much, just enough to ensure contact with the battery without blocking it from closing properly. Repeat this process on the opposite side battery contact as well.
If your hearing aid still does not function after these steps it may be time for a professional hearing aid repair lab.
Dead or Weak “Behind The Ear” hearing aid repair:
Video Coming Soon!
If your behind the ear hearing aid is dead or weak, the first step is always to replace the battery, just to make sure it isn’t a bad battery.
Next, you will want to make sure hearing aid isn’t plugged with wax or debris.
Start out by visually inspecting the end of the mold, the tube, and the earhook. If there is a visual blockage, clean with compressed air or BTE floss and see if it works.
If there is no visual blockage, or you have already tried cleaning the tubing, remove the earhook from the hearing aid. This is usually done by unscrewing it, although some models pull off. Refer to you hearing aids manual for instructions.
Once you have the earhook removed and a good battery inserted, turn the hearing aid on set to maximum volume.
Cup the hearing aid in your hand and listen for feedback. This may require someone without a hearing loss. If you or an assistant can hear the hearing aid whistling (or whistling stronger in the case of a weak hearing aid), replace the earhook and earmold and cup the aid in your hand again with it turned to full volume.
If you cannot hear the feedback (or not as strongly for a weak diagnosis) with the earmold and earhook attached, try removing the earmold. If there is feedback with the earmold removed and the earhook attached, or if the strength of the feedback increases, then there is something obstructing the sound in the tubing or earmold. A good cleaning with compressed air through the tubing or BTE floss should do the trick.
If there is still no improvement with only the earhook attached, then the obstruction is in the earhook. It may be as simple as cleaning the earhook, but some behind the ear hearing aids have an acoustic filter built in.
The acoustic filter may be in the tip of the earhook where the earmold connects, or further up, inside the ear hook.
If the filter is on the tip, it is usually a metal screen. You can first try cleaning the screen by soaking the earhook in rubbing alcohol for 15 minutes and then drying it with compressed air. If this does not work you can poke a hole in the screen with a needle.
This will allow the sound to go through, but will also slightly increase the high pitch frequencies. This shouldn’t be a problem unless your earmold doesn’t fit well; in this case it is possible that it could cause feedback.
If your earhook has a filter further up inside it made from cotton or plastic, you can remove the filter by pushing it out with a piece of fishing string. Like poking a hole through the metal filters, this also slightly increases the high frequencies and may cause feedback if your earmold does not fit correctly.
If you have tried all of these options, and your hearing aid is still dead or weak, it may be time to try a professional hearing aid repair lab.