Hearing Aid Repair Joplin, MO
Taking care of your hearing device helps with the best hearing aid repair in Joplin, MO, Southwestern Hearing Center. Our team of health professionals can provide a range of hearing solutions for people looking to improve their lives through better hearing. Joplin residents can take advantage of all the services to patients we provide, like a comprehensive hearing evaluation and annual hearing tests, hearing aid technology solutions, and hearing aid repair services. Invest in a better quality of life with the best hearing solution options in Joplin, Southwestern Hearing Center.
Southwestern Hearing Centers
420 N Range Line Rd. Ste. 12, Joplin, MO 64801
info@southwesternhearing.com
(417) 208-5760
Types of Hearing Aids
Overall, there are two main types or styles of hearing instruments on the market. Each can come with a range of features and additional technology or can simply help people with hearing loss hear their surroundings better.
In-The-Ear Styles (ITE)
This style of hearing aid is created to fit the entire unit and the battery in a small structure that fits inside the ear canal. As a patient faces exposure to sounds, the device will amplify the sound waves as they move down the ear canal and into the inner ear. These sleek designs provide a discreet form profile, comfortable fit, and enriched life for those struggling with hearing issues.
Behind-The-Ear Styles (BTE)
Some with hearing impairment prefer the Behind-The-Ear style of hearing devices. Much as the name suggests, these devices store the hearing aid battery and unit behind the ear with a thin tube connecting it to the inner ear. While also typically providing a discreet design, these also provide additional wearing comfort for some patients with hearing damage.
Hearing Aid Features
As user needs and cutting-edge technology evolve, hearing care specialists have adapted and created many new features that can increase natural sound quality, improve daily integrations with an environment, and provide additional ways for those with hearing difficulty to interact with those around them.
Batteries
For most of the past, a regular model hearing aid was powered by a small “button” style battery stored in the device. These batteries were periodically replaced as the life ran out, leaving wearers with pricey replacement costs and inconvenient device failure. While even these types of batteries have been majorly improved over the years, many hearing devices can now run on rechargeable style batteries. These allow users to sit their aids on a charger each night and know they will be ready for use the next day. These batteries can last for years without the need for replacement, giving patients the flexibility and freedom to know their devices will be ready when they need them.
Bluetooth
Connectability has never been easier with new Bluetooth capabilities in hearing aids devices. Instruments can now connect wirelessly to apps on a smartphone for easy settings changes, connect straight to televisions or radios for easy listening, and even link to cellphones for more seamless phone conversations. Now users can more easily connect with the joys of life that were out of reach before.
Background Noise Reduction
Background noise reduction technology is becoming pretty standard in most hearing aids. The cost of a device will likely determine the quality of this feature. This feature is aimed at helping distinguish conversation from background noise. Extraneous noise, like wind, the clanging of dishes, or unwanted digital noise, is softened when sent down the ear canal, making these undesired sounds less potent to the listener.
Preventative Measures to Keep Your Trusty Hearing Aids
It’s important to take care of your hearing aids so that you can get the most time out of them. Your hearing expert should have shown you how to check your aids to make sure they are still working as they should. Minor hearing aid issues can become big issues when they go unchecked.
These are some other checks that you should do to keep your hearing aids in optimal condition.
Listen to Them
Listen to your hearing aids with listening tubing. You want them to sound clear without any scratching or clicking sounds.
Check the Batteries
Hearing aid batteries last about one to two weeks unless you have a rechargeable hearing aid. You can use a battery tester to make sure your hearing aids have good batteries. It’s a good idea to always have a spare set of batteries for your hearing aids when the batteries give out before you planned.
Minimize Moisture
You may have a hearing aid humidifier to help with the prevention of moisture building up. Keeping the moisture in your hearing aids low is critical for their long-term functioning. Just remember to remove the batteries before you put the hearing aids into the humidifier or other drying container.
Hearing Aid Repair
Southwest Hearing Center’s services don’t end after a hearing instrument specialist fits a patient with a custom-fit hearing aid. Our hearing care professional teams go above and beyond to make sure each patient’s hearing journey is long and healthy. While hearing aid devices today are the best they’ve ever been, sometimes they still need some repair. Southwestern Hearing Center in Joplin can help with that.
Battery Replacement
Whether a device uses a replaceable battery or a rechargeable one, there are many reasons a patient may find themselves in need of a battery change. As battery life wanes or hearing aids suffer damage, new batteries could be in need. While some replaceable batteries can be switched out by the user, many rechargeable batteries require a professional to manage. A hearing instrument specialist at our office can replace a rechargeable battery, help those struggling to switch out a replaceable battery on their own, and sometimes help a user switch from one battery type to another.
Cleaning and Maintenance
Something that is stuck inside an ear all day is bound to need some cleaning and maintenance now and then. Our hearing centers have special hearing aid cleaning tools to remove ear wax build-up, clean out any rust or build-up from moisture, and replace any deteriorating parts of the device. These simple maintenance tasks can help improve the longevity of a hearing aid device and promote ear health for the wearer through safe and clean practices.
Maintenance at Home
A hearing care professional can help keep a device operating properly, but there are things patients can do in their home environment to promote healthy hearing aid devices and keep natural sound quality at its best.
Don’t Pull the Tab
Hearing aids use a specific kind of battery known as zinc-air batteries. These batteries have small holes on the surface that allow air into the battery to stimulate the zinc and produce power. When a new battery is opened, the surface will be covered with a plastic coating. When you’re ready to use the battery, you will pull the coating off with a tab. Once this tab is pulled, the battery will begin to drain. Make sure you leave the plastic tab in place until you’re ready to use the battery.
5-Minute Rule
When you’ve pulled out that new battery and removed the plastic coating, don’t put the battery into your hearing aid immediately. Waiting 5 minutes will allow enough air to flow into the surface holes to fully activate the batteries’ power centers. This will provide some extended battery life in the long run.
Store at Room Temperature
The zinc-air batteries in hearing aids utilize airflow to function. This means they don’t mesh well with moisture. For these batteries, storing them in the refrigerator can harm the life of the battery by exposing it to condensation. Room temperature storage is going to help your hearing aid batteries run at their best.
Air Them Out
When you aren’t using your hearing aids, open the battery storage door to give the batteries access to air and minimize wasteful battery drain and possible corrosion. If you know you don’t be using your hearing aids for a longer period, take the batteries out completely. This can also help to prevent stuck moisture in the device from creating corrosion.