Troubleshooting 4 Hearing Aid Problems

Hearing aids are common instruments used to help individuals with hearing loss. Like all technology, they’re not perfect and do occasionally come with faults and errors that can luckily be diagnosed by the wearers themselves. If you’re experiencing a fault with your hearing aids, consider troubleshooting problems at home before assuming the worst. However, we’d always recommend taking your hearing aid to an audiologist before attempting actual repairs on your device if the problem is severe or prevents you from using it. Below, you’ll find four of the most common hearing aid issues and how to check for them.

Hearing aids are too quiet

If you believe that your hearing aids are too quiet then it could be caused by a number of different issues. For starters, try inspecting the hearing aids yourself. Check if there is any earwax blocking the microphone or if there is any damage to the hearing aid itself. Inspect that there are no blockages either that could be preventing the sound from reaching your ear. If your hearing aids have a manual volume control, then try and set them higher if possible or at least check that they are not turned all the way down. If there are different settings on your hearing aids, then check to see that you don’t have the wrong profile selected. If it’s been a while since your last hearing test, then you may need to come to terms with the possibility that your hearing has gotten worse.

Hearing aids don’t seem to work

If your hearing aids simply don’t work, then there are a couple of tests you could do first. For starters, make sure the hearing aid is turned on. While this sounds basic and obvious, it’s easy to switch the device off due to size or dexterity issues. Next, make sure you take a look at the battery. If it’s been a while since you’ve changed the hearing aid batteries there’s a good chance a fresh pair will do the trick. Lastly, consider if you’ve accidentally damaged the device. If it’s a possibility, then you’ll need to take it to a hearing aid repair professional or visit your audiologist for advice.

Hearing aids are muffled or distorted

If you’re hearing static or if you’ve noticed that the sounds coming from your hearing aid are muffled, then here are a couple of things to check. First, inspect the batteries. If it’s been a while since they have been replaced, try swapping in new ones first. There’s a good chance that the batteries themselves are running low or it could be the battery contacts that have become corroded or damaged. You may also want to check for damage on the device, so inspect it visually to see if there are any cracks.

Hearing aids are inconsistent

Lastly, if you believe your hearing aids are inconsistent with the performance they provide then you may want to consider the battery. The battery being low or damaged can cause many different issues, but it’s the main cause of inconsistent hearing aids that change regularly in volume or sound distorted now and then.

If troubleshooting these four common issues doesn’t resolve the problem, schedule an appointment to have your audiologist examine your devices.