Are Your Hearing Aid Batteries Draining Too Fast?

Hearing aids are essential for some people, especially if you have age-related hearing loss that is impacting your social life and mental health, but like most things that require batteries, it can be inconvenient and expensive to replace them continually. If you’re wondering what is causing your battery to drain so fast, you are in the right place; find out more about the battery life below.

Moisture Can Drain a Battery

Moisture from the skin or the external environment can drain a hearing aid battery. Humans are one of a few animals that produce moisture through the skin in order to cool down and release toxins; this moisture can get into the hearing aid battery and mix with the chemicals draining it.

Moisture from the external environment can also drain the battery in the same way. If you want to protect the hearing aid battery – especially if it is a rechargeable one – you should open the battery door before storing it or invest in a dehumidifier for it to protect the battery life for longer.

Advanced Features Can Be Draining

Most people are familiar with how the battery on a smartphone operates; the more apps and features you have installed and operating in the background, the faster the battery will drain. This same is true of hearing aid, especially newer models with advanced features.

Nowadays, hearing aids are very advanced; they have features for Bluetooth, noise cancelation and tinnitus relief. As with your smartphone, it’s a good idea to improve the battery life by switching off the features you are not generally using; or choose to charge the device more.

Altitude Can Drain the Battery

It might surprise you to learn that altitude changes can affect the battery life of your hearing device. If you are flying or hiking to a high altitude, you need to make sure your hearing aid batteries are fully charged because changes to the chemical composition can affect the battery.

The battery in a hearing aid is affected by altitude due to a reduction in oxygen. As you take the device to a higher altitude, the amount of oxygen in the better starts to reduce, decreasing the voltage of the battery. If your battery is running low, a high-altitude flight can cause them to die.

How Sensitive is Your Hearing Device

Modern hearing aids are quite sophisticated; they can tell you when your battery is running low and what is causing the issue. If your battery life is low, you might get a warning notification on your smartphone; you might also get a notification about the altitude of the humidity in the area.

The trouble is that a hearing device might be too sensitive, meaning you get notifications long before there is any serious issue with the battery. As you gain more experience with your hearing aid, you will understand how sensitive it is and can even turn off the messages.

Handle Your Batteries Properly

If you want to extend the battery life of your hearing aid and protect it from damage, you need to practice proper handling. The delicate button batteries in a hearing aid can be damaged by the oil on the fingers or grime or dirt. Some batteries also respond to freezing, but not hearing aids.

To protect your hearing aid battery, wash your hands before taking it out and handling it; also, reduce the number of times you handle the battery in general. If you sometimes freeze batteries to extend their life, you should avoid doing this with hearing aid ones because it doesn’t work.

Consider Rechargeable Batteries

Hearing aid batteries can be small and limited, so they tend to have a short life compared to other technologies you use daily. A typical hearing aid battery might last for a few days before needing to be replaced – this can be inconvenient and poses a health and safety risk to children in the household. People are switching to rechargeable ones.

A rechargeable battery for a hearing aid can last for weeks or months. Every night, you put the battery into a dock, and in the morning, it has a full charge; this is a more convenient way to maintain the battery life on your hearing device, and it is also more affordable in the long term.

If your hearing aid batteries are draining too fast, it could be down to your lifestyle habits or the way you handle the device. Reduce moisture exposure and wash your hands before handling the battery. Contact EarTech Audiology at (866) 464-1008 for more details on the right batteries for your devices.