For most people who wear hearing aids, hearing aid batteries are an absolute necessity. They keep your hearing aids powered up and in top working condition.
Recently, Hearing Tracker, an online resource, surveyed 1,000 hearing aid users about their hearing aids and battery usage. Here are some highlights:
- The average hearing aid user reports wearing their hearing aids 13 hours per day, and their batteries last an average of seven days.
- The most popular hearing aid battery by far is the size 312 battery, with 57% of participants using them.
- Most respondents, 54%, use some form of behind-the-ear hearing aid with Receiver-In-Canal (RIC) being the most popular style.
- The survey results showed that 62.5% of respondents do not stream audio to their hearing aids from their phone, TV, or other devices.
To help make your hearing aid batteries last longer, here is some more information about hearing aid batteries that you may find helpful.
- Wait before taking the sticker off your batteries. That’s because zinc air hearing aid batteries are powered by oxygen. The sticker seals the battery, keeping it fresh until it is used. The battery is activated when the sticker is removed. If you allow your battery to sit exposed to air for 1-2 minutes prior to inserting it into the hearing aid, you will maximize your battery life.
- It is best to store hearing aid batteries at room temperature (68-77°F). Heat also can shorten their lifespan and humid environments are not suitable for storage.
Many other things affect the life of your hearing aid batteries, including:
- Amount of time the battery is in use. Be sure to turn your hearing aids off by completely opening the battery door at night and when not in use.
- Size of battery.
- Amount of hearing loss; power required.
- Environmental influences (humidity and temperature).
- Changes in listening environments, such as higher levels of background noise.
- Use of additional features, such as Bluetooth streaming, which requires more energy.
For your convenience, Associated Audiologists sells hearing aid batteries at all of our locations. We re-stock this professional line of batteries each month to be certain they are fresh. Under normal circumstances, batteries should have a two to three-year shelf life. They are mercury-free and provide superior performance compared with over-the-counter batteries you might purchase in drugstore chains, at shopping clubs, or online. We provide half-off pricing for our patients.
These professional batteries work best with the digital technology and wireless connectivity features found in high-performing hearing aids. This means that although less expensive batteries are available, you may end up spending more to power your hearing aids for an equal amount of time. In addition, less expensive batteries can negatively affect the performance of your hearing aids.
Be sure to talk with your audiologist about which batteries work best with your hearing aids or visit https://www.hearingyourbest.com/in-ear-hearing-aids/batteries/.
