Why Is My Hearing Aid Battery Dying?
We recently had the pleasure of having an enthusiastic student of communication disorders with us for a day. Jennifer Parisi is a student at Molloy College studying speech pathology and audiology. Her visit with us helped her fulfill her requirement to observe an audiology practice. Her enthusiasm for learning about audiology and helping people overcome communication difficulties was obvious and truly delightful. Dr. Lazzaro and I thoroughly enjoyed teaching her about some of the things audiologists do to help their patients. I’m sure she will be very successful in her future endeavors and will certainly help many people. Jennifer’s current course of study includes audiology and speech therapy. She became interested in speech therapy when she saw the work a speech therapist did with her younger brother as part of an early intervention program to help him develop his speaking ability. (Her brother, whom I have met, has grown into an excellent student who is a pleasure to speak with.) As for Jennifer’s thoughts about her visit with us, here is some of what she had to say: A Student’s View At Hearing Center of Long Island, as many of you know, we provide hearing aid batteries for our patients at no charge, so they never have to be concerned about buying them. But that doesn’t mean they are not important. The humble hearing aid battery doesn’t get a lot of attention, but it’s vital for the functioning of your intricate, important device. Although some hearing aids have rechargeable batteries, most modern hearing aids are powered by a small zinc air battery. A sticker on one side of the battery keeps it inactive. When it’s peeled off, oxygen in the air makes contact with the zinc within the battery, and it activates. Logic might lead you to believe that placing the sticker back on the battery would prolong its life, but it won’t. However, when stored in a cool, dry environment, most zinc air batteries have a shelf life of up to three years, but it may vary.
We are often asked why some batteries last longer than others. There are several reasons. Consistent loud noise can cause the hearing aid to work overtime, requiring the batteries to work harder and discharge sooner. Increasing your daily hearing aid use will also reduce its lifetime. Low humidity can steadily dry out the battery, while high humidity may interfere with regular function over time. Low temperatures or high altitudes can similarly shorten its life expectancy — don’t keep your batteries in the fridge. Sweat, strangely enough, can also damage your battery, resulting in tiny amounts of rust, causing the battery to work only intermittently. Even equipped with these common reasons, it can be difficult to determine the root cause of a failing battery. If you notice that your batteries are not lasting as long as they should, give us a call; we can help!
“I had the pleasure of observing Dr. Cardano and Dr. Lazzaro at the Hearing Center of Long Island. It was a wonderful experience. Doctors Cardano and Lazzaro are so dedicated to helping their patients. They
Dr. Jennifer, Jennifer, and Dr. Larry
kept me very interested, and they inspired me. It is with a lot of enthusiasm that I look forward to my future audiology classes. My day at Hearing Center of Long Island proved to be as exciting as I thought that it would be. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to spend a day learning from these caring audiologists I couldn’t have chosen a better office; they were so welcoming and interested in sharing their passion for what they do. I am very excited to see what is in store for my future career.”
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- Jennifer Parisi
The Sound of Laughter
On Listening Friends are those rare people who ask how we are,
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Q: How do you know when a bad musician is at your door? A: He can’t find the key, and he doesn’t know when to come in.
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and then wait to hear the answer.” – Ed Cunningham
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