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Streaming with Phonak Nadia

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Hi all, another, probably silly question, but my audiologist was a bit unhelpful.

Can you “wear out” your hearing aids by streaming too much? :joy: I know it munches the battery power, but it shouldn’t cause undue stress on the aid unless it’s not working properly, right? I stream a LOT throughout the day to mask tinnitus and to make calls at work etc. My Bluetooth dominant aid (right) often goes through periods where it sounds duller than the left and audiologist says nothing is wrong with it but maybe I’m “streaming too much.” He suggested we could switch the dominant aid to “give the right one a rest” and honestly that just seems weird to me. Is he right? Should I be alternating the dominant Bluetooth aid so I don’t overwork it?

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The dominant aid switch is a convenience selection based on which pocket or where the phone is carried, IMO.

Streaming should not harm the hearing aids.

I agree that streaming should not “hurt” or “wear out” the hearing aid.

However, if, at the end of the day, you notice that the battery of one hearing aid is consistently more depleted than the other, you might consider switching to wear the batteries more evenly (assuming you have rechargeables).

But the processor, microphones, and receivers are running all the time (the hearing aids are on). I wouldn’t expect streaming to “degrade them” any more than not streaming.

@bpeckham I have disposable batteries as allegedly they don’t make rechargeables strong enough for the kind of aid I need (that might also be rubbish, I don’t know). So I go through a battery about every 5 days. And yes, the right one does run it down more, but on testing, it’s only by about a days worth of power. So I just replace them both when the right one starts beeping.

Thanks for your reply. It did feel like he was talking nonsense, but I wanted to be sure.

When using zinc air batteries, I can hear a difference in audio quality in both my hearing aids as the batteries discharge. It normally is just a slight dulling of the sound quality.

If I know I am going to be in a situation where hearing well will be a challenge, I install new batteries. The change in sound quality is immediately apparent to me. I imagine this is possibly dependent on hearing aid design and possibly my individual hearing loss.

I would suggest you try switching the batteries out when you hear any sound degradation. That might solve your problem. It certainly will not cost a lot to experiment with a premature battery change. It might not make any difference to your but it could help.

Good luck.

If you wear hearing aids for a long time, moisture can accumulate in the tubes, which degrades the sound, dulls it a little. I suggest you take a break and clean your ears with cotton swabs, not only from wax but also from moisture in your ears. You will notice that the swabs are wet.

I think that the dominant ear should be the one that has the best hearing. In your case it is the right ear and for me the left. I too use Naida P90’s. I totally agree Martin Gayle that changing batteries before you hear the beep is helpful. I do this when the feedback from my hand over the ear gets weaker. Yes, my left usually goes first.

You might get one additional day of use by switching the batteries from one aid to the other around the third day.

@abalosa That’s actually genius and I can’t believe I didn’t think of it! I’m going to give that a try. Thank you.

In reply to @pclewis

@pclewis I must admit I don’t really notice them “going” and the beep is my only warning. Perhaps they run down fairly equally. What I notice when the right one dulls is a very obvious fade that doesn’t seem connected to battery power at all. It’s very odd but as others have confirmed, I don’t think it’s connected to streaming.

In reply to @markoo355

@markoo355 A great suggestion, and a good reminder to others, but unfortunately I don’t think it’s the cause of my issues. I use a Lux drier every day and keep my aids with silica gel when I’m not wearing them as I live in a place with pretty high humidity. Definitely have had issues with moisture before with my old aids, in fact it’s one reason why I can’t wear aids with a receiver in the ear. Thank you for your suggestion though.

In reply to @MartinGale

@MartinGale I’m willing to give that a try—someone else suggested swapping batteries between aids about half way through their usual use which is a good start.

I also have one of those little white sound damper things in my ear hooks and I wonder if removing that might help too. Going to be honest and say I didn’t even know what that was until I did some searching on here. Assumed it was a .

Thank you for your advice.

Not an expert, but if the sound from one hearing aid is different from the other, while using Bluetooth, then I suspect a problem with that aid.

Maybe worth swaping bluetooth side to check if the problem persist on the same aid or follows the main Bluetooth aid.

If still under warranty, then send them for service.

Also, maybe worth getting different tube with thick wall and moisture resistant, that could help.

In reply to @Tee

The best way to get maximum life out of your batteries is to swap batteries from each side every day. That averages your higher power usage over both aids. I still suggest you try changing to new batteries when you notice sound quality degrading. When your aids compromise what your ears hear your brain has to try to work harder to understand exactly what you are hearing. It can be a distraction that might not be necessary.

My mother has dementia and I am constantly battling her caregivers to change the batteries in both her hearing aids daily. I buy batteries at Costco. The total cost is less than US$160 per year if both batteries are changed daily. Considering the importance of hearing and it’s effect on dementia, it is a small cost.

Good luck.

@MartinGale I feel like this is essential info that should be passed on to every hearing aid battery user! I’ve worn for 35 years and this is literally the first time I’ve heard of it and also I feel so silly because it’s so obvious :joy:

My husband then decided to do the maths and tells me we can save $15-20 a year on batteries if they last even just one more day.

It’s not much, but it would certainly add up over time.

In reply to @MartinGale

I think this is excellent advice. My first-and-only hearing aids are rechargeable, but I’ve considered getting a back-up pair of disposable-battery so that in a pinch, I’d have a fresh supply of power.

In reply to @Tee

I recall reading, on a different post on this forum, that the sound dampers can sometimes absorb moisture. That could certainly dull the sound!

In reply to @AttilaDaPun

@AttilaDaPun I don’t think it’s that. There will definitely be some of that, especially at the end of the day, but it does seem to be a noticeable and steady decline in the aid especially if I’ve had a heavy streaming day. Like, I can hear it “going”. Almost like someone was nudging the volume down. And changing the battery for a new one or putting it in the drier doesn’t seem to help. It just sort of comes back to life over the next couple of days if I don’t stream as much. It’s very weird. It’s also not the app or phone playing silly beggars as I don’t tend to bother connecting to the app.

Audiologist assures me both aids are working as they should, so I just don’t really know. Very odd. Unless it is actually an issue with my ear. :person_shrugging:

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