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Cleaning microphone screens?

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Although I take great care to keep the microphone screens on my Phonak Smart XI’s clean, brushing them off, using a dryer etc, in time (usually a couple of months) they become blocked with “stuff” - looking through the screens with a magnifier shows very few of the tiny openings clear.

My Audi gave me a small supply of the screens which are easy to remove/replace but difficult to obtain without another audi visit.

I have experimented with soaking an old set in alcohol, very carefully blowing out residue and letting thoroughly dry out before reuse with some success. I wonder if this is a well advised practice? Anyone have recommendations?

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Are you referring to the little plastic screens that come on a stick? I was just going to ask a similar question regarding the No that my Oticons use. Tiny little plastic baskets that sit in the receiver (speaker) to keep it clean. They go for $10 for six (one pack) on Amazon. The battery dealer that sponsors this forum does a little better, but it’s still ridiculous! Higher maintenance cost than my batteries. I can deal with the $4,000 for the set, but this is nuts. I want to know if I can just clean them like you are asking.

Sorry to be ticked off, but I am.

Dale

The little holes are built into the hearing domes on my Rextons. I keep my ears as clean as possible but the wax still builds up in the tiny holes in about a month. Online, the best price I have seen is $20 per pack of six. So far, I have just been replacing them about one time per month.

I wonder if an ultrasonic cleaner with some type of safe cleaning fluid would work? Has anyone tried an ultrasonic cleaner to clean screens and domes?

@jlgreer1 said:

The little holes are built into the hearing domes on my Rextons. I keep my ears as clean as possible but the wax still builds up in the tiny holes in about a month. Online, the best price I have seen is $20 per pack of six. So far, I have just been replacing them about one time per month.

I wonder if an ultrasonic cleaner with some type of safe cleaning fluid would work? Has anyone tried an ultrasonic cleaner to clean screens and domes?

Ultrasonic cleaners are an option - though you might struggle to get all the material out. TBH the most effective way is usually alcohol and a brush. However once they get clogged the first time, you’re always going to struggle to get a lot more use.

Not all the screen materials are the same either - some (Phonak) just seem to suck in the dust and salt from perspiration more than others.

I just received a set of smart ix 2 days ago, and they did not come with a brush or any other cleaning tools. Can I use a small brush that I got with my electric razor? I have with domes, are you saying to use alcohol on the part that goes in the ear… not on the electronic part that is behind the ear. I just want to be clear on what gets clogged.

Edited

You should only clean mic filters if you’ve taken them off the aid first.

The receiver side can be cleaned with alcohol to remove wax, but use it fairly judiciously as the silicone dome will start to deteriorate and there’s a risk of the alcohol plus detritus going down the receiver sound tube.

Most of my customers who want to keep things cleaners use pre-injection swabs that you can get from the chemist/drug-store, these have enough alcohol to give things a good wipe over, but are unlikely to swamp an aid. Single use too - use once on each side per aid.

Please, please, please, someone post a pic of the mic filters. I removed the cover and did not find anything underneath. Not sure why they aren’t there. Maybe I need to go down further. There was a rubber piece I removed but found that that just protects the area where the switch depresses.

I also would like to see a picture!

I was cleaning with a brush my left microphone (I got from America Hears) because I felt the sound was a bit plug but I only made things worse!

Now it is almost mute!

This happened gradually (I was hearing less and less) a few months ago, eventually I went to a local Audi and he cleaned it in less than a minute! I have no idea how he did it but it has to be simple, I doubt he removed the mic screen.

I don’t have the plastic filter on my left hearing aid and this causes me problems. Now I have no idea how to get it cleaned since I am traveling and it is also week-end.

Hope some of you can help.

Freq 250 500 1K 2K 4K 8K
Left 35 40 50 65 65 60
Right 35 45 55 65 65 60

Edited

The audi probably used a small vacuum designed for ’s. I know that is what my audi used when I had a similar problem. There is one I read about on the forum called a “Jodi Vac”. Also someone else on the forum apparently made their own from a hand held car vacuum. I did a search on Jodi Vac and there are a number of places to purchase them online. Good luck.
Freq L R
0250 25 20
0500 25 30
0750 45 45
1000 55 30
1500 40 50
2000 40 30
3000 60 45
4000 70 60
6000 60 65

Edited

Here’s a pic of the Phonak Audeo smart XI screens I’ve been dealing with. The “old” micro-screens were getting clogged up with dirt very frequently which seriously degraded hearing. These are the ones I was cleaning.

The “new” are a different design now provided from Phonak with slots instead of screens. They work much better although I am wondering what dirt may be getting in through the slots. Time will tell.


Ok. I had my suspicions over the weekend as to what my problem was and now the picture cleared it up. I thought the screens were separate from that cover. In other words, I popped off the cover thinking there were screens underneath. I now see that the screens and the cover are one in the same. Thank you so much for posting that!

Here are some additional thoughts:

I got my hearing aids in February so they already had the new type of mic protectors. I’m calling them protectors and not screens because upon checking closely under a microscope, I do not see any screen. It just looks like a plastic cover with 4 slits. That being said, I switched them out yesterday and it did seem like the sound quality got better. However, this may be just a psychological effect. I would caution anyone wearing the aids in a dusty environment. As the slits do not seemto be sufficient protection against dust particles.

One thing though. I did experience the scratch noise prior to changing out the screens as someone mentioned on this thread. Since I changed them, I haven’t heard it, however its been only a day.

Being that there are no screens, I feel that they can be easily cleaned and re-used. Perhaps swap them out every 6 months or so. Easy to remove, not so easy to pop back into place.

The best source is from your provider. Clinics normally provide free supplies.

My Phonak Naida S mic screens (two per aid) are flat, flush, grey oblongs, 5 mm long with rounded corners. Dramatically better hearing when my Audio cleaned them with some apparatus after several years.
When they blocked again, during Covid lockdown, I simply licked them in situ and got the sound back. However… I pushed my luck and licked again, and down went the volume. It recovered, though not fully, after a day drying out in a warm room.
I wonder, can one pick the screens out with a needle for a safer attempt? Maybe suck the debris particles out by mouth?

Why don’t you just buy new Wind and Weather protectors.

I’m in the UK so this link won’t mean anything but they are easily bought.

Phonak Wind and Weather Protectors - HAB Hearing23

Phonak Wind and Weather Protectors – £12.00 Some Phonak hearing aids have a filter to cover the microphone ports at the top of the hearing aid and also often a filter underneath the battery tray. These filters make the hearing aids water...

Thankyou Zebras! Really appreciate that tip - didn’t think such odd little items could actually be bought! HAB look like a good firm, too.

A follow up on the Phonak Naida filters: HAB posted them to me very quickly, installation is straightforward (if micro-fiddly!) and the difference is enormous! Really, really worthwhile. I’m grateful for Zebras’s tip.
I used a needle, and took care not to poke straight into the hole that leads to the mic. Anyone else thinking to do it, I suggest practice on the less-critical battery cover first. The Short filters are the ones to get.

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