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How to clean domes

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New routine: I replace the domes every night. I have a stock of 20 tulip domes that get rotated every 20 days. Each night the dirty domes get cleaned with dish soap and running water and placed in the drier overnight before going back into stock. My aids are ready to wear with fresh clean domes in the morning.

Aids also go in the dryer but I use sweat bands 100% of the time so there is never any cleaning needed of the aids themselves.

This method is far easier and less time consuming for and instant dome use.

I hope no one minds if I continue this thread. I’ve had aids for about a month now (Oticon, open domes), and was thinking maybe I should do something about cleaning soon. So today I checked the instructions, and for open domes it just says don’t. It says replace them once a month.

I don’t remember my audiologist saying anything about this, but maybe I just forgot. Should I try wipng them, or ask her about replacements?

Some use alcohol wipes. I just splash a dab of alcohol on a clean towel or washcloth creating a temporary wet spot, and then clean my domes in the little wet spot.

Edited

I have a lot of wax that will plug vents in double vent bass domes (Oticon) in one or two days. I replace domes daily. The dirty domes go in a small cubic microwave-safe food container. When I run low on clean domes I put about 1/2 inch fresh water in the container, heat in microwave oven for 20 seconds, put on cover, and shake briskly for a minute. Drain on paper towel, pat dry. The domes come out as new. There does not appear to be any damage to the domes from this process. I think the clean domes every day help keep the wax in my ear under control. Also last a lot longer than they did before for me.

In reply to @pters

I remove the open domes every night(except when I’m at work) and clean the domes with alcohol wipes $Au7 for 200 at a discount pharmacy. They dry quickly and I replace the domes back on the receivers and place the aids in a D-dry ( drier and UV sanitizer). I replace the domes when they start to tear - usually about every three months.

I’ve got Costco KS7 aids, but they are actually Siemens/Signia, so that’s who the domes, receivers, etc. come from.

If there’s wax in the opening of the domes, I just use my fingernail to clean it out.

If there’s wax deeper in there, then I pry off the domes. It’s often impossible to get the wax out of the wax traps, and if so, I replace them. But I have to do this maybe once or twice a year. It’s dead easy.

I don’t replace the domes unless they’re damaged or seriously gross. Which means maybe every two or three months.

I used to be a lot more obsessive about all these cleaning / drying routines, but it doesn’t really seem to make a difference. At night, I try to put the aids someplace where I won’t step on them, basically.

I realize this is all a lot different for aids etc. where the electronics is stuck down inside your ear all day.

One thing I do wonder about is the microphones, especially with the cumulative effects of sweat. But I don’t see anyone fussing over that.

Mine came with a small spiral brush to clean the microphones. I also have a Jodi-vac but only use it occasionally because it does not seem to find much that the occasional brush and more frequent wipe with the microfiber cloth have missed.

Since I paid a high price for these aids I really want to make sure they last as long as possible.

@Psocoptera said:

Mine came with a small spiral brush to clean the microphones.

Thanks for that advice! I should really stop in at Costco and ask them about this. As for the rest, after a year I fibbed a little at Costco to get them to replace the receivers. But there was nothing wrong with them; the sound didn’t change at all. Other than that, I simply figured that the aids themselves are almost always out in the open, and that putting in a dryer probably wouldn’t make much difference. Doesn’t seem to have so far.

My first receivers lasted about 2.5 years which was way longer than expected. The receiver broke off the wire where they meet. I took it straight in and the audiology clinic replaced both immediately. Just lucky it did not break off while in my ear. Next time I will try for earlier replacement.

What a fascinating variety of responses regarding how to clean domes! My approach, which I’ve used for about a decade, adds even more to this variety. I’ve never felt the need to use a dryer and I’ve never used water.

About once a week on the average, I pull off the domes. Step one is to look into the with a magnifying glass (which enables me to see all the little holes). If they have even a slight trace of wax, I replace them. Wax guards aren’t straightforward to clean and they are very cheap.

Step two is to clean the domes. Years ago my audiologist gave me a little kit consisting of a brush, a little plastic tool with small U-shaped wires on each end, and a little plastic tool with one thin plastic bristle (about an inch long), which is the only tool I usually use. With the aid of my magnifying glass, I poke any wax out of the dome holes (the main ear canal-to- passage and the dome vents). Then sometimes I wipe the dome with a tissue. But the only reason for doing that is to remove any external wax residue that might find its way into a dome hole. I don’t see why it’s necessary or useful to get the domes sparkling clean.

I replace domes (which are also pretty cheap) maybe once every four-six months.

Well I’m a mold user so my process is a little different I just grab a cotton wool ball and dab in alcohol and rub down the mold itself this is done daily, for the tube part I usually insert a pin into the tube and gently ease any wax trapped out. I do the same for the vent hole too usually I have More wax in this than the tube itself due to bigger space. This is done about once a week.

Usually during wax buildup clean I check how the tube itself feels if it’s feeling hard I change tubes can vary in cooler weather it’s about every 2-3 months. In summer due to the heat it’s once a month

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