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Cerushield wax filter and Dome Replacement Phonak Audeo P90

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When to change domes and cerushield on a Phonak Audeo P90? What is the criteria for changing them.

DOME: Obviously one would change the dome if it was torn or if it easily comes off. It seems like mine could go on forever, but I did change them after 3 months as Aud recommended this, but it seemed wasteful. Currently cleaning: daily, brush off, very rarely brush off with alcohol wipe (if dropped).

WAX FILTER: The cerushield wax filter is a little more confusing because I’ve been told to change it when you notice a change in hearing and/or every 2 to 3 months regardless. Apparently the Cerushield disk can be in need of changing but the user may not be able to tell.

Current care: I was told by one aud to NOT remove the dome, just brush off as needed and by another to REMOVE the dome. So I’ve been removing the dome nightly and brushing off as needed. I also lightly brush off around the receiver (just the very outside tip really) - have never really found anything there.

Your thoughts?

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I change the cerushield often. Every time I put a new one in I think I hear better. I hate these little thngs. I never had trouble with the old ones. I like them better.

A thought–they are so tiny. How can they last as long as the old wax filters did? Same ear. Same wax

Cut apart a car’s oil filter. Spread out the paper filter media inside. The better filter will have more paper media. More surface area. Lasts longer…

I have had a dome come off in my ear. Had to visit my audiologist. I don’t want to do that again.

DaveL
Toronto

Seems like removing the dome daily would be hard on the dome and make it more likely to come off in your ear. However, it doesn’t seem like you’ve had any issues doing it. I don’t think they’re any set guidelines. Brush the visible wax off, keep the aids clean looking and change when you notice a difference. (or pick a fixed time period if you want)

I think one can get longevity out of domes by handling them with care. I remove mine maybe once a week and literally WASH them in warm, soapy water. I press them in a towel to dry, let them sit until I know they’re dry, then put them back on the speaker tip.

I’ve wondered if working them OFF and ON that tip may weaken the speaker tho! So I try not to apply too much force.

As for the Cerushield? I’d rather be hog-tied and beaten with shoes. That entire process is so ridiculously difficult that I simply never change them. Never! I’ll wear aids for a few years without ever changing that Cerushield. I have very dry, empty ears, so that helps. But even the ONE time my audi changed the Cerushield for me, he managed to jam TWO into the tiny speaker head, and only a year later, under a magnifying glass, did I find that out.

The Cerushield is what needs to be simplified. Oticon’s are EASY to change (or mine was, years ago). Phonak needs to reinvent the entire gizmo: flying saucer dispenser and method of changing these wax guards.

If I had known how bad the cerushield are I would have refused Phonak hearing aids.

Sonova Canada is about 2 miles away from where I’m sitting right now. They won’t talk to me. I sat in my audiologists office and he talked to Sonova passing on my complaint. The talker there said they had no complaints. My take…I’m not the client. The audiologist is. Sonova made decisions, and I have to accommodate those. I never ever had problems changing wax guards using the conventional guards. That’s in 20 years of using hearing aids.

It was designed by young folk. I’m not young anymore. You voiced my criticism really well. A thought–the new waxguards are so small. There are fewer orifices in them than the old ones. They will plug faster. I would like to have my hearing tested real world…that’s with my used wax guards in place.

Most seniors I’ve talked to don’t even know they have wax guards. They don’t change them.

DaveL
Toronto

In reply to @MDB

@MDB

After I have a pattern…when I start asking those around me to repeat what they’ve said…I change my waxguards. Sometimes it’s a week…sometimes less. I find that using the anchor on my receivers when I take off the dome and can see the waxguard, it’s in wrong about 30% of the time. So I change them then. I always check before I put the dome on. Even so–that’s the average. The waxguard is in crooked and may have blocked sound after putting the dome on.

Waxguards must have been designed by young folk with great dexterity and eyesight. And I’m supposed to hear the “click” when i’m taking out the , or putting a new one on the receiver? I’m hard of hearing! Hearing aids are a life safety necessity for me. I’ve almost been hit on construction sites by unheard hazards. Diesel powered loaders moving fast.

My hearing aids are provided because I’ve qualified due to exposure to loud noise at work. Additional expenditures must be approved. The only free solution is to remove my waxguards and not use them at all. I’ve done that when I needed to.

In reply to @DaveL

@DaveL said:

I have had a dome come off in my ear. Had to visit my audiologist. I don’t want to do that again.

I had the itty bitty teensy weensy WAX GUARD fall out in my ear canal. That little speck 'o trouble sat in the canal for about 6 mos. One fine day, (as I periodically use a magnifying mirror and little flashlight to look IN my ear canals) I gasped to see the sitting at the doorway of my ear canal! Like it finally worked its way outward, LOL. I immediately called my audi, he took me right in, and used a tweezer to lift it out for good.

I totally agree that it’s near impossible to change the Phonak wax guards without mangling them and inventing cusswords at the same time.

I change the only when I sense that they are affecting my hearing.

I do not remove the domes - simply clean before I put my aids in.

I find a microfibre cloth far more effective than a brush at removing dried wax from the surface of the domes.

In answer to my own question … this is very individual process, I hadn’t realized when I posted the question back in May of 2023.

DOME: I still remove the dome daily, because I sometimes find a bit of wax there and/or it allows for a closer inspection. I am very careful to be sure the dome is securely on the receiver. I also find a cloth and a brush and good light to be helpful in cleaning the dome.

WAX GUARD: I have been changing them every three months, however I think - in my case they could go longer. I’ve realized. it is best, for me, to really pay attention to how I remove and put in the Cerushield. If I take my time, it is easy peasy, but if I rush or don’t pay attention (or blink🙃) — I may not get it in straight and then that makes it difficult to get out again. The internet / Youtube has been my friend in order to understand how to remove a crooked CeruShield.

Last week I lost a dome and made an emergency appointment to see my Doctor. I was fine. I’ve had one lost in my ear canal, twice.

Wax Guards…I go through them frequently. When I change them I always hear better. Yet my audi’s have always said my ears are clean. My basic change is one week; that works for me. And I ain’t going to change. I have sports locks on my hearing aids/receivers. That makes it 100 times harder to change the on my Phonak Audeo Paradise P90R’s.

I used to see a Zen Monk with a bunch of seniors. None of them knew they had wax guards in their hearing aids. They never changed them.

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