Phillips Hearing Aid
Batteries begin to fail and shut down after a few hours, when this starts to happen, that battery will fail much faster and fail very quickly.
To replace the battery, you will need to order a replacement battery (if you can find one) from some online vendor.
Costco: Phillips HearLink 9010 miniRITE TR (purchased 2019)
These older hearing aids will not be maintainable any longer, Costco will require you to replace it with a new hearing aid. Or you can try to repair it yourself.
However, replacing just the battery may resolve your issues, or maybe not.
OEM Battery: Z22A (hard to find in the USA)
Replacement: LIR840 is easier to find however the MilliAmp rating is slightly less then OEM so this battery will go dead a little bit sooner after your recharge. Well worth the money if this is your only option. I found one that came with the battery door tool, it worked much easier than the threading pin I was using.
If you find either battery for sale online, consider buying one that comes with the battery door tool.
How to open the battery door: There is a small hole in the hearing aid that will fit a small straight pin. Most strait pins that you find in any sewing kit will be too thick. I was able to locate a threading needle that was a bit thinner and it worked, however I needed to hold it with needle nose pliers to insert it deep enough to pop open the battery door. I suggest also using a small Micro screwdriver to help pry the door open after releasing the door lock. Carefully open the door and try not to damage anything important. You are at risk. I polished the battery contacts on a clean piece of paper.
The best method is to use the included battery door tool. Note the battery replacement direction. If the hearing aid will not boot up, you probably put the battery in backwards. Pay attention.
How to trouble shoot batteries: I noticed that one battery would fail way before the other (left and right). This might be because I used Blue Tooth to streaming music, etc. to one hearing aid more than the other. I typically only stream to one ear, leaving my other ear for normal conversations. This may be why one battery failed way before the other. Possibly the Bluetooth streaming feature wore the battery down sooner.
I removed both batteries and swapped them (Left for Right). Then recharged and used them normally. I noticed that the premature dead battery failure symptom followed the suspect battery, this confirmed that the Hearing Aid was OK, but the rechargeable battery was the problem. Costco would not replace the batteries for me.
Finding replacement batteries was a problem.
The HearLink 9010 miniRITE TR uses a Z22A rechargeable 19.5 mAh and these are nearly impossible to locate in the USA.
Found on Ebay :
$89.99 for Two Z22A and tool (Note: most vendors are in the Ukraine)
New, 2x OEM for Oticon Z22A, LI-ION Rechargeable Battery + Removal Tool
3.8vdc 19.5 mAh
Other Options: If your hearing aid is not Too Old, then Costco will send it in for Cleaning (actually they will just replace it) there will be a fee/aid ($130)
This gives you a 1-year warranty, BUT after too many years they will not honor this. So, use this option BEFORE it is too late (ask them first for this drop-dead date).
I originally choose this option when my aids were just under 5 years old and they lasted 26 months till the battery started to fail again. While the Costco technician was handling my hearing aids, I saw them use a battery door tool to pop open the battery door. So I knew there was a tool and a method. Later Costco employees said this tool did not exist, or they did not have one. (Lesson learned that I was on my own)
Sources: Ebay, hearsource.com8
Ai: Z22A is a lithium‑ion rechargeable hearing‑aid battery, and its direct modern equivalent is LIR840, sharing the same size and electrical specifications.
I do like dealing with Costco, however they are not always willing to find a simple solution for you, they would rather you purchased a newer device. So, if your handy as a DIY then it's worth a try. I was able to repair one hearing aid for about $43 and get me back to hearing properly again.
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