The Hearing Co. Troubleshooting Guide
Having trouble with our hearing aids? You're in the right place! Luckily, nearly all common issues are extremely easy to fix and in this guide we'll be showing you exactly that.
If you'd like us to help you out directly, please send us an email at support@thehearing.co
Squealing When Inserting Your Hearing Aids
This is by far the most common issue our customers have, but it's also the easiest to fix. In fact, all it requires is 3 easy steps.
Before we get into the 3 steps though, here are a few more common causes of squealing:
Excessive Earwax - the most common cause of squealing is excessive earwax build-up in either your ear or on the hearing aid itself. Please clean both your ear as well as the hearing aids thoruougly. If needed, use the provided wax guards as well.
Long Hair - if anything (including hair) comes in contact with the microphone located across from the pull-wire, there will be squealing. Make sure the microphone is always clean without anything rubbing against it.
Not Properly Inserted - if your hearing aids aren't inserted all the way into your ear canal, you'll experience squealing and other feedback. Please go through the rest of this guide as well as our video tutorials to see proper insertion techniques. A quick rule of thumb is that if you can see the hearing aids from straight on, they're not in far enough.
Incorrect Ear Dome Size - if your ear domes are too big or too small, you'll experience squealing and other feedback. Please make sure to try every single ear dome and then continue using whichever size feels best in your ear/stops all feedback.
Now let's move onto 3 easy steps to make sure you'll never experience squealing or feedback when inserting your hearing aids:
#1: Turn The Volume Down
Make sure to turn the volume down to it's lowest setting. You'll be able to increase it later, but for the time being leave it on it's lowest setting to practice (see video below - to turn the volume down, rotate the dial counter-clockwise).
#2: Don't Touch Or Block The Microphone
Make sure you hold your hearing aid on both sides without touching the microphone. If you block or brush against the microphone, your hearing aids will squeal. See the video below for the proper way to hold your hearing aids when inserting them.
#3: Use Proper Technique When Inserting Them
When inserting your hearing aids, make sure to pull your ear lobe back and insert the hearing aid directly into the canal, without touching the microphone. See the video below for proper technique when inserting as well as the picture below for how your hearing aids should fit in your ear.
Final Steps
After you've practiced inserting your hearing aids a couple times without experiencing any squealing, you can slowly raise the volume and continue practicing.
If you continue to experience squealing try readjusting each hearing aid once it's in your ear. If you've tried all 3 steps and are still having issues, please email us at support@thehearing.co and we'll be more than happy to help.
We've been able to fix the squealing for every single customer who's ever asked :)
Hearing Aids Won't Charge / Blue Light Goes Out
This is our second most common issue and you'll be glad to know it's not even an issue! Rather, it's a feature built into our hearing aids to protect the battery from overcharge damage.
When your hearing aids are already fully charged and inserted into the charging case, the blue lights will turn on for a few seconds/minutes and then go off. This is completely normal and it means your hearing aids are already at 100% charge.
Please keep in mind we pre-charge your hearing aids, so during your first ever charge the blue lights will most likely turn off very quickly.
Hearing Aids Won't Fit In My Ear
The most important part of our hearing aids fitting correctly is choosing the right sized ear dome. Please make sure to try all 4 sizes until you find which fits best for you. If you're having trouble replacing the ear domes, here's a link to our video tutorials (click here)
Once you have the right size ear domes attached to your hearing aids, it's important to make sure you're 1. inserting your hearing aids correctly and 2. they're sitting in your ear correctly.
NOTE: If you try the 2 steps below and your hearing aids still aren't fitting, please ask a friend or family member to help you get your hearing aids in properly (tip - make sure you or the person helping you pulls your ear lobe back). If you're still unable to get them fitting properly, please call email us at support@thehearing.co and we'll be more than happy to help!
#1: Inserting Your Hearing Aids Correctly
When inserting your hearing aids, make sure to pull your ear lobe back and insert the hearing aid directly into the canal, without touching the microphone. See the video below for proper technique.
#2: Make Sure They're Sitting In Your Ear Correctly
If your hearing aids aren't positioned correctly in your ear, they'll never fit properly - even with the correct sized dome. Make sure your hearing aids are inserted similarly to the picture below (on the right), with the volume adjustment dial at the bottom and the pull wire at the top.
There's No Sound Coming From My Hearing Aids
If you're not noticing an improvement in your hearing, it's from 1 of 2 reasons. The first being your hearing aids have fully drained their batteries/they're low on battery and the solution is simple - charge your hearing aids until the blue lights on your charging case turn off, then use your hearing aids like normal.
The second reason could be that your volume dial is turned all the way down. In order for our hearing aids to work, the volume dial needs to be slightly above minimum.
My Hearing Aids Aren't Charging
If your hearing aids aren't charging, it normally comes down to one of two things:
1. You haven't yet removed the shipping tabs that protect our hearing aids from losing their charge while shipping. Please make sure to remove them right away! If you're unsure as to what they look like, they're a clear/blue piece of tape that covers the contacts on both hearing aids.
2. The contacts are dirty. Please make sure to clean the contacts on both your hearing aids as well as the charging case and try again.
If neither of these suggestions help, please try reversing the two hearing aids in the charging case and see if that works. If you're still having trouble, please email us at support@thehearing.co
My Hearing Aids Are Making A Clicking / Tapping Sound
A clicking sound can only be caused by one thing: a flat or nearly flat battery. Once you fully charge your hearing aids, the clicking sound will be gone!
I'm Getting Whistling From My Hearing Aids
Whistling or any kind of feedback can be extremely annoying, but luckily it's really easy to fix. In fact, when all the following steps are followed properly, our hearing aids produce no feedback whatsoever!
#1: Make Sure You're Wearing The Right Size Ear Domes
Since each order comes with 4 different sizes of ear domes, we suggest you try all 4 and pick the one that fits best. If you're having trouble replacing the ear domes, here's a link to our video tutorials (click here)
Once you find the ear dome size that fits best, continue using it to make sure you don't experience any whistling or other feedback.
#2: Your Volume Is Turned Up Too Loud
Another common cause of whistling is having the volume turned up too loud for your needs. Our hearing aids can provide up to 70 dB of hearing support, but only a few of our customers ever need it.
You should only ever turn the volume up enough to hear normally again and no more. We suggest to start off with the volume dial turned all the way down and then slowly adjust it upwards until you reach a point where you're able to hear clearly again, without any whistling or feedback.
#3: You're Not Wearing Your Hearing Aids Properly
Please ensure they fit similarly to the picture above "There's No Sound Coming From My Hearing Aids"
#4: They're Not Fully Charged
If your hearing aids are low on battery, they won't function as they should. Make sure to place them into your charging case to fully charge them. Once your hearing aids are fully charged, the blue light on the case will go out.
#5: There's Earwax Build-Up In Your Ears Or On The Hearing Aids
If there's excessive earwax in your ears or covering your hearing aids, they'll produce feedback. Make sure to thourougly clean your ears with a Q-Tip, wax removal device or by seeing your doctor. Once your ear canals are clean, make sure your hearing aids are clean as well (especially the tip near the ear dome) and then re-insert them. All feedback should be gone!
The Wire Is Too Short, I Can't Get At It
If you're having trouble removing your hearing aids by their pull wire, you're not alone. In fact, many of our customers have the same issue and it's all caused by the same exact reason - they're not wearing our hearing aids correctly.
We can't blame them though! Nobody ever taught us how to wear hearing aids properly! So below is a picture that shows both the wrong and right way to wear your hearing aids.
On the left you'll see the pull wire is extremely hard to access as it's resting in a groove of your ear. On the right, you'll see the hearing aid not only fits a lot better, but the pull wire is also extremely easy to access.
Once your hearing aids are in your ear correctly, they're extremely easy to remove - even with stubby fingers! Just take a look at the video below.
I Have Other Questions.. Help Me!
To this day, there isn't a single issue with our hearing aids we haven't been able to resolve over the phone. If you're still having trouble with your hearing aids or your question wasn't answered here, please email us at: support@thehearing.co