As a swimmer, you enjoy being in the water. The pool is like your second home (when you were younger, everybody said you were part fish–that’s how often you wanted to go swimming). Today, the water seems a little… louder… than normal. And that’s when you notice you might have made a mistake: you brought your hearing aids into the pool. And you don’t know if it’s waterproof or not.
In the majority of scenarios, you’re right to be a little concerned. Hearing aids are often designed with some amount of water resistance in mind. But being resistant to water is not the same as actually being waterproof.
Water resistance ratings and hearing aids
Keeping your hearing aids dry and clean is the best way to keep them in proper working order. But for the majority of hearing aids, it won’t be a problem if you get a little water on them. The IP rating is the official water resistance figure and determines how water resistant a hearing aid is.
The IP number works by giving every device a two digit number. The device’s resistance to dust, sand, and other kinds of dry erosion is represented by the first digit.
The second number (and the one we’re really interested in here) signifies how resistant your device is to water. The greater the number, the longer the device will keep working under water. So a device that has a rating of IP87 will be quite resistant to sand and work for around thirty minutes in water.
Some modern hearing aids can be really water-resistant. But there aren’t any hearing aids currently available that are totally waterproof.
Is water resistance worthwhile?
The intricate electronics inside your hearing aid case won’t do well with water. Before you go swimming or into the shower you will definitely want to take out your hearing aid and depending on the IP rating, try not to use them in excessively humid weather. If you drop your hearing aid in the deep end of the pool, a high IP rating won’t do much good, but there are other situations where it can be useful:
- If you live in a fairly humid, rainy, or wet environment
- If you have a heavy sweating problem
- You love boating or other water activities that generate over-spray
- There have been times when you’ve forgotten to take your hearing aid out before going into the rain or shower
This is certainly not a complete list. It’ll be up to you and your hearing specialist to take a look at your day-to-day life and identify just what kind of water resistance is strong enough for your routine.
Your hearing aids need to be taken care of
Your hearing aid isn’t maintenance-free just because it’s water resistant. Between sweat-filled runs, it will be wise to make sure that you clean your hearing aids and keep them dry.
You may, in some circumstances, need to purchase a dehumidifier. In other cases, it may just mean keeping your hearing aids in a nice dry place at night (depending on your climate). But certain types of moisture can leave residue (like sweat), so to get the best benefits, you will also want to take the proper time to clean your hearing aids completely.
What can you do if your hearing aids get wet?
Just because there’s no such thing as a waterproof hearing aid doesn’t mean you should panic if your hearing aid gets wet. Mostly because panicking never helps anyway so it’s best to remain calm. But you will want to completely let your hearing aid dry and check in with us to make sure that they aren’t damaged, particularly if they have a low IP rating.
The IP rating on your hearing device will give you a concept of what you can expect in terms of possible water damage. If you can abstain from getting your hearing aids wet, you will get the best results. The drier your hearing devices remain, the better.
