Your Choices in Hearing Aid Batteries
Hearing aid batteries are a vital part of the hearing aid itself. None of the electronic parts will work without being powered by the battery. They’re so essential that many individuals who have a hearing aid will also buy a hearing aid battery tester. It makes it easy to know when the battery is running low on power. Then they will know to have other batteries on hand to replace it.
The length of time that hearing aid batteries will last depends on the style of hearing aid being worn. The batteries for those small hearing aids that go inside the ear canal don’t last as long. That’s because the batteries are smaller and contain less of the substances required to produce power.
The older, more traditional kind of hearing aids utilized mercury batteries to keep them going. These batteries are much less effective than the newer zinc batteries that are popular these days.
Something called zinc air is the secret behind zinc batteries. This is a combination of the zinc contained inside the battery along with oxygen present outside the battery. This produces a reaction that powers the battery. They last approximately twice as long as the old mercury batteries.
You’ll find that zinc hearing aid batteries have a color coded tab. One of the reasons for this is so you can know the size of the battery. However, it also prevents air from entering the battery until you’re ready to start using it.
As soon as the tab is pulled off, oxygen starts to enter the battery. As the oxygen combines with the zinc, the battery becomes activated. For this reason the tab should not be removed until you’re ready to use it so it doesn’t start losing power.
There are four common sizes of hearing aid batteries on the market today. Every size of hearing aid has a certain size of battery that fits it. The smallest size is color coded with yellow and is labeled a ten. The largest size is 675 and is labeled in blue. Digital hearing aids that fit inside the ear canal typically use the smaller sizes. The behind the ear devices will use the larger sized batteries. You can buy hearing aid batteries just about anywhere where they sell hearing aids online.
The larger sizes are longer lasting since there is room to hold more zinc inside the battery. However, they are a lot more bulky. Many people would rather change the battery more often and have a less noticeable hearing aid.