Ear Wax Filter an Blue Tooth on Rexton Trax 42

I have had Costco Rexton Trax 42 hearing aids for about 6 months. I thought and still think that Costco ha personnel are tops. However, I started hearing a shrill whistle from the ha in my left ear. After a few days I called Costco and asked what could be causing this. The receptionist, not the audio people, told me that I didn’t have it inserted tight enough in my canal. I have an ear mould in each ear and I tried again and again to reseat it so I would not hear the whistle. When that didn’t work I got an appointment for the next day. It isn’t easy for me to get to the nearest Costco which is more than 100 miles away.

I met with an audio specialist and told him the problem. He looked in my ears and told me that I had too much wax accumulated and that was causing the whistling. He could only suggest I go see an ENT physician to get my ears cleaned (I had that done just before buying the ha in April). He told me that I should plan on seeing an ear specialist every few months to get my ears cleaned. I told him that would be too difficult for me to do and told him that I wanted to return the ha. No problem, he said, and immediately filled out the proper papers and I got a full refund.

Since returning home I have been looking on the Internet and found that there are “wax screens” that should be changed every few months. No one had told me that wax screens even existed or that the ear mould could be cleaned. I had used the tool that came with the ha to get out ear wax remnants.

Since I will be moving from Maryland to California in a month where there is a Costco a few minutes from where I will live. I’d like to get another pair from Costco and try again. In between I am following a routine to soften and clear out any remaining ear wax and, if necessary, will go to an ENT for a full cleaning.

What I would like to know and cannot find an Internet link I will ask you in the hearing aid forum community the following:

Do Trax 42 (used with ear moulds) have replaceable wax screens that I could change on my own?

Does it look like there will even be a better model than the Trax 42 in the near future? And

Do any ha have direct contact via bluetooth between the ha and an iPhone without wearing a device (smart connect)? I read somewhere that Apple may soon have an app that can directly communicate with some ha without using a middle device.

Thanks for reading; I look forward to reading your comments.

Ed Eckert
Ocean City, Maryland

They can show you how to change the wax guards and give you a supply or they’ll change them for you. A filled wax screen normally makes the aids seem non-functional.

There is a better model out and it is the KS7 which can also save you a nice piece of change. Hope you are under the 6 months and if you are just over I would complain. Costco is good about complaints. With Rexton being the new supplier they should cooperate.

Normally a wax buildup causes muting of sounds. The drugstore has wax removal kits.

MFi devices (Octicon, Starkey, Resound) can communicate directly with an iPhone. Others require the intermediate device. Apple sells thejm the very low power BT chip that are used in MFi aids.

Hydrogen Peroxide once a month or so. Read this. I have had a history of excessive wax buildup all my life. I recall two instances where a doctor pulled a large wax “cork” out of my ear. Once, when using a drugstore ear cleaning solution, I had one of those corks slide out of my ear. Ever since using Hydrogen Peroxide, I have had no issues. Went to see my audi yesterday and he used his otoscope to pull just a tiny piece of wax out of my canal. He remarked at how clean my ears were.

I dont believe the trac is still available. They didnt mean wax build up on the receivers they mean the wax build up was altering the fit of your molds.

Apple does not sell chips to any hearing aid manufacturer. MFi and Bluetooth are implemented using technology from companies such as Nordic Semiconductor, CEVA, and NXP.

To get the wax out of your ears doesn’t require an ENT unless cleaning yourself fails. DO NOT put anything small than your elbow in your ear! No Q-tips…ever!

Hydrogen peroxide bubbling in your ear will loosen wax and maybe break it up a bit. The other, less irritating option is to dissolve the wax. Get an eye dropper and any kind of vegetable or olive oil and some cotton balls. Tilt your head and with the eye dropper, place one drop of oil in your ear. Then plug your ear with a cotton ball. Repeat on the other side. Now go to bed. In the morning, your ears will be spotless, the oil gone and more than likely the cotton balls will have fallen out of your ears in your sleep, so you’ll hear the alarm! :slight_smile:

Good luck.

Evil.

I have an earwax issue. At one point, on my GP’s recommendation, I started using hydrogen peroxide. It worked, but it also dramatically stimulated whatever mechanism that actually gets the earwax made. So for me, anyway, it was not a good solution.