How do I soften hearing aid tubing that has hardened, so that I can replace them with a new one?
The tubing has gotten very hard, and I feel the hearing aid might break if I pull it out. Do you use a hair dryer with it? Or, maybe dip run the tubing part with hot water?
If your aid allows you to unscrew the tonehook and mold from the aid do it then I get a small twist drill bit in a pin vice and gently move bit into the tube in the mold to ease it out, thats what I saw an audi do in the past.
The Naida aids I have owned all have screw on ear hooks. You could prove this by searching the internet for Naida M SP ear hook and see if they are also screw on.
Personally I would unscrew the hooks from the aids and put the hook and tube in hot water for 10-15 minutes. That will soften the tubes enough to slip the tubes off the hooks. Hooks are pretty cheap on eBay.
Unfortunately, mine are not screwed on. However, they can be detached by pushing out a very small metal rod. Not sure if I want to go there yet. (It used to be screwed on, but I asked them to change the hook type, since the screw type kept getting loose every now and then)
Ok, didn’t know for sure about the Marvels.
Pushing the pin is also easy. I use a cork board pin. Works like a charm. Changing battery doors for Roger FM devices taught me.
When I had a really hard tube, I used a razor blade to slice a bit of it parallel to the ear hood where the tube is attached. Just don’t cut into the ear hook. They usually come off real easy after the slicing.
We are talking Naida SP Marvels.
The Venture and older Naida aids all had screw on ear hooks. It sounds like the newest Naida aids ear hooks are not screw on but are held on with a pin.
Is this what you see too?
Anytime l have a very hard earmold tubing, l go to local audiologist that does it for free. There are some audiologist office that fix the tubing or / and clean the aids for free.
I’ve cut hard tubing off the hook by slicing through the tubing vertically with a single edge razor blade–and being careful not to cut the hook. It’s not the safest or best way, but it sure as heck does the job.
The best way is to change them. Tubes get old and brittle with time. An audi can change them but it’s really not hard to change them yourself. I always have spare tubing at home because you never know