This is an anonymous Poll asking for your anonymous opinion. Your member name will not be shown in the results of the Poll. Also, the Poll will close in a month.
0 voters
I can only talk about Phonak Audeo M. And the answer is a big NO! I am actually DIY replacing one and it is not easy (if possible…). Just one reason: the infos and replacement parts are not easily (or at all) avaiable or provided by HA manufacturers. Thightly guarded secret!
Buy the way, I just received today the batteries (A13 size Li-ion) I ordered end of october from China…
Stay tuned!
@pvc
No need to indicate the meaning of No or Yes. It can be for any reason. I would suggest to add “DIY” at the end of the question.
Good suggestions. Though, a poll cannot be edited after 5 minutes.
btw> I also voted No. It just seems so difficult and so miniaturized.
Oh and we don’t have many votes. Maybe this is a fringe idea?? I wonder if the buyers of rechargeable hearing aids have thought about what to do with their hearing aids after 3 years or so?
This is an exchange with an ebay seller offering Phonak repair services:
Phonak Hearing Aid Repair listing on ebay.co.uk
Hi,
I have a Marvel 90 rechargeable with a bad battery.
Can you replace the battery for me?
Thanks,
BeLo
-----------------------------
Hi,I am sorry but this repair service does not cover that within the price.
Kind regards
Shaz
Customer Care-----------------------------
Hi Shaz,
Does that mean you are unable to replace the battery at all or just not for this price?
Thanks,
BeLo
-----------------------------
It would need to be sent to Phonak to be looked at…they can tell us if they can repair it and give us a quote. Is it not still under warranty?-----------------------------
I’m asking on behalf of a group of hearing aid users who are trying to work out a decent replacement route for their rechargeable batteries.
I’ve already tracked down several companies that supply the correct Li-ion cell but it doesn’t seem like the easiest of procedure as the cell is glued in place.
I saw your listing and assumed that it was a procedure that you had worked out yourself.
There’s a big market for rechargeable replacement!-----------------------------
Hi unfortuntaely not. We wouldn’t even attempt that.Kind regards
-----------------------------
They apparently cover “electronic replacement”. I can’t imagine changing the electronic circuit in the HA would be much easier than changing the battery. Sounds like they just cover basic stuff like changing receiver and cleaning. Reminds me of bike “tune-up” shops that oil your chain and call it a day.
In the YouTube channels, there are a lot of electronic specialists who show their video on how to change/replace the Lithium battery. Just wonder whether these electronic specialist could change the Li battery in the HA. As some of the HA replaceable Li batteries are made in China, hope one day there will some one producing a video to show us.
I don’t understand… so what they’re offer? what they do repair exactly?
100 for “one” aid. That quite expensive for rechargeable-battery replacement. Postage pays not included.
I mean, what is hard to re-glue new battery! its not rocket science!
@mami2529
Of course it is not “rocket science”.
May I suggest you try to do it and then, if successfull, you could teach us how to do it.
I never mean I can do it. Its just hard to think re-glue battery is harder than re-solder circuit.
@pvc lol is that necessary? I can’t do it of course.
J/K 
I think noone can do it unless it’s a hack job.
A late coworker used to say, when asked to do difficult or impossible things that “Nothing is impossible for the person who doesn’t have to do it.”
WH
Thanks for carrying on this project. I am anxious to hear what transpires, though not quite as anxious as I was. The HA (Phonak M70-R) I purchased on ebay, though I thought they were going to require replacing the batteries, did not, and they are lasting all day with around 30% in reserve. These are my first HA and I’m impressed so far. They are pretty helpful, and I like using them for bluetooth streaming as well. They might last me a while. I am hoping until BLE 5.2 is really ripe.
Keep us posted on progress. And thanks again for pioneering this effort to keep Phonak HA out of the trash.
Apply a glue is simple but applying on a HA’s rechargeable battery and getting it workable is not easy. Spot welding the Li battery is simple and fast. Putting it back into the hearing aids is another delicate job. To make sure the HA is 100% perfect for the wearer is just wonderful!
@mami2529 Well, at this moment, I believe that nobody offer this service for the reasons I already mentioned. I believe that even Sonova send a new HA instead of repairing it.
Re-glue a new battery would not be very difficult if:
Remember it is very very tiny and fragile. Please, review photos above… If you did that successfully, now you have to reconnect the new battery to the HA circuit and reassemble every thing.
Gooooooood luck!
I am actually working on that but I am not really certain that it will work. I will update when completed…
Spot-welding a battery contact carries a huge risk of shorting the battery, causing a seal failure on the steel casing, before considering degradation of the actual lithium capsule. You know that if you punch through the layering: the Lithium can oxidise at high temperature.
Stick them: you can get conductive adhesive.
You absolutely correct as spot welding involves high intensity power /temperature. Some of the photo show by the manufacturer of “coin” battery have a nickel plate spot -welded on it. It is best to leave it to the manufacturer to do a research on the degradation of battery using different type of welding. Putting a special adhesive to attach the nickel plate onto the battery could be the best choice.
Few months ago, I had a nice and very expensive pair of Phonak Audeo M-50R.
One day, they (and myself) were very sad because they were heading for the trashcan. Their batteries were dead. No obvious way to replace them, they are glued. No parts, no information available. Nobody could (would) do that.That was the end. Imagine, a mere 2 years and few months after birth! Just 3 months after the end of the warranty…if any.
Then, they asked me to save them : try to replace batteries. If successfull, they would gladly work for me again hopefully for many years.
No more thing to loose, I decided to give it a try. But I did’nt really know what to do.
After much looking, examining, googling, thinking and doing, they are now gladly back at work in my ears.
Questions? Comment?
Merry Christmas!
Nice work!
How did you reattach the battery in the end?
Not pictures, but an engineering paper on all the different tasks that a hearing aid performs.
Introduction to Hearing Aids and Important Design Considerations