Intermittent problem charging KS10's

Hearing Aids
#1

During the past month, I’ve had an intermittent problem charging – about one day in ~10.

Typically, at night I turn off the aids with the buttons and then “bake” them in a dryer and put them in the charger but do not plug it in. In the morning, I plug in the charger and the aids are ready in ~40 minutes.

But occasionally, including today it fails. Today, they started flashing yellow as usual and after ~30 min. flashed green. But they were still flashing green 45 min. later. So I unplugged the charger, waited ~ a minute, plugged-back in and they were flashing yellow again. So I took them out and checked with the Easy Line app, which showed ~40% charge, which is about what I expect at the end of the day, not after >60 minutes of charging.

So I rubbed the contacts against my pants to clean them, put them back in the charger which flashed yellow again and a few minutes later, Easy Line showed ~44% charge. Then after several more minutes ~50% and later ~70%. This indicates the charger is now working. But it’s been over 2 1/2 hours and my aids are not yet ready.

What to do? I am not sure that it was my rubbing the contacts that fixed the problem today. Other times, just unplugging/re-plugging the charger worked. If I take the system back to Costco, chances are they will work perfectly.

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KS-10 'Charger Problem'?
#2

What dry box do you use?

If it gets too hot, it can damage rechargable batteries.

That might be the issue but ignore this comment if you are using a correct dry box.

#3

re; “What dry box do you use?”

PerfectDry Lux. Aids are pleasantly warm to the touch when drying is finished. And I do try to turn off aids before drying.

My aids finally charged. Lights were solid green & Easy Line showed 99 & 100%. Took almost 3 hours.

#4

Are you sure that the temperature reached in the PerfectDry Lux is not too high for the rechargeable batteries in the KS10 aids? That is why I bought Phonak’s own Charge & Care unit – but Costco doesn’t sell them.

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#5

I suggest testing the charge on another charger. Just to be sure where the problem is. Charger or Hearing Aid.

#7

Similar issue for me was me not inserting particularly the right one correctly in the charger. I saw the yellow then green flashing but that was the aid restarting, not being nearly charged. I have been rotating them (top toward me)into the slot versus just pushing down and the problem has gone away. rotating to take them out also makes it easier to remove them. I let the charger turn them off since that is how the inverter is set up. Tech told me to hold the button down for 20 seconds then put them in the charger to reset the inverter.

#8

I’m on my second pair of KS10s. I bought them when they first came out. In December my left hearing aid locked up. It wouldn’t connect to Bluetooth. However, it still functioned as a basic hearing aid and amplified. When I put it in the charger the charging light on the back of the hearing aid didn’t light up, but it seems to have been taking a charge because it functioned all of the next day. When I went back into Costco, I was told they had seen this with one other customer. They gave me a pair of loaners and sent mine back for repair. The manufacturer replaced them. Last week, I was pairing them with the TV streamer, and the problem reoccurred. I discovered that if I held the button in for 20 seconds the hearing aid would reset and function as normal. This happened again the next day when I was re-pairing it with my phone. Once again, a 20 second push on the button resolved the issue. I believe it is a software bug. My HA fitter is reaching out to the manufacturer to see what they have to say. Stay tuned for further developments.

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#9

Does the Phonak charger work with the Costco aids? It looks like the contacts are different.

#10

Yes, I’m using the Phonak Charge & Care with my KS10s.

#11

Thanks for the suggestions. FWIW, today before charging, the aids started out at 54 & 50% per Easy Line and the charger worked – took 76 minutes 'till both had solid green lights & Easy Line reported charge of 100 & 99%.

I doubt the problem is due to improper insertion because it occurred on both aids at the same time. Also, yesterday the charger SEEMED to be working – lights went from yellow flashing to green flashing in ~30 minutes but later when I stopped charging & checked the charge it was only ~40%.

A similar problem has occurred occasionally before. Now, I’ll take notes including charging times.

I plan to try resetting (rebooting) the aids tonight.

#12

I keep one on my desk as a spare. It works fine.

#13

What I meant to say was that I never turn my KS10 aids off. They are in my ears all day and in the charger at night. One morning they were completely discharged because the AC power plug got disconnected. The following is from the manual:
“The hearing aids will automatically be switched off when inserted into the charger.
Turn off your hearing aid before inserting it in the disconnected charger to store it.”

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#14

I have had identical issues with my KS10s. Mostly they charge fine but occassionally they start charging but are discharged in the morning. This has happened to both aids at different times.

Then this week, one of them failed to turn on. Long press on the button did nothing. Putting it back in charger did nothing. So took them back to costco with the charger. The guy plugged my charger in and inserted the HA and what do you know? It started charging.

So I decided to get costco to send them back and get the electronics replaced. I will use my old aids for a couple of weeks.

Incidentally, I too have the PerfectDry Lux and although I havent used it for a while, I did use it regularly after I got them. I stopped using it as I saw no benefit.

I am considering getting the Phonak charger which has the built in dehumidifier.

If I was cynical, I would wonder if Sonovo had given Costco the ones that had failed the QA tests (which would explain the massive cost difference).

#15

Any further developments? I’m having similar issues…

#16

The magic is to hold both buttons in until the hearing aid resets. It takes either 10 or 20 seconds. Then place it in the charger.

#17

I’ve been through the mill on this issue I’m afraid. When this first began, Costco sent one hearing back for repair. The next time they said I needed a firmware update to my aids, so they did that. The next two times they repaired then replaced the charger. Lastly they are replacing the 115/5v converter that they say is the culprit. They keep a drawer full of them. Well, that worked for awhile, and I admit the issues are fewer, but not by any means gone. I still have the occasional (read at least a couple of times per week) dead aids in the morning; aids that are blinking amber, then blinking green, and don’t go to solid green unless I remove them to activate, then put them back in the charger. Sometime too, they will be solid green, then the next thing is they go dark or solid red. I’m reasonably sure the issue is with the charger and/or power supply, rather than the aids. Sure wish they’d find a fix though.

#18

If you’re talking about KS10s, the fix is to do a reboot. Which indicates it’s a software bug.

To reboot, simply hold the down button for 20 seconds. There will be no lights or tones to indicate it has rebooted, which is why I say 20 seconds when the manual (p. 49) says 15. After you’ve done that, make sure your charger is plugged in and put them in the charger. All should be well when they charge. You can keep tabs on whether they’re charging properly with the app. (Yes, it can read state of charge while they’re charging.)

What this means is that if you can’t afford a surprise when they come out of the charger, do a reboot before you do.

#19

UPDATE

The reboot trick is not working for me, at least not consistently, so it’s not a proper fix. After twiddling about a bit, I’ve finally found consistent charging by ensuring solid, continuous contact in the charger.

If I place my HAs in the charger firmly, then rock the tops (receiver wire end) back toward me, that forces the pins on the HAs into good contact with the charger terminals. Release gently, plug in the charger, and I get a consistent, reliable charge.

I think the issue here is both hardware and software. If the connection isn’t secure, something as minor as temperature drop during the night might allow one or both HAs to shift, breaking electrical contact. The other part of what’s messing with people is that the charging progress indication continues to rise, even though charging has stopped. That’s why I was seeing full or near-full charge when the HAs were in the charger, and something much lower, maybe a bit higher than where they started, only moments later when I took them out of the charger and they activated for use.

That means that, while it’s handy to be able to check charge level while the HAs are in the charger, you can’t trust the reading. It’s been consistent and accurate for me since I’ve been doing the press/rock/release routine. But that routine depends on friction to hold the HA contacts against the springy charger terminals, and that friction may fail to hold after wear from many insertions.

If/when that time comes I might start playing with toothpicks or something to wedge the HAs in place during a charge. Or give up, turn them in before my trial 180 days is up, and go to a different brand. Not sure I want to start that kind of project again. These are my first-ever HAs, the KS10s are working fine for me, and I understand their Bluetooth functionality is hard to beat.

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Costco has stopped carrying Phonak hearing aids
#20

Here’s what I’ve noticed a half dozen times in the last month - I know that the aids’ charges are low enough they should blink amber in the charger, and yet one of them will blink green. If I check the app, that aid shows nearly full charge. It won’t charge because the aid thinks it’s already full. So the fix is to remove the aid, wait for it to start, shut it down, and put it back in the charger. The aid will then blink amber, the app will show the aid’s correct charge level, and the aid will charge normally. At first I thought it was only the bluetooth side exhibiting this behavior, but a couple days ago it was the other side one day, and the bluetooth side the next. I consider this a minor quirk but it’s obviously troublesome for anyone not aware of the issue. Occasionally I use a spare Marvel charger so I’ll be watching to see if the problem shows up in that scenario. My guess is that it will eventually.

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#21

Thanks for the helpful information.