Waterproof Hearing Aids

Nobody Reads the IP Rating Fine Print. You Should. Here's What It Actually Says.

"IP68 waterproof" is one of the hearing aid industry's favorite phrases to put in marketing materials. It sounds reassuring. It is also, technically speaking, doing a lot of work for a classification that was never designed to mean what most people assume it means.

Here's what it actually says, and why the distinction matters more than the marketing suggests.

What IP68 Actually Means

IP stands for Ingress Protection. It's a standardized international testing classification that describes exactly how well an electronic device resists foreign material getting inside it. The two numbers after "IP" rate two different things.

The second digit is the one everyone fixates on, and reasonably so. What it doesn't tell you is the conditions of that test: clean, fresh water, room temperature, controlled laboratory environment, manufacturer-specified depth and duration. Not your shower. Not your pool. Not the Atlantic Ocean on a family vacation where someone thought it would be fine.

What IP68 Actually Covers in Real Life

The good news: IP68 protection is genuinely useful for the situations that actually come up when you're living your life.

Rain walks are fine. Sweating through a workout is fine. Getting caught in a downpour while walking to your car is fine. Washing your hands while still wearing your hearing aids is probably fine. Kitchen steam, morning humidity, the general dampness of existing as a person, all handled.

The protection is real, it's meaningful, and for active users it makes a significant difference in daily durability. The problem is that "handles sweat and rain" is a much less exciting marketing claim than "IP68 waterproof," so the fine print tends to get quietly deprioritized.

What IP68 Does Not Cover (A Partial List of Things People Try Anyway)

Showering. Manufacturers recommend against it even for IP68-rated devices, and for good reason. Shower environments combine warm water, steam, shampoo, and conditioner simultaneously. Surfactants, the cleaning agents in shampoo and conditioner, are specifically designed to penetrate surfaces. That property is not something you want working on your microphone ports. Remove your hearing aids before showering. Every time.

Swimming pools. Chlorine. The IP test doesn't use it. Your pool does. Chlorinated water degrades seals and internal components over time in ways that fresh water doesn't, and "over time" tends to arrive faster than anyone expects.

The ocean. Salt crystallizes on contact surfaces as it dries. It works its way into gaps and seals with impressive determination. Saltwater and hearing aids are not friends, IP rating notwithstanding.

Hot tubs. Heat, pressure, and chemicals. The IP rating covers none of these. A hot tub isn't just water, it's water actively trying to get into things it shouldn't. Remove your hearing aids before getting in. Every time.

The Nightly Drying Habit That Pays for Itself

IP68 protects against the unpredictable. Your nightly care routine protects against everything else. Moisture accumulates through normal daily wear, sweat, humidity, the ambient warmth of being inside your ear canal for 14 hours, and even a well-rated device benefits from drying out fully overnight.

A hearing aid drying kit or UV sanitizer costs very little relative to what it protects. Open the battery doors if your devices use disposable batteries. Place rechargeable devices in their charging case with good airflow. Keep storage away from the bathroom, which is the most humid room in your house and therefore the worst possible location for devices you're trying to dry out.

That's the whole routine. Two minutes, every night, and your devices will last significantly longer than if you treat IP68 as a substitute for it.

What to Do If Your Hearing Aids Get Wet

It happens. Here's what to do when it does, in order.

Remove the devices and wipe them down gently with a soft, dry cloth. Open any battery doors. Place them in a hearing aid drying kit or dehumidifier overnight. Do not use a hairdryer, not even on a low setting. Heat damages hearing aid components faster than moisture does. Leave them to dry fully before using them again.

Most incidental moisture exposure resolves without lasting damage if the devices dry completely before their next use. If you notice any change in sound quality after a wet incident, a remote check-in with your licensed hearing care provider can diagnose whether anything needs attention.

Wet, Worried, and Wondering

Can I shower with my hearing aids in? Manufacturers recommend against it even with IP68-rated devices. Shower environments combine warm water, steam, shampoo, and conditioner, all of which degrade seals and microphone ports over time in ways that brief rain exposure doesn't. Remove them before showering. Every time, without exception.

Can I swim with IP68 hearing aids? No. IP68 testing uses controlled conditions with clean, fresh water. Chlorinated pools, saltwater, and extended submersion all exceed those conditions and will damage hearing aids over time despite the rating. Remove your devices before swimming.

What should I do if my hearing aids get wet? Dry them gently with a soft cloth, open any battery doors, and place them in a hearing aid drying kit or dehumidifier overnight. Do not use a hairdryer. Most incidental moisture exposure resolves without damage if the devices dry fully before their next use.

Can sweat damage hearing aids? Over time, yes. Most IP68-rated devices handle daily sweat without immediate problems, but sweat is one of the most common contributors to hearing aid maintenance issues over time. Nightly drying and regular cleaning significantly extend device life, especially for active users.

What's the difference between waterproof and water-resistant hearing aids? No hearing aid is truly waterproof in the way people assume that word means. IP68-rated devices are highly water-resistant and tested for temporary submersion, but they are not designed for swimming, showering, or extended water exposure. Water-resistant is the accurate description, even for the highest-rated devices. The marketing tends to get ahead of the engineering on this one.