Ozone sterilizers

[Barely Awake]

Having been concerned about using masks and hoses over an extensive period I have been looking for a method of sterilizing discontinued hoses as replacements are not available that fit the rest of my kit. Looked at ultrasonic cleaners but found those large enough to take the hoses and mask were very expensive. Have tried a baby bottle sterilizer and managed to damage an irreplaceable hose connector. Now I am considering an ozone sterilizer having read about the Guardian bags as they would double for giving my CPAP machine a regular (annual?) clean.

Several questions arise:

Why the bag - are they to contain the ozone in a small area?

Do you have to then vent the bag?

Would cleaning hoses this way be hazardous for those with lung conditions?

Does the ozone sterilizer have filters or carbon filtration that needs replacing?

Anyone know anything about this or tried using the equipment?

[Tigers Fan]

Hi Barely Awake

Welcome!

Ozone sterilizers sound like a very complicated solution for an apparently simple task. You tried a baby sterilizer so can I assume there is no problem with the hoses getting wet? In which case, immersion of the hoses in a salt/brine bucket should do the trick. Make sure all air bubbles are removed from the hoses. No need for a strong solution.

TF

[Barely Awake]

Hi Barely Awake

Welcome!

Ozone sterilizers sound like a very complicated solution for an apparently simple task. You tried a baby sterilizer so can I assume there is no problem with the hoses getting wet? In which case, immersion of the hoses in a salt/brine bucket should do the trick. Make sure all air bubbles are removed from the hoses. No need for a strong solution.

TF

Thanks for that TF. Anyone whose team can come from way behind to a surprisingly good Exeter to beat them home and then also away then suddenly pop up to top the table at the start of the year has to know a thing or two! http://forums.cpap.co.uk/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[symmit]

I'm using a couple of milton tablets in a bowl of water - syphon it through the hose a couple of times then leave for 15 mins, syphon through again then empty. Air dry it, then just run the cpap through it for 20 mins to get rid of the smell.

What's differenct about your hoses - they're probably available from somewhere?

[James @ Intus]

Having been concerned about using masks and hoses over an extensive period I have been looking for a method of sterilizing discontinued hoses as replacements are not available that fit the rest of my kit. Looked at ultrasonic cleaners but found those large enough to take the hoses and mask were very expensive. Have tried a baby bottle sterilizer and managed to damage an irreplaceable hose connector. Now I am considering an ozone sterilizer having read about the Guardian bags as they would double for giving my CPAP machine a regular (annual?) clean.

Annual, quarterly, it depends how sensitive your lungs are really. Or how worried you are about flu etc.

Several questions arise:

Why the bag - are they to contain the ozone in a small area?

Ozone is a killer, literally, so yes, you need to contain it. Hospitals fill a whole room (airtight) to sterilize the whole room. In this case, it fills up the bag and keeps the ozone in the bag. You don't want to be exposed to too much ozone yourself, hence closing the bag so it fills up to a high concentration.

Do you have to then vent the bag?

Just open it. The bag's volume of ozonized air is too small to harm you. It'll just escape and mix with the air around you.

Would cleaning hoses this way be hazardous for those with lung conditions?

No, beneficial even. The ozone won't stick. You'd mostly rinse a hose anyway but it's not an issue. Google the general use of ozone as a cleaner and you'll quickly discover the many benefits.

Does the ozone sterilizer have filters or carbon filtration that needs replacing?

No, it doesn't. It's just a small white electrical box, much like an ionizer.

Anyone know anything about this or tried using the equipment?

I use the duffle bag as my laptop bag and we have used the ozone sterilizer in the office here on request. For a Far-East make, we were surprised how good the bag is quality wise. It's up there with the best brands in terms of bag design/durability. Whether or not you get a great deal of benefit from the sterilizer really depends on your health. If your lungs are sensitive or you have a mouldy house for example, the CPAP Guardian can make all the difference.

[Barely Awake]

Thanks James, I'll give it a try I think.

[Barely Awake]

I'm using a couple of milton tablets in a bowl of water - syphon it through the hose a couple of times then leave for 15 mins, syphon through again then empty. Air dry it, then just run the cpap through it for 20 mins to get rid of the smell.

What's differenct about your hoses - they're probably available from somewhere?

The hose isn't the standard hose used with most masks, it has a unique coupling at one end that connects to a splitter (or manifold) that connects it with two smaller hoses that then attach to the mask. I washed the hoses in the usual way for around a year, drying them in the airing cupboard and spinning them by hand to get as much water out as possible prior to final drying on the CPAP machine. The joints wear though and my present set up is a hybrid of bits from hoses up to six years old and some bits that reps have found for me (from display and trial eqpt) to keep it going.

I used the milton on the mak but wasn't sure I could rinse it out of a long hose.

Thanks again.

[symmit]

The hose isn't the standard hose used with most masks, it has a unique coupling at one end that connects to a splitter (or manifold) that connects it with two smaller hoses that then attach to the mask. I washed the hoses in the usual way for around a year, drying them in the airing cupboard and spinning them by hand to get as much water out as possible prior to final drying on the CPAP machine. The joints wear though and my present set up is a hybrid of bits from hoses up to six years old and some bits that reps have found for me (from display and trial eqpt) to keep it going.

I used the milton on the mak but wasn't sure I could rinse it out of a long hose.

Thanks again.

You've piqued my interest here - isn't there a newer and currently available mask that you can use?

As for the milton, I figured that if you can stick it into a babies mouth (you don't rince bottles and teats after sterilisation) then just drying it out and airing it through (unless you **like** the smell of swimming pools) will do nicely.

Of course, if you have a phone near your sink I strongly suggest not dropping that into the milton solution...

[Sparticus]

WHY?

Do you steralize your toothbrush?

On a science program I watched about toothbrushes, where ever they are placed in a bathroom, they get toilet matter on them due to flushing toilets.

Why is there such an obsession with cleanliness, I wash mine in good old soap and water, I would never steralize them as I dont see any point. You cant clean the air in your room and if there are bugs about from a partner or spouse you will probably end up catching them, steralizing wont make any difference unless you live in a lab(Clean room)

[symmit]

Do you steralize your toothbrush?

On a science program I watched about toothbrushes, where ever they are placed in a bathroom, they get toilet matter on them due to flushing toilets.

Why is there such an obsession with cleanliness, I wash mine in good old soap and water, I would never steralize them as I dont see any point. You cant clean the air in your room and if there are bugs about from a partner or spouse you will probably end up catching them, steralizing wont make any difference unless you live in a lab(Clean room)

A toothbrush is washed through every time you use it, and the mouth is a filthy damp environment laden with bugs and germs anyway, however your cpap hose is a warm, damp environment that's left idle all day and I expect is a nice breeding ground for nasties which will then be blown into your lungs all night...

Need or no need, mine's getting sterilised regularly, and washed through even more regularly.

[Berneta]

Ozone and the CPAP

Hi--I have a question, I have seen advertisements for ozone bags to sterilize the CPAP machine. Why would this be needed--don't they have filters to protect them from bacteria and dust? If they need this treatment---why aren't the ozone bags provided or why don't the Clinics require the CPAP be brought in for sterilization regularly? Seems to me its just a gimmick to get more money. And how long does it take a CPAP to get dirty enough to need Ozone treatment? Every few days--a month--a year. Seems to me that the rate at which mold and bacteria can grow-- that the CPAP machine would need treatment every few days at least. I can see cleaning the hoses, etc. But I have to wonder about the need for cleaning the CPAP with ozone. If that is needed, doesn't that mean that clinics are providing dangerous machinery, that is detrimental to the health of clients? If so---shouldn't the ozone cleaning be required and FREE? Just curious. x Berneta

[Tigers Fan]

Hi Berneta

How long does a hospital air conditioning plant run before it becomes infected with Legionnaires' Disease bugs?

CPAPs probably need sterilizing about that often.

TF

[Tigers Fan]

Hi James

Having looked at the Guardian, the pitch is more about the quality of the bag and how useful it is rather than the ozone generator itself. Do you have a tech spec for the generator, please.

Can one buy the generator without the bag? Can one buy the whole thing ex-VAT (as with the SinuPulse Elite) because it is for sterilizing medical equipment?

TF

[Berneta]

Ozone and CPAP

Hi TF--answer your own question for me please--as I know nothing about hospital AC's or that disease? Well with the exception that it seems to strike ships now and then. I'm not dumb---just don't have a clue. Call me Blondie. xBerneta

[James @ Intus]

@ Berneta, those bags are what the original question are about. See my answers to explain to a degree why one would want them. The filters on make sure sure the air you breathe in are free of fairly large particles. If you take apart a CPAP machine after a few years (which we've done) you still see dust/fluff build up and investigation in a pathology lab confirms you can find many nasties in there.

If you have healthy lungs and a good immune system, it's often not an issue. If you have other disease beyond OSA and a fickle immune system, killing what's alive in your CPAP machine can make all the difference.

@TF No, the ozone generator doesn't come on its own. For the time being, it's a bag, with an ozone sterlizier, or an ozone sterilizer with a bag, depending how you look at it. I agree it would be nice to have a simple transparent (affordable) bag with the ozone generator pure for cleaning purposes. We'll make that suggestion to the manufacturer.

If you are ever thinking of buying a standalone ozone generator and fill up your own bag, note that the CPAP needs to be on for full effect. As it needs to be on and running, the bag shouldn't be 100% airtight. The quickest way to kill a CPAP is to deprive it of air at the inlet. So be careful if you go about DIYing something (which I know you like - remembering your epic hose management system). Give it enough space in the bag/box and minimal but some leak.

If it was a pure cleaner, it may well qualify for 0 rated VAT but as it's a handy bag too, it won't qualify as it is.