First Night of CPAP

[Poppy56]

Well,I survived my first night well. Spent it in the sleep clinic trying out my CPAP - it's a Fisher Paykel Sleepsmart 600. Whole experience much better than I feared. My machine is apparently a luxury model with heated hose and a built-in humidifier. It felt very odd - a bit panicky to start with because you think you can't breathe because of the plastic over your nose - but I got used to it quickly. Also odd because it makes you breathe through your nose rather than your mouth. But I slept very well - didn't hear the sleep technician coming into my room 3 times during the night to increase the air pressure. Got kicked out at 7.00 to go home with my Face Hugger - all in a neat travel pack with lots of spare accessories and loads of instuctions. I can't alter the settings but if I am still snoring I have to phone them up and they'll tell me how to do it.

Main question is how to clean the kit - everyone seems to say something different. Soap and water, baby shampoo, white vinegar, anti-bac wipes.... all very confusing!

[leswaller]

Looks like you got the deluxe treatment and kit... envy... envy.
Just clean the kit with warm water in which a very small amount of liquid face soap has been disolved. Dont use washing up liquid it is too strong and dont use chemical cleaners as they will destroy the seal after a while.

[GrumpyBiker]

I use "simple" facial wipes for mask cleaning mon-sat and on Sundays it gets a strip and clean in hot water and liquid face soap followed by a rinse in clean water. The disasembled pieces are then laid out on a towel to air-dry - except the harness which gets hung over the bath.

Once the mask has had a wipe down, I give the outside of the APAP machine a once-over to keep it pretty.

The humidifier gets drained and then a quick rinse with diluted non-alcohol mouthwash - a warm, wet environment is a breeding ground for bacteria. Once again, this is followed by a rinse with clean water and air drying.

Sundays also see the hose get a wash out using hot water and liquid face soap, followed by a rinse out. It is then hung over the bath to dry.

Andy

[Poppy56]

3 nights

Thanks both.

Well, 3rd night survived and, so far so good. In fact I feel amazingly rested - didn't fall asleep on the train to work yesterday. Think I had rain-out (?) last night - some drops of water inside the mask. I filled the humidifier with warm water from the kettle (forgot to boil it in time for it to cool) - would this have been responsible? My cat doesn't seem alarmed by the mask - partner hasn't yet seen it as he's away for a few days.

[leswaller]

Hi Poppy56
Glad to hear you are making progress, it should just keep getting better, but you might get the odd hiccup. As far as rainout is concerned, this is nothing to do with the way you fill the humidifier. It is a well known side effect of using a humidifier. The best solution is to buy a heated hose which totally eliminates this (see the threads from TigersFan and myself re this) the only problem is that James is stilling waiting to get UK approval to sell them so you have to but directly from the manufacturer in Australia.
You might get some improvement by putting an insulating wrap on the hose to prevent the condensation. Have you tried without the humidifier, do you actually need it. I dont use a humidifier at all, but I do use a heated hose as I like the nice warm air it gives out.

[Poppy56]

The humidifier is built in and the hose is heated - both are part of the kit I've got. I just wondered whether the humidifier needed cool water rather than warm water and whether the latter caused the drops of water?

[leswaller]

Hi Poppy56
It would make no difference what so ever so dont worry about it. Are you sure you have a heated hose as these are very unusual as part of a standard kit. If that is the case then make sure you have U bend in your hose to collect the condensation before it reaches your mask. The easiest way to do this is to have the AP unit on a bed side table or similar and point the output hose slightly downwards before it goes up to the mask.

[Tigers Fan]

Settings

Hi Poppy56

A couple of other things to consider:

The humidifier works by heating the water so it matters not if you put warm or cold water into the chamber - except warm water reduces the 'start time'. MUch more important is to make sure you use water as soft as you can (Brita Filter your tap water, for example).

Room temperature is very important - if you like the window open you're going to get rain-out, even with a heated hose if its capacity is inadequate.

Room ambient humidity is important - the more dampness that's in the room air, the more will come out when it is compressed by te CPAP. The more will come out when you add even more with a humidifier and then it cools in the hose.

And most important - what setting do you use on the humidifier? Put too much moisture into the PAP air and it's going to come out again by the time it gets to you.

Assuming that all your 'settings' are as you like them - the window is as it was before CPAP, the room temperature and humidity the same - I'd try turning the humidifer down a notch or two. You don't need as much humidification in the winter. Come summer, warm nights, the air holds much more moisture and you can turn the humidifier back up, if you wish.

Tigers Fan