AirSense 10 Humidifier badly discoloured after first use

[palerider]

neat.

[TangledHose]

I would imagine that cpap.com will have them soon too. Also noticed that the DC power cord for AirSense machines is available now too over at that other web site that had the end caps.

[Guest]

You can by End caps to put on in place of the humidifier tank, Just check Resmed web site or your DME.

Are you sure about the end caps? I can't find this anywhere...

Yeah he is correct: ****/quote]

Thanks!

[dave21]

If you're not running your tank dry, the inside part of the tank isn't getting that hot. It wouldn't get above 100C until after it boils the water away. If it was getting anywhere close to that kind of temperature, you'd probably get a LOT of humidity and rapid water use.

No I'm filling the tub up to the FULL line and the tub has about half a tub of water left after 9 hours use.

It's unlikely it's thermal spalling anyway. Some sort of oxide layer or other layer forming on your tank sounds like the most likely reason. Both aluminum and stainless have an oxide layer, and stainless is well known for forming a rainbow layer of oxide like that. If that's it, you can probably rub it off with a steel wool cleansing pad.

That would be an interesting experiment, and it would be especially interesting to see if it comes back.

I would be really tempted in trying that but both tubs now exhibit the same problem and are being returned to ResMed UK for investigation. ResMed UK are still waiting for head office in Australia to confirm whether there's a problem with machines or tubs but they have suggested the next course of action on Monday will be to send out a complete new machine and 3rd tub and I'll ship back the current machine and two tubs for investigation. My thought is that I'll get a new machine and new tub and the same thing is going to happen but I really hope that isn't the case.

If you look at the surface from different angles, do the rainbow colors change?

No it remains the same colour. Although if I pour water into the tub or even just rub some water over it the colour seems to disappear by about 60% whilst the water sits on top of the discolouration, but as soon as you dry the water away you can fully see the discolouration again.

As to why you see it and others don't, your water sounds like the most likely cause. Some sort of cleaning product might have an effect, but I'm assuming you didn't put anything other than water on the new one.

There's definitely no cleaning products being used just regular tap water to rinse the tub out after use, and that's the only item I'm putting in the tub prior to use at night (regular tap water). The regular tap water hasn't had any affect on the H4i tub I have had and the 3x H5i tubs I've had over the last 5 years. One could say that maybe something has changed more recently perhaps on the tap water to cause this, but I was using the S9 with H5i up until last week and that was free of any discolouration.

It's really unlikely to be hazardous. Stainless steel cooking pots do this all the time, and it's not harmful. Especially since you eat or drink whatever comes off of the cooking pot into the food, and you don't drink the CPAP water.

Hope you're right on that one.

Is the bottom stainless steel or aluminum? I'm assuming it's stainless, but could be wrong. See if a magnet sticks, although some stainless is magnetic and some isn't. My S9 humidifier tanks are very slightly magnetic, but I have to use a really powerful magnet and it only sticks in the corners.

I placed a magnet on the inside and on the bottom side of the tub but it's not magnetic, so that would suggest aluminium.

[dave21]

So I've now run the 2nd AirSense 10 Humidifier water chamber for 3 nights, it discoloured the same way (multicolours) on night 2.

Here's a photo of both the 1st water chamber (left) used for 6 nights and the 2nd water chamber (right) used for 3 nights. It's pretty much identical discolouration although the 2nd water chamber discolouration seems to be a little larger than the 1st.

I've taken two photos from different angles so you can see the discolouration.




I don't think it's necessarily down to the water being used, others have used distilled water and have similar problems but maybe regular tap water is adding to the discolouration / damage it seems to be doing.

[dave21]

Here's a few more photos comparing my 1 year old S9 replacement tub (yes it has some scale up the side walls where water level sits) but that's the extend of any corrosion after 1 year use compared with 3 nights use on the AirSense 10 tub on the right. Again I've taken photos from multiple angles both of the inside and bottom side of tubs. Both tubs have been used extensively with regular tap water from the same supply source (bathroom tap).





Here's the bottom (under side) of tubs

[Demerit]

Even with a new machine, it will do it. For some reason in certain users environments it is occurring. Resmed is trying to figure out what it is that is causing it because it is not an across the board problem.

[palerider]

well, if you think it's aluminum, google up some info on aluminum discoloration, see if any of the examples match what you're seeing.

is your water alkaline?

[dave21]

Even with a new machine, it will do it. For some reason in certain users environments it is occurring. Resmed is trying to figure out what it is that is causing it because it is not an across the board problem.

Well I don't think it's the environment, if it was to do with the water like I've said before then why is it that I have a H4i and 3x H5i tubs and none have exhibited this problem. If it's to do with outside or inside room temperature, again the same would surely apply. Unless ResMed are using inferior metal that differs greatly in quality to previous humidifier tubs or have a fault in their production run of machines/tubs.

well, if you think it's aluminum, google up some info on aluminum discoloration, see if any of the examples match what you're seeing.

is your water alkaline?

It's definitely not magnetic to the magnet I tried it with. I've tried searching for both aluminium and stainless steel discolouration but not found anything that comes remotely close to what I have on both tubs, in terms of hotspot and colours of the rainbow but maybe I've missed something. I don't know if my water has a high alkaline level but I would think that if it did and that was the cause, then wouldn't it do it to my H4i and 3x H5i tubs too? Also my kettles, coffee machines and everything else I fill up from the tap that are perfectly okay and show no sign of discolouration?

I'm not trying to disprove the water, I won't rule anything out yet but I have 4 other tubs that are unaffected and there are others here in the forum and in this thread that had similar discolouration using distilled water, so is the distilled water also contaminated in certain areas?

Personally, I don't think it has anything to do with the water itself because if it did then everything else would be discoloured that gets heated up in a similar fashion, and the proof others have also had the same problem would surely suggest more of a likelihood that it's a cause of malfunction in a small batch of tubs or machines over heating? It's difficult to get hold of distilled water but I can get hold of bottled mineral water or deionised water which I may try in the new (3rd) replacement tub I'll receive just to rule out water but as mentioned above, others have used distilled water and had similar problems with these AirSense 10 tubs.

I've used ResMed humidifiers for the last 10 years all using the same regular tap water and none have discoloured remotely like this. In conversation with ResMed Support they have also said they don''t believe it to be anything to do with the water and have never seen this kind of corrosion before in their history according to the support supervisor I spoke to, so it has been passed to ResMed Australia (head office) to investigate further.

[palerider]

I don't know if my water has a high alkaline level but I would think that if it did and that was the cause, then wouldn't it do it to my H4i and 3x H5i tubs too?

maybe the older tubs were anodized or coated. and the newer ones aren't.
your refusal to use distilled water to test the theory... *shrugs*

[daytona]

The discoloration on mine was similar to Dave's and I exclusively used distiller water and never ran dry. When I showed it to my DME they used a Brillo pad on the stain and some of the brown color color came off on the pad but the spotty areas remained. They sent it back to Resmed and replaced it for me. The second tub isn't discoloring as fast but is definitely changing color in the same spot and pattern. I don't believe this is just Dave's water to blame.

[chunkyfrog]

Daytona, is your distilled water from a home distiller or a store?

[daytona]

Daytona, is your distilled water from a home distiller or a store?

I purchase distilled water from the store. The brand is usually Hinkley or Mountain Spring, whatever is on sale.

[dave21]

maybe the older tubs were anodized or coated. and the newer ones aren't.
your refusal to use distilled water to test the theory... *shrugs*

Anodised vs coated, quite possibly, there's something different there. I'm not adverse to trying distilled water but like I said it's very difficult to get distilled water, and it's equivalent of around $10 per 1 litre here. Deionised water is much cheaper and more readily available but not the same. However, as I explained before, I don't think it's the water as the H4i, H5i tubs would surely have been affected unless they are of course using a different coating.

As Daytona has also stated...

The discoloration on mine was similar to Dave's and I exclusively used distiller water and never ran dry.

Which again (Palerider) rules out the water source being the problem, surely?

The discoloration on mine was similar to Dave's and I exclusively used distiller water and never ran dry. When I showed it to my DME they used a Brillo pad on the stain and some of the brown color color came off on the pad but the spotty areas remained. They sent it back to Resmed and replaced it for me. The second tub isn't discoloring as fast but is definitely changing color in the same spot and pattern. I don't believe this is just Dave's water to blame.

Daytona, I'm glad you're seeing the same problem with distilled water (although sadly unfortunate you're seeing it too), and the second tub for me discoloured even more quicker than the first. It sounds like it could be down to a batch of tubs, but I'm more inclined to think it's a bad batch of machines badly heating the tubs now. Anyway I'm receiving my full machine and tub replacement from ResMed tomorrow (this'll be the third tub) so this will be an interesting exercise. I've asked ResMed if they want me to do anything differently (like using distilled water) but ResMed UK when I had asked them previously insisting on using regular tap water for the cleanable tubs and it's not necessary to use distilled water.

A question for you Daytona, once you used a brillo pad, and you got back to the spots appearing which is really form the first nights use, did you continue using it? and did the colours come back after that? Just wondering...

[Sludge]

I placed a magnet on the inside and on the bottom side of the tub but it's not magnetic, so that would suggest aluminium.

Not really. Not all stainless steel is magnetic. AAMOF, the Airsense water tub is::