Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

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x509
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Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by x509 » Fri Sep 06, 2013 10:53 pm

I got a Resmed S9 with a Mirage FX face mask about a year ago. From the start, my wife has complained about the noise from both the machine and the face mask. She says that it starts off low, when we first go to sleep, but then gets much louder in the middle of the night. Sometime she has actually waken me up to tell me to turn off the d*** machine! .

It is now so bad that my wife has told me to go sleep downstairs, or to give up the machine, but I can't give up the machine.

A few weeks ago, I called the tech support guy at my DME and he was like, "Hey I never get any complaints about machine noise. You must not be using the machine rigtht." But my dentist and some other people have told me that CPAP machine noise is a problem for lots of couples. So right now, I don't know what to do. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good DME? At this point, all I need from a DME is to order supplies and maybe a new face mask. I would be happy to work with a DME anywhere in the US.

Anyone have any ideas about how to machine the S9 quiet? Are there face masks that make less noise or no noise? I'm desparate now.
Machine: S9 AutoSet™ CPAP Machine
Humidifier: S9™ Series H5i™ Heated Humidifier with Climate Control
Mask: Mirage FX facemask

Wulfman...

Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by Wulfman... » Fri Sep 06, 2013 11:23 pm

It might help if you could describe what type of "noise" you're dealing with. Air leak? Motor/whine?
These machines are like "the luck of the draw". The vast majority are very quiet but some aren't. Sometimes not everything is hooked together correctly and can cause noise from air leaks.


Den

.

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codinqueen
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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by codinqueen » Fri Sep 06, 2013 11:31 pm

If your mask is leaking, or if you are opening your mouth while sleeping, there will be some noise. My hubby complains he hears noise when my nasal pillows are leaking. If you use nasal pillows try some Lanisoh to see if it might hold the pillows more securely and eliminate any leak. But S9 machines are the quietest machines in many people's opinions. You could try putting it on a thick piece of rubber matting and see if that will help, but don't put it on foam rubber that it would sink into because the machine has to "breathe". Anything cutting off air around the machine could be dangerous-think fire, or could cause your machine to overheat and die. How old is your machine? It might be something you could ask ResMed about it, possibly if under warranty they could help you maybe. They have a website. It is important to use your machine, tell wifey without it you could have a stroke, then she would be changing your diapers maybe, or she might be a widow earlier than necessary. Buy her some ear plugs. I wonder if a white noise machine or a fan would muffle the "noise: enough that she wouldn't be bothered by it. Don't stop pappin'! It is dangerous for your health.

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Mask: Swift™ FX For Her Nasal Pillow CPAP Mask with Headgear
Humidifier: S9™ Series H5i™ Heated Humidifier with Climate Control
Additional Comments: Clear by Pur-Sleep to keep nose open at night, Cozy Hose-Boss by Pur-Sleep
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kaiasgram
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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by kaiasgram » Fri Sep 06, 2013 11:41 pm

x509, what type of surface is your machine sitting on? I have my S9 on a solid wood night table on a carpeted floor, and it's whisper quiet. When I took it to my daughter's house this summer I set it on an Ikea nightstand (made of some kind of compressed particle-board material) and it was shocking -- it sounded like a Boeing 747 by comparison. Some people put large mouse pads under the machine to soften the noise (and prevent it from slipping and sliding), but it didn't help much with the Ikea nightstand.

If you tell us more about exactly what you're hearing we may be able to target our answers a little better for you. The S9 is a quiet machine by and large, so there's got to be some solutions unless there's something wrong with your machine.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by robysue » Sat Sep 07, 2013 12:04 am

x509 wrote:ISometime she has actually waken me up to tell me to turn off the d*** machine! .

It is now so bad that my wife has told me to go sleep downstairs, or to give up the machine, but I can't give up the machine.
First things first: It is entirely unreasonable for your wife to tell you to turn the damn machine off. You need that machine to preserve your health and you need to use it each and every night, all night long. Since the machine is critical medical equipment needed to maintain your health, if wife can't sleep with it, then she's the one who should be leaving the bed and going downstairs. You need to stay put in your bed with your hose on your nose all night long.

Think of it this way: What would you do if you were an insulin dependent diabetic and the wife said: "That shot grosses me out every time you give it yourself when we're about to sit down to eat. Can't you just skip it now and then?"

More to the point: Most of us OSA sufferers snored before we started CPAPing, and some of us snored really loudly. You may want to remind the wife that no matter how noisy the machine seems to her now, it's bound to be far less noisy than your snoring and gasping are when you don't use the machine.

About the noise itself you write:
x509 wrote:I From the start, my wife has complained about the noise from both the machine and the face mask. She says that it starts off low, when we first go to sleep, but then gets much louder in the middle of the night.
...<much deleted>
Anyone have any ideas about how to machine the S9 quiet? Are there face masks that make less noise or no noise? I'm desparate now.
Trouble shooting noise issues takes some time and patience. So you need to try to get the wife to be much more specific about what the noise sounds like beyond "it's so noisy it's waking me up."

The first part of the problem is to actually figure out where the noise is coming from.

Obvious possibilities, each with their own particular sounds, but listed in no particular order of importance:

1) A mask leak that whistles. The leak may or may not be large enough to show up in the data. The "fix" may be as simple as replacing the mask cushion---they don't last forever. Or you may need to try a different model mask. Or you may need to try a different sleeping position that's less likely to cause a mask leak.

2) Exhaust flow from the mask hitting the covers and causing a swooshing noise. Most likely it's not actually the sound of the exhaust that's the problem. It's the sound that the exhaust makes when it hits something solid---like the covers, or pillow, or wife's backside if you're spooning. The "fix" here is hose management. Find a way of running the hose so that the exhaust flow is less likely to hit something. Some people find hanging the hose helps. Some people find running the hose under the covers helps.

3) Air flowing out of your open mouth can cause noises similar to mask leaks or exhaust flow problems. The fix is to figure out a way to keep the mouth shut (which will also improve the quality of your therapy. If you are (noisily) leaking air from your mouth, the machine may not be able to maintain enough pressure to prevent the apneas.

4) Rainout. Water in the hose or water in the mask if you use a humidifier is a common problem. If there's a low spot in the hose where condensation can accumulate, then it's possible wife is hearing the gurgling noises coming from the turbulent airflow over the pool of water. The fix is to drain the hose when it happens and then consider anti-rainout measures for future nights. Hanging the hose might help. Using a hose cozy might help. Using a heated hose should end problems with rainout.

5) A machine placed on a hard surface that's ever so slightly unlevel or unstable can cause vibrations. The fix can be as simple as putting the machine on a cushioned mouse pad instead of the wooden night table. That will minimize the vibrations and the resulting noises.

6) Machine placement. Machines are more difficult to hear if they are placed below the level of the bed. So if you can switch to a lower table or even put the machine on the floor, that might help.

7) Conducted noise. A lot of folks (including spouses) will blame the machine or the the mask, when in fact the problem is noise that is being conducted through the hose. (I've written about conducted noise in my blog. You can click here to get to the post "Dealing with noise conducted through the hose ... "

8) Not enough background noise in the environment to mask the trivial amount of noise coming from the machine. Another problem when people like your wife complain about the noise only in the middle of the middle of the night is simply the fact that the quieter the background ambiance, the more likely someone who is super sensitive will notice noise that's there all the time, but is "masked" by other background noises earlier in the night. In other words, there may not be a noise problem at all: It could just be that in the middle of the night there is absolute silence except for the S9's very low noise level. But that absolute quiet background makes the S9's noise seem much louder than it really is. There's really nothing that can be done in this case except to make the ambient background a bit more noisy. A white noise machine might help. Or running a fan in the bedroom might help. Earplugs for the wife, however, will only help if there's absolutely NO chance that what she's hearing is noise being conducted through the hose to her pillow and then her head. Indeed, if the hose is touching any part of her body, then conducted noise may be the culprit and earplugs will make the conducted noise problem worse.

9) If you use an S9 Auto in auto mode, maybe there's a bad cluster of events that's triggering a sudden rise in pressure. And the sudden rise in pressure all the things listed in items 1-7. And in the presence of a too-quiet environment (#8), any noise problems caused by pressure increases are going seem (much) louder than they really are.

10) Arousals and awakenings triggered by something other than the S9 that is disturbing the wife's sleep, but she doesn't remember or recall the real reason for the awakening and she notices the noise after she wakes up for an unknown reason and blames the machine for waking her up. What could be disturbing her sleep? Maybe she's starting to snore and develop some OSA herself. Or maybe she's got a problem with PLMD or restless leg syndrome (they're not the same thing). Or maybe there's a neigbor's dog that does some barking at night. Or maybe she's waking up too hot or too cold. Or maybe there's a pet jumping on or off the bed. Or maybe she's developing a bit of sleep maintenance insomnia.

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caffeinatedcfo
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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by caffeinatedcfo » Sat Sep 07, 2013 5:41 am

I too have the S9 and it is quieter than a baby's breath. I agree with some of the above that it's either a leak or the surface. I keep mine on a short piece of that rubber mesh shelf liner people use for keeping their dishes from sliding. This also helps to keep my machine stable on the night stand.

Your wife should be more supportive.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by herefishy » Sat Sep 07, 2013 7:57 am

I get some noise from the machine/hose if I don't run it through a passover humidifier. I don't use a regular humidifier, so this might not be an answer if you are already using a humidifier.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by chunkyfrog » Sat Sep 07, 2013 8:17 am

Put a heavy board under the machine. Then it could sit on the floor, or whatever nightstand you have.
You could use a fleece hose cozy if that would help.
Some people have used white noise machines to mask the sound.
Get some earplugs for your wife.
Cancel your life insurance; or at least change the beneficiary to someone who wants you to live.
Tell HER to sleep in the other room.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by nanwilson » Sat Sep 07, 2013 8:27 am

Your wife needs to wear ear plugs or become much more compassionate to your medical needs. Would she rather you have a stroke or heart attack .....or dead. Wearing ear plugs is soooo much less of a problem than her having to change your adult diapers after you have had a debilitating stroke. Get her to read some of the threads here and perhaps she will become educated to this therapy and become much more understanding.

Note to wife... your husband has a serious medical problem you need to be more educated towards it and become more compassionate.
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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by SeekSleep » Sat Sep 07, 2013 9:20 am

Noise is interesting in how it does, or doesn't interfere with your sleep. When I was on a trial with a Respironics machine, the noise didn't bother me at all, mostly I'm guessing because it was more of a "White noise" sort of sound. When I went on the S9 Vpap adapt asv machine the noise was very bothersome to me, and would keep me awake, although I don't think it is any louder than the other machine, it just sounds different. I was using it on a three door nightstand right beside my bed, with the machine right at my head level. Since the nightstand was part of a bedroom set, matching all the other bedroom furniture the wife wanted to keep it, but she had no problems with my drilling a hole in the back large enough for the hose to got through and keeping the machine inside the middle drawer of the nightstand.(Middle drawer because it was tall enough) I also use a hose cover and the combination make the machine quiet to the point you can't really hear it.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by oak » Sat Sep 07, 2013 10:25 am

x509, can you describe or put you equipment, particularly the face mask, in your profile? Go to the control panel on the upper left of your screen. Click on it, and navigate to equipment and put your equipment in there. The type of mask you have may have some bearing on this, especially if you say it is quiet at first and then it drives your wife nuts in the middle of the night. You may be getting leaks and someone who uses the same mask will have suggestions, or your exhaust valve could be blowing against the covers, or your hose could be developing rainout, which could cause noise.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by chunkyfrog » Sat Sep 07, 2013 11:10 am

The quietest mask I have ever used is the SleepWeaver Elan. Fabric doesn't squeak.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by bjcyorkiemom » Sun Sep 08, 2013 12:13 pm

I too use the SleepWeaver, and it is very quiet and comfortable for me, but my max pressure is only 12, but I understand it doesn't do well at high pressures. It also took care of my facial rashes from using other masks.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by Stormynights » Sun Sep 08, 2013 1:06 pm

bjcyorkiemom wrote:I too use the SleepWeaver, and it is very quiet and comfortable for me, but my max pressure is only 12, but I understand it doesn't do well at high pressures. It also took care of my facial rashes from using other masks.
In my opinion it works very well with higher pressures. I think the main problem people are having is going from plastic to cloth and comparing the two because they are so different.

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Re: Noisy ResMed CPAP - driving my wife crazy - DME not helpful

Post by x509 » Mon Sep 09, 2013 2:33 pm

Wulfman... wrote:It might help if you could describe what type of "noise" you're dealing with. Air leak? Motor/whine?
These machines are like "the luck of the draw". The vast majority are very quiet but some aren't. Sometimes not everything is hooked together correctly and can cause noise from air leaks.


Den

.
Den,

My wife says that the noise is like a "whooshing" sound, but not a constant "drone" that she might get used to. She said that if she checks the noise when I'm asleep it alternates between the facemask and the actual machine.

My own experience is that when I'm wearing the facemask, (Mirage FX), it sounds like I'm hearing Darth Vader breathing. Before I go to sleep, the machine is relatively quiet, but sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, it's much louder.
Machine: S9 AutoSet™ CPAP Machine
Humidifier: S9™ Series H5i™ Heated Humidifier with Climate Control
Mask: Mirage FX facemask