Power!

[Lee Lee]

Hi,
Virginia (where I live) has had a bunch of storms over the past 2 weeks. Thankfully, we only lost power for 14 hours, and I happened to be out of town when it happened.
I really need something to run my machine when the power goes out. I have asked this question before, but I must be dense, because I don't really understand most of the answers.
Isn't there something I can buy to make my machine run if the power is out? Preferrably, something small and simple.
I'm not so concerned about running it after I've gone to sleep. I wake up right away when the air stops.
Help???

Lee Lee

[Bearded_One]

I use a lithium ion battery from Battery Geek; it is essentially a box with a cigarette lighter socket. It will power a CPAP for one or two nights.

https://www.cpap.com/cpap-machine/c222_ ... 20ion.html

[JeffH]

No need to spend that much money. Get a deep cycle battery from Wal-mart or some place and get the 12v cord from cpap.com for $25.00. Keep the battery charged and in your closet and when the power goes out, haul out the battery, unplug the power (the the wall outlet) plug in the 12v power cord, hook it up to the battery, take a deep breath, and go back to sleep. Works like a charm...

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/power- ... rette.html
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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): cpap.com, Power

[Bookbear]

Jeff, not if she uses that humidifier! BANG!

Lee Lee, the problem (and I share it with you, I have a Vantage and Humid Aire 3) is that the ResMed Vantage/HumidAire 3 ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY REQUIRE a pure sine wave power source. Modified sine wave (and nearly all the common power converters/inverters put out a modified sine wave) will not work and will damage the machine. The humidifier won't work on DC at all. You CAN use the Vantage ALONE with a 12 V deep cycle battery, as long as you use their DC power converter/cable (the polarity on the ResMed's DC socket is reversed). The ResMed DC cable takes care of that, and holds the voltage to a tightly controlled range. It plugs into the DC socket on the Vantage and connects to the posts on the 12V battery.

So, you can use the deep cycle battery and the Resmed converter/cable plugged in to the Vantage's DC socket, but NOT with the humidifier connected;

or

you can use the deep cycle battery, a PURE SINE WAVE power inverter -- DC to AC -- with the Vantage's AC cord plugged into the inverter and the humidifier connected as usual.

Don't forget a battery charger for the battery. The battery should be either a deep cycle gelled battery or a deep cycle Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery... both types are sealed, don't spill even if tipped over or cracked and do not emit hydrogen gas when charged. Normal lead acid batteries do, and should not be charged in an enclosed room.

Here is ResMed's white paper on battery power:
http://www.resmed.com/en-us/products/se ... ttery.html
At the bottom of that page is a link to a pdf file that is very complete and describes exactly what you need.

All this will cost about $450-500. The pure sine wave inverters are pricey $130, and a charger meant specifically for a gelled or AGM battery will run about $100, the battery (50 amp hours or greater) will run about $130-180, and the ResMed cable is $80.

Hope that helps!

[JeffH]

[quote="Bookbear"]Jeff, not if she uses that humidifier! BANG!

Lee Lee, the problem (and I share it with you, I have a Vantage and Humid Aire 3) is that the ResMed Vantage/HumidAire 3 ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY REQUIRE a pure sine wave power source. Modified sine wave (and nearly all the common power converters/inverters put out a modified sine wave) will not work and will damage the machine. The humidifier won't work on DC at all. You CAN use the Vantage ALONE with a 12 V deep cycle battery, as long as you use their DC power converter/cable (the polarity on the ResMed's DC socket is reversed). The ResMed DC cable takes care of that, and holds the voltage to a tightly controlled range. It plugs into the DC socket on the Vantage and connects to the posts on the 12V battery.

So, you can use the deep cycle battery and the Resmed converter/cable plugged in to the Vantage's DC socket, but NOT with the humidifier connected;

or

you can use the deep cycle battery, a PURE SINE WAVE power inverter -- DC to AC -- with the Vantage's AC cord plugged into the inverter and the humidifier connected as usual.

Don't forget a battery charger for the battery. The battery should be either a deep cycle gelled battery or a deep cycle Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) bettery... both types are sealed, don't spill even if tipped over or cracked and do not emit hydrogen gas when charged. Normal lead acid batteries do, and should not be charged in an enclosed room.

Here is ResMed's white paper on battery power:
http://www.resmed.com/en-us/products/se ... ttery.html
At the bottom of that page is a link to a pdf file that is very complete and describes exactly what you need.

All this will cost about $450-500. The pure sine wave inverters are pricey $130, and a charger meant specifically for a gelled or AGM battery will run about $100, the battery (50 amp hours or greater) will run about $130-180, and the ResMed cable is $80.

Hope that helps!

[NeedinZs]

Thanks for posting this question again Lee Lee.

I, too, am one of the dense ones when it comes to battery power/ and anything that involves, well lets face it....things that you have to hook up, and involves wattage and more than one cord!!

That's why my eyes usually glaze over, and I start hearing voices in my head, when I start reading the opinions on battery back-ups!
And also, why I'm sitting here STILL without one!

[Lee Lee]

Thanks for the answers! I still can't beleive it's that complicated and bulky . Not complicated for some, but for me, it is.
Does anyone know of a battery operated CPAP that's good? Maybe I should go that route. It would probably cost the same as the Battery Geek product.

[danw61]

Does anyone know if the DC cigarette lighter power cord for the respironics m-series pro does anything special? (clamp voltage, reverse polarity ... )
Or will any 12v cigarette lighter cord work?

Thanks,
Dan

[wolftracker]

hi,

kind of dont understand the answers either.


i am in virginia also

would this work to run the machine:

http://store.schumachermart.com/ipd-1800.html



wolf

[JeffH]

[quote="danw61"]Does anyone know if the DC cigarette lighter power cord for the respironics m-series pro does anything special? (clamp voltage, reverse polarity ... )
Or will any 12v cigarette lighter cord work?

Thanks,
Dan

[rwk]

I purchased a deep-cycle 75 amp marine battery (not actually true deep cyle, but will work) at Walmart for $50-$60, and a Resmed converter at Ms.Cpap.com for $69 (free shipping). The clamp-style cord for hooking the converter to the battery I purchased at Radio Shack for $9.

I keep the battery in the basement on a float charger (Harbor Freight, $5 on sale), so it's always ready to go. It'll power my S8 Elite for 4 nights ...figuring 7 hours of good sleep, as I can always get by without the humidifier in a pinch.

Walmart also sells a 105 amp battery $70-$80, which would power my pap (sans humidifier) for 6 nights, but I really didn't think I needed that much as it's used for storm season, and the power is out, usually, just a day or two. The battery is heavy, but does come with a nice strap on it for carrying.

So, for around a $140 I don't have to go without my beloved pap or my deep, restfull and rejuvinating slumber. It'll work for camping, too, but would be too heavy to lug around in a backpacking situation.

The converter plugs in to the DC connection on the back of your machine.

The other end of the converter then plugs into a 'cigarette style' female receptical on the cord,

The cord is then clamped on the battery terminals with the red clamp on the plus (+) terminal and the black clamp on the other (-). It's kinda like good luggage...you hardly ever use it...but it's nice to know it's there.

[rwk]

Lee Lee,

I forgot to mention that when I use it...I simply turn my humidifier to the "off" position.

[momsworry]

I bought one of those jump start battery things from Wal Mart about a year ago. I bought the best one that they had. It has a charger with it. I can get about two nights out of it, but usually I have power again by morning an recharge it. It is essentially a sealed lead/acid battery. You can also use it to jump start your car or cycle if needed.

[Bookbear]

RWK, the advantage to a true deep cycle battery is that it can be discharged down to about 20% without damaging the battery itself. A regular lead acid battery (like the ones in cars) will quickly die if they are regularly discharged that low, which could easily happen if it were used for several nights before recharging. Also, spills can be disasterous (acid, ya know!). The discharge/recharge cycle gradually eats away at the plates. Conventional lead acid batteries have thin lead plates that develop cracks and crumble under repeated deep discharges. True deep cycle batteries have much thicker lead plates. A gelled or AGM battery is sealed, so no gas escapes under charging, and if tipped over, nothing leaks out. Even if the battery is cracked, the acid component is jellied and does not leak. Used indoors, they are a safer alternative to a conventional lead acid battery. They are also much more expensive, usually at least twice the cost. The payoff is that they can be discharged many times to almost flat and will last much longer in that kind of use without damage. AGM batteries can be charged with a regular charger, gelled batteries require a much slower charge rate and generally require a special charger.

Here is a site that explains the differences (and probably more than you ever wanted to know about batteries):
http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm

Hope this helps.

[JeffH]

Lee Lee, I think I can get this simple for you. You have to think of this process as sex. There are three parts to this that you have to deal with.

First is a battery. As stated, deep cycle works best. The battery has a positive and a negative post(s) that you attach the receptacle too. Think of this as the female part and it must be "charged up" (foreplay).

Now you take the male part (the part you buy from cpap.com) and exchange it for the power cord on your machine. Now comes the fun part. You plug the male part into the female part and everyone's happy.

You may now fall asleep.