Dreamstation Users: Troubleshooting Help in Europe

Hi There,

I am a Canadian in Berlin, Germany for a few months, so I can't just walk into my provider at home, which is what I'd normally do. I'm looking for home troubleshooting suggestions or "I had this problem and here's what it took to get it fixed" or "here's a good provider in Berlin with someone who speaks English."

1. The humidifier doesn't seem to be working right. The water in there is cold to the touch even at the end of a long session and I've been getting very bad rainout. I've got the heated tubing cranked. There are very limited troubleshooting steps in the manual so I'm not sure what to do.

2. The connection between the tubing and my mask is loose, so that the mask slips out of the tube from time to time. I've had this tubing for about a year. It seems really soon for the elastic to wear out like that. Do people really replace their tubing once a year or is mine defective?

Thank you.

Hi, we need more info to try and help... what specific model is your machine and what mask are you using? Do you have the machine (and therefore humidifier) placed at a level below your mattress, so water runs back to the machine instead of to you? I can't talk about your huml. otherwise, but the clinician manual is available at Apneaboard.com (you'll need to scroll - not sure which pg - to find it for downloading after finding the exact model and you can find that after first emptying the water and turning the blower (not hum) over to see a REF # likely a 500 one.

Can you check for a 'cut' in the hose just at the connection - this often occurs over time - and use duct tape for now? Or possibly find somewhere (Berlin's a big sophisticated place and tubing's generic, not by brand) to get a new one - ask at a clinic about supplies for respiratory issues or something, possibly even the hotel doctor would know.

Did you double check that the humidifier is fully secured to the xpap unit?

There are two adjustments that affect the humidification: the humidifier and the heated tubing. The blower has to be turned on for the screen to show the settings (and to change them).

You mention that you have the Heated Tubing setting cranked--at the highest level of 5, then? Make sure the hose is properly connected, and fully seated, to the top of the humidifier. Is the tube warming? Check the tube for breaks in the wire that spirals through it.

You do not mention what your Humidification setting is. The appearance of rainout may indicate that the setting is at 5. Have you tried any of the other--lower--settings? (Refer to top of page 9 in the Dreamstation xpap User Manual).

Are you getting Device Alerts for Humidification or Heated Tube (see page 17 & 18 of xpap User Manual)?

What mask are you using?

Jean

Edit: My User Manual covers all of the CPAP, CPAP Pro and Auto CPAP models. There is no troubleshooting guide per se in the Provider (clinician) Manual which covers the aforesaid models plus Bipap Pro and Bipap Auto, but you could check that the Humidification setting is set at Heated Tube [press and hold both the Control dial and the Ramp button for 5 seconds / scroll to and click on Comfort Settings / Humidification setting is in the top left corner.]

Thanks for the super fast replies.

This is my model: https://www.sleepapnea.com/products/dev ... rview.html I'm using the stock hose and a Airfit P10 nasal pillow (I have been using those since long before I got the Dreamstation).https://www.resmed.com/us/en/consumer/p ... t-p10.html I've had a CPAP for ages but the Dreamstation only for about a year.

It's on the floor below the bed. I try and run the hose over the headboard though there's nothing to keep it there so it usually falls down over the course of the night.

After posting, I went back to bed, took everything apart that I could and put it back together. I then got a little over 90 minutes of undisturbed sleep, so that's promising. Maybe it was a bad connection between the main unit and the humidifier.

To answer the other questions:

--the hose is quite warm, so it's working fine
--humidification is at 3. I will turn it down to 1 tonight if I have more problems.
--no device alerts (or alerts of any kind) -- is there a screen where I can check if I somehow missed them?

I think that's it. Great tip on the service manuals on Apneaboard. I will go check that out.

Hosemaster3000 wrote: --no device alerts (or alerts of any kind) -- is there a screen where I can check if I somehow missed them?

Device Alerts are pop-ups on the lcd screen. Some also include an audible beep and/or blinking Power LED light. "Status" alerts timeout after 30 seconds and the pop-up screen disappears. Other kinds of alerts have to be acknowledged (by pressing the Control dial) to clear the pop-up info. Details pages 16-19 of User Manual--a couple of them relate to humidifier issues.

Which tubing was the mask slipping out of--the short tube that connects directly to the mask, or was the short tubing slipping out of the heated hose? Julie's idea of duct tape sounds like a plan, but I'm not familiar with the P10 mask, so maybe someone else who uses one will be by to offer a suggestion.

Good to know you got some sleep!
cheers,
Jean

Greetings all,

I'm writing with an update. #2 is solved. On the hose front, I just bit the bullet and bought a new one. Problem solved. But if anyone is looking for a kludge between the hose and the mask, a metal twist-tie (like comes wrapped around a cable for a computer or AV device) will secure the connection but allow everything to be taken apart for cleaning.

#1 is worse. The device continues to wake me up by attempting to drown me. This must mean the blower is working, but I don't think the humidifier is. It's also possible my floor isn't 100% level, but I am really frustrated at this point and it's been a few nights now. I am going to see if there is a local store that might honour the warrantee, but any other troubleshooting suggestions would be appreciated.

Oh, and at setting "1" for the humidifier, the air is so dry I have trouble breathing. I have two nights in a row given up and taken the mask off entirely, which is the first time I've done that since I got a CPAP over a decade ago.

For condensation in the mask or hose there are some things that can be tried.
See this thread posts number 2 and 3.
viewtopic/t94035/Pugsys-Pointers-3Deali ... -road.html