Airsense 10 powered by GB150 test

I just received the DC converter cord for my machine.

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... hines.html

In addition I picked up the side cover for my machine so I can run without the humidifier.

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... cover.html

I use the NOCO GB150 jump pack which has an 8 amp hour lithium ion battery in it. While this has excellent surge current ability for starting engines, it is not a lot of capacity to run a CPAP machine. Fully charged this battery pack has a voltage of 12.6 volts and at 50% it drops down to 11.1 volts. Low voltage shut off is at about 9.75 volts. My expectations are low but this is what I have and I have to start somewhere.

The GB150 has a 12V power adapter so all I had to do was plug my DC converter cord in and turn the machine on. Nothing... Oops there is an additional switch on the converter cord plug in. Flip that switch and I have a live screen on my unit.

I took the humidifier off replacing it with the side cover and decided to try things out. My GB150 was indicating about 75% full. I masked up and turned the machine on and laid down for a nap. I woke up a little over an hour later and the GB150 was still showing 75%.

The GB150 has 4 LED's that show 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%. This is not precise but gives a general indication of the capacity left.

When I went to bed I decided to throw the works at this. I put the humidifier back in and decided to see how long the full system would go.

My mean pressure is about 12.5, I do not use a heated hose, and my humidifier is set on 3. I am in airplane mode.

Just over 1.5 hours later, I wake up to a click and realize that everything has just shut off. My battery pack is exhausted.

I popped out of bed and plugged normal power back in. I noticed the red light come on indicating activity with the SD card. I expected to lose that data but was totally surprised when I found it was still there and readable. When I plugged the machine back in, it immediately started blowing air. I masked up and finished my sleep.

The next step is to start with a fully charged battery pack, remove the humidifier, and do another run. This would be my normal mode of operation for DC use.

I am charging my battery pack right now, but the bigger question is if I can survive a night without humidity...?

HoseCrusher wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 11:21 am

In addition I picked up the side cover for my machine so I can run without the humidifier.

Note to others, buying the side cover is not necessary to run without the humidifier, just leave the tank in and turn the humidity level to "off".

palerider wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 1:30 pm

HoseCrusher wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 11:21 am

In addition I picked up the side cover for my machine so I can run without the humidifier.

Note to others, buying the side cover is not necessary to run without the humidifier, just leave the tank in and turn the humidity level to "off".

True but I was lucky enough to have it included with my machine when the DME made the order...

palerider wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 1:30 pm

Note to others, buying the side cover is not necessary to run without the humidifier, just leave the tank in and turn the humidity level to "off".

The reason I like the side cover is that it makes the machine easier to pack for travel - I can put my mask in the humidifier compartment instead of jamming it in with the hose.

Hopeful50 wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 2:55 pm

palerider wrote: ↑

Sun May 06, 2018 1:30 pm

Note to others, buying the side cover is not necessary to run without the humidifier, just leave the tank in and turn the humidity level to "off".

The reason I like the side cover is that it makes the machine easier to pack for travel - I can put my mask in the humidifier compartment instead of jamming it in with the hose.

That's fine, I'm sure there's various reasons for wanting the side cover. I just wanted to make it clear to anybody wanting to reduce current draw that it's not *necessary* to buy the side panel, all that's required is turning off the humidifier.

Last night was mostly successful.

The GB150 has a timer that shuts everything off after around 8 hours. Mine is actually set to 7 hours and 50 minutes. When the timer shut down, I was just waking up so it was perfect timing. I turned the GB150 back on, my machine started back up and wrote the data to the SD card. Then I shut the machine and the GB150 down. I noticed I that the 25% capacity light was on but that is normal until everything shuts down. I basically used most of the capacity of the battery pack.

This means that with a fully charged battery pack, no humidity, and at the settings I am using, I have one nights worth of power should I need it in an emergency condition, or if I want to go car camping I am good for one night. I also have a sense of scale. If an 8 amp hour battery gave me 8 hours of run time, a 16 amp hour battery should give me 16 hours... and so on.

The downside was the lack of humidity. In nearly 10 years of CPAP use this was the first night without humidity, and my nose didn't like it. In an emergency this is no big deal but I now need to look into nose sprays that may help or some other way to introduce humidity without using power. Leaving the humidifier connected with water in it but shutting the power off to the humidifier seems like it would provide some pass over humidity and that may be enough to keep my nose happy. The other idea is to shove a wet paper towel into the hose but this is not without possible problems.

All in all I am pleased. If the power goes out I now have a plan that will help me get a good sleep so I can better deal with any emergencies that come up.

I feel like a Boy Scout... Be Prepared.

HoseCrusher wrote: ↑

Mon May 07, 2018 10:57 am

Last night was mostly successful.

The GB150 has a timer that shuts everything off after around 8 hours. Mine is actually set to 7 hours and 50 minutes. When the timer shut down, I was just waking up so it was perfect timing. I turned the GB150 back on, my machine started back up and wrote the data to the SD card. Then I shut the machine and the GB150 down. I noticed I that the 25% capacity light was on but that is normal until everything shuts down. I basically used most of the capacity of the battery pack.
...

Glad to hear this pack worked for you.

I feel compelled to do a mini-review of the pack for the readers. This is a Lithium based Jump Starter, designed to provide a lot of current for a brief period, which is the opposite of a deep cycle. With the voltage going down to 11.1 at "half power" it isn't clear when a particular device will shut down, so its a little hard to guess what the usable power actually is. The rated power is 88 Watt-hours, which would translate to about 7 AH from a 12V battery, but it wouldn't surprise me if its closer to 6AH in practice.

Another issue is that with the added weight of the jump starting cables it tips the scale at 7.5 lbs. By comparison, a 10 AH AGM weighs 6.8 lbs, and has the same usable power. The cost difference is large - the NOCO is about $300, the AGM (from Universal) is $23. Note that neither includes a charger. The NOCO can be trickle charged from a cell phone charger; for the AGM you would probably need to add about $35-50 for a charger plus a few cables.

While the NOCO may be a wonderful device if your need is jump starting, its a bit underwhelming as a backup battery. Its too small to run humidity for even a few hours, nor will it go multiple nights; its too heavy for hiking or flying. You could get a BatteryTender charger plus an assortment of AGMs for far less money. And you could probably jump start a car with any of them - traditional jump starters are actually 14 to 18 AH AGMs.

Those are good points...

If your primary use is to jump start diesel engines with dead batteries, the jump pack is the way to go. In addition it can power your CPAP for one night if needed.

If your primary use is to have a back up power source if the household power goes out, you are better off with a 12 volt battery. In addition it may be able to jump start a car if the car battery isn't too dead.

I ran this test with what I had at hand. I would not recommend purchasing a GB150 if your only use is to have a back up if the power goes out. This particular battery pack is two years old. I use it frequently and have fully abused it many times with difficult starts. I have not used it as a power source and was surprised it worked.

You have given me an idea for another test. I will test again with the humidifier hooked up but will reduce the level from 3 where I normally run down to 1 to see how long the machine will run.

I do have some traditional jump packs, but their capacities have been reduced due to hard use. I don't think it would be a fair test to try one of them.

This test ended up with a bit of a twist...

Same set up but this time the humidifier is attached and set to a level of 1.

After 7 hours 50 minutes the GP150 shut down. I wasn't quite ready to get up so I turned it back on. It was showing 25% capacity but turned on and I laid back down. I soon realized that I wasn't going back to sleep so I shut things down.

My GP150 power my CPAP machine and humidifier for about 8 hours and had a little left over. That is good news to me. Having a little bit of humidity helped a lot compared to the initial run with no humidity.

The twist is that my neighbor knocked on the door and asked me if I could help getting his car started. His battery was low. The car would crank but wouldn't start.

I told him that I had just run a test using my jump pack as a battery power supply and was down to 25% capacity. Previous experience suggested that even at 25% capacity I could start a small engine so I hooked things up and gave it a try. The engine started.

Charging this battery is interesting. Using a 12V power from a vehicle it charges in about 2 hours. Using the cell phone adapter it takes about 8+ hours. Charging from a car for about 5 minutes will bring the capacity of the battery from 25% to 50% and that is enough to start most cars.

I ran my CPAP with humidification for about 8 hours, then used the GB150 to start a car. Not too bad. I decided to measure the open circuit voltage and it was at 11.1 volts.

I am very pleased with this jump pack not only with its ability to start vehicles, but also with its ability to provide one night of CPAP usage.