How to get rid of Nasty germs?

Hi, have had a really bad sore throat and cough. Ihave been cleaning my mask with baby wipes and just rinsing my tube. Is vinegar the only good alterntive for "homemade" remedy. I don't want to keep breathing these germs in and out. I have put in a new filter in my machine two days ago but now I'm thinking maybe I need to change it everyday or so until I get rrid of all the symptoms. All suggestions are welcome. I would buy the the disenfectant online to keep in house but I need a quick solution this time around.

What an awful way I have spent my Thanskgiving being sick and not being able to enjoy my grandchild's first trip to see us out here in California and its only been the second time I have seen him since he was born (18 monthes ago)...totally bummed.

In a pinch, I think a thorough wash with soap and hot water will accomplish most of what you are trying to accomplish. I would add a little alcohol as well, but alcohol is not very effective on viruses. Whatever you use, follow it by a thorough rinse. I find that the rubber coupling on my hose fits right over the aerator on the sink, allowing me to 'connect' the hose to the faucet for a thorough rinse.

IMHO, I would not change the filter until your symptoms have subsided. I don't think you are trapping much in the way of viruses to begin with, and the heavy airflow passing over the virus particles will most likely destroy them through oxidation.

My cleaning routine is this:

Hand wash with Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile Soap (I like the scent, you may not)
Rinse with hot tap water
Soak for 10+ minutes in hot tap water and Control III Disinfectant from https://www.cpap.com
Immerse in a pot of rapidly boiling tap water for 5 minutes
Air dry

This should kill any germs you may have. I use this on my mask and side hoses. Your main hose may be more difficult to boil. You may need to use your biggest pot for that one.

Good luck!
Barbara

Babette wrote:My cleaning routine is this:

Hand wash with Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile Soap (I like the scent, you may not)
Rinse with hot tap water
Soak for 10+ minutes in hot tap water and Control III Disinfectant from https://www.cpap.com
Immerse in a pot of rapidly boiling tap water for 5 minutes
Air dry

Wow! I would not want to be a bug in your house!

In all seriousness, Control III should be enough to kill anything that would ail you. Kills both bacteria and viruses. The boiling just shortens the life of your mask and may actually damage your hose.

Sorry to hear about your illness during your grandson's visit

I use antibacterial foaming hand soap and hot tap water. I usually soak in soap and water for about 30 minutes and then rinse thoroughly. I like the "foaming" soap because it is easier to rinse.

I am asking Santa for a portable steamer for xmas and hope to use it on my cpap equipment for sanitizing after a cold or flu.

The misinformation in this thread is getting thick. Cold disinfecting solutions are safer for plastics and silicon parts. A very effective disinfectant is simple dishwashing detergent. With a soft cloth (or a disinfectant cloth), gently wash (or wipe) all the parts of the mask, the shell and pillows, the swivels in a solution of warm water and mild unscented shampoo or unscented dish detergent such as DAWN Original. DO NOT use any cleaners containing fragrance, conditioners or moisturizers as these will leave a residue that may affect the seal on your face.

Do not use alcohol or solutions containing alcohol. This has the potential to degrade the plastics in hoses, masks and other parts.

Baby-wipes contain lotions, scents and are designed for wiping baby butts. They are not disinfecting cloths and leave a residue on your equipment.

There are a number of people here advocating boiling and steaming. The plastics used in CPAP accessories are not designed to withstand that much heat and will break down, deform or hardenthe flexible plastic parts of the system and adversely affect their function.

Don't use bleach. Bleach is an oxidizer and will shorten the life of plastics and is difficult to rinse-off. Its not so good for your skin.

I called RespCare to find out it it was OK to boil the silicon pillows and oral cushion. They talked to the teckkies who said it was OK as hospitals autoclave the silicon parts. So I boiled mine after my cold (and periodically if the silicon gets filmy). The rest of the mask gets my usual rigorous daily cleansing.

Hi ,

Perhaps I can help , as well as being a cpap user I also brew my own beer . The best cleaning method is using VWP Cleaner Steriliser as this is cheap to buy easy to use , it wont rot or damage your mask or tube , in the short term you could use Milton and anything that you would use to sterilise a babys bottle .

The advantage of using VWP is it a food grade product and it kills yeast . I clean my stuff one a week but with winter and colds etc will start cleaning every other day .

Where can I buy VWP as I am not familiar with this product.

Citrus Disinfectant CPAP wipes: https://www.cpap.com/simple-find-cpap-p ... wipes.html

Is Milton only available in the UK?

Muse-Inc wrote:I called RespCare to find out it it was OK to boil the silicon pillows and oral cushion. They talked to the teckkies who said it was OK as hospitals autoclave the silicon parts. So I boiled mine after my cold (and periodically if the silicon gets filmy). The rest of the mask gets my usual rigorous daily cleansing.

Interesting. You will note though, according to the graphs supplied with some masks that the life of the seal is inversely proportional to how aggressively the mask is autoclaved.

That said, I have a really serious problem with facial oils. Up to this point, I have been washing the mask twice a day in mild dish soap (the first wash after I get up in the morning to remove surface oils picked up overnight. During the day, more oil migrates out of the silicone, necessitating a second wash). I will use a more aggressive detergent (Dawn dish soap) when the oil starts to be a real problem. Perhaps, I should consider boiling the seal once a month to get out deep seated oils. Do you find that a boiled seal is clear again?

Sleeprider wrote:The misinformation in this thread is getting thick.

Glad you broke the ice, because I've been holding my tongue.

Disclaimer: Please take this in the spirit it's given. It's an opinion, but certainly no disrespect. I understand the concerns and know that they are very real.

/disclaimer

I'm actually puzzled by the notion of cleaning up one's own germs. Their your own germs; what's the harm? It's not like sharing bubblegum. You've already succumbed to the germs and are doing your best to adapt new antibodies to ward them off. But the cows are WAY gone, so don't worry about the barn door anymore.

I know I'm a mutant when it comes to the microscopic mysteries in our world. My wife and I are firm believers in the "3 second rule" (sometimes even longer). We're responsible parents, but we do our best to raise our kids with as many immunities as possible, and that means getting dirty and shaking hands and riding public transportation and whatever else you can think of. We have to turn this peanut-allergic mentality around or else our species is doomed.

I've been chuckling to myself as H1M1 gets so much attention, because EVERYBODY in my office is slathering on the anti-bacterial goo. Anti-bacterial? Isn't H1M1 a virus?

Anyway, I know the invisible things are real, but I think we need to relax and avoid getting hysterical over these things--especially the notion of infecting ourselves with our own germs.

timbalionguy wrote:...Do you find that a boiled seal is clear again?

So far, it's restored the crystal clear appearance all 3 times I've done the boiling routine. I wash with Dawn, then with 7th Generation to get rid of the Dawn (which irritates my skin), then spray with vinegar, let sit 1-3 mins, then rub the areas where it gets filmy (while wet with vinegar), then rinse very well and air dry. This pretty much keeps it free of the film, I suspect it's a biofilm that develops over time. When I boil the silicon, it's been after this cleaning routine. Johnson's baby shampoo is supposed to breakup biofilms but it's useless on this film that shows up after drying.

timbalionguy wrote:

Babette wrote:In all seriousness, Control III should be enough to kill anything that would ail you. Kills both bacteria and viruses. The boiling just shortens the life of your mask and may actually damage your hose.

I disagree. Boiling silicone will not shorten it's life. It is recommended to boil other silicone items to disinfect them.

Also, the boiling water dries very quickly off the items. Air dry times are drastically shortened.

AND, I don't do this very often. Just when I feel the urge to clean. Which is rare.

Cheers,
B.