M Series Heated Humidifier runs dry during night

roster · Post by **roster** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 5:15 am

[quote="Daddysaur"]The humidifier business is a mystery to me. You, before CPAP, and the hoseless aliens around us are fine without them. And in theory you are breathing the same amount of air with the same relative humidity as the hoseless unless you have leaks/mouth open issues. So why is the humidifier a critical part of the CPAP system? What types of issues should I watch out for without the humidifier?

odawa · Post by **odawa** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 9:56 am

I have mine set on 2 I fill up everyother nite more if I take a nap. I really liked it on 3 but I had to fill it more often, so I turned it down. Yes my room is cold, I have the fan running most nites, and Michigan is high humidity. I did have to make a hose cover for the hose as I did experience rain-out. almost killed me one nite!!! so 2 for me, fill everyother nite unless I take a nap then I refill. Better to be safe than sorry

brians2000 · Post by **brians2000** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 10:22 am

Hi Odawa you also mentioned you had to make a hose cover, can you explain why you had to do that as well as what it is? Thanks

jpd23 · Post by **jpd23** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:11 pm

I usually have to refill after two nights on setting 1. On third night if set to zero. I am averaging about 6.5 - 7.5 hours/night on the hose. Now that I have Aussie hose I can go with zero setting and air is warm enough and no rain out. Live in Pacific NW so decent humidity. Haven't been through the winter on the hose yet so I may have to set to 2 or higher and then I will likely need to refill every night.

JZ · Post by JZ » Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:47 pm

brians2000,

Many of us have hose covers for one or more reasons.

1) Helps prevent rainout, which is condensation forming in the hose that can run into the mask, and thus the nose -- ugh, very unpleasant. The hose cover acts as an insulator.
2) Esthetic reasons -- cpap hoses just are not that attractive.
3) The cover eliminates that irritating noise of the hose rubbing against the headboard or other surfaces.

There may be a number of other reasons, but hose covers are very popular. You can purchase them at cpap.com or other Internet cpap stores. BUT, why not support a member of this forum. Offrocker makes a quality product at a reasonable price. You can find and order her covers at http://www.comfortsleeve.com.

Janna

roncron · Post by **roncron** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:59 pm

I also have an M-series w/ integrated heated humidifier. I set it to "3" every night and only use 2/3 of a tank of water. My water use is the same whether Encore Pro tells me I have lots of leaks or minimal leaks.

There seems to be a lot of variation in users' experience with M series regarding humidifier, noise levels, etc. I wouldn't be surprised if there were inconsistencies in Respironics' production of this line of machine.

brians2000 · Post by **brians2000** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:22 pm

My sleep clinic technician said humidifier should not be using a tank of water at night. I explained to her that I was talking with other users of the same humidifier and they have the same problem I have. She said she spoke to the company rep that makes this product and she said there has to be something wrong with my mask leaking or something else because the humidifier should not use a tank of water per night even on the highest setting. She told me to come in and pick up an APAP machine with a different humidifier so she could get some valuable information after a week. I told her dozens of people with the same humdifier as me all have the same problem. I will let you know what she tells me next week. Brian

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:25 pm

Wow, that is cool that your dme is taking such an interest in what is going on. I'll be really interested to hear what they figure out. And cool that you get an auto now. Hope they let you keep it.

jen

elliejose · Post by **elliejose** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:51 pm

When I told my DME that the water in my humidifier was not lasting through the night and that I would like to switch back to the classic bipap auto, he called the rep and told him that I was not happy with the "M" and wanted to switch, so now it is done.

I tape so I was not loosing water through the mouth. But I must use my humidifier on highest setting or I have terrible sinus problems. So I don't really know why my water would not last. I had been using my old stand alone humidaire - which I loved- but the thermostat on it no longer works most of the time. And just recently even tried the humidifier that came with the "M". I am so glad that I discovered the humidifier problem before my 10 month rental period on the "M" was up so I could switch.

I got the new classic last week and the humidifier today. So we shall see tonight how it all works. Even tho the classic may be a "tad" noisier than the "M", I really do not miss that horrible whooshing, up and down noise that the "M" made. I just hope that with my heated hose, my sinuses will be happy! By the way, my DME is great! It's just a small, locally owned business, but they are very client oriented.

_________________

CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): bipap, humidifier, hose, DME, auto

brians2000 · Post by **brians2000** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 12:20 am

What is the difference between the M series CPAP that I have and the Autoset Spirit that I am trying out for a week? My DME technician is very concerned about any problem I have. She wants to make sure I am not leeking. She is very concerned when I tell her my M series humidifier is running out of water after one night. I hope she comes up with what is wrong. I really enjoy using the CPAP because I can already tell I fell better. Brian

brians2000 · Post by **brians2000** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 6:42 pm

After I told her my humidifier was still running dry on my M series CPAP machine she wanted me to switch machines. She switched me to the Resmed S8 Compact System. I hope the humidifier on this machine works better. She said I am the only person who told her they had a problem with their M series CPAP humidifier but she said alot of people may have a problem but for some reason choose not to tell her.

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 7:37 pm

Wow! Too bad they won't let you KEEP that AutoSet Spirit!!!!!

brians2000 · Post by **brians2000** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 11:41 pm

I know what you mean slinky. That AutoSet Spirit gave a nice read out of how long I sleep and how many times I stopped breathing. I also liked it because it didn't blow as hard all the time.

dhinton · Post by **dhinton** » Tue Aug 07, 2007 12:52 am

[quote="brians2000"]The technician at the sleep center told me the CPAP would break if the water ran out in as little as two hours. I was told I would smell it burning and what you said makes perfect sense. I didn't smell anything last night but I will make sure it is always filled and if I wake up in the middle of the night I refill it. I hate that the tank is not bigger. Does anyone know what would happen to the humidifier if I filled it above the fill mark. thanks, Brian

M Series Heated Humidifier runs dry during night

Odawa what is rain out?

My sleep clinic technician said humidifier should not...

What is the difference between the M series CPAP

My DME technician gave me a totally new CPAP machine