CPAP WITH LIGHTING

donah · Post by **donah** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 2:44 pm

:shock I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT CPAP MACH WE LIVE IN THE COUNTRY AND WE HAVE ALOT OF THUNDER STORMS : I WAS UP ALL NITE LAST NITE BECAUSE I WAS WORRIED THAT THE LIGHTING WOULD COME THRU MY CPAP DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THIS CAN HAPPEN I NEED TO SLEEP. THANKS FOR THE HELP

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 2:49 pm

Nothing is impossible, only highly improbable. Do you have your computer on a surge protector bar? Buy one for you CPAP too and get your sleep.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 2:51 pm

donah wrote::shock I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT CPAP MACH WE LIVE IN THE COUNTRY AND WE HAVE ALOT OF THUNDER STORMS : I WAS UP ALL NITE LAST NITE BECAUSE I WAS WORRIED THAT THE LIGHTING WOULD COME THRU MY CPAP DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THIS CAN HAPPEN I NEED TO SLEEP. THANKS FOR THE HELP

With lightning, I suppose anything can happen. I think however that your chances of getting struck by a heart attack or stroke when not using your CPAP is greater than getting struck by lightning through your CPAP when using it. I would sleep with the machine.

hades161 · Post by **hades161** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 3:39 pm

Well if your like most old country houses I have seen your electrical setup is prolly 30 years out of date or more. I would buy a really nice surge protector anyway. Make sure you fill out the insurance card that comes with it.

I have worked onsite as a computer tech in the past and have seen a few lightning struck homes with computers. Two of which stand out in my mind both were older farm houses and the strike was almost on the house. You could see the line on the wall were the lightning followed down the wires into the socket through the surge protector and into the computer. One time it was the phone line and the modem and motherboard melted together nicely. The other time the PSU melted. Both times there was a surge protector in the way but was melted and they failed to stop it.

If lightning strikes close enough to your home, your unit is fried no matter what surge protector is in the way. The good news is the better ones have good insurance and are reputable and will cover the cost if you send in the card. I have had good luck with APC.

As far as you being hooked up to it and killed, well I guess if you had rainout REALLY bad and everything to stop the surge along the way failed, and your really really unlucky in some series of events that should be on CSI you could be hurt, other wise I can't really imagine it.

http://www.apc.com/products/category.cf ... egmentID=1

Julie · Post by **Julie** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 5:36 pm

Hi, I've never heard of anyone at all being killed by lightning coming thru a Cpap machine (or even telephone for that matter, tho' apparently that has happened to someone somewhere sometime . I live in an 80+ yr old little money pit in the middle of nowhere (rural!) and we get tons of rain, wind, snow, thunder & lightning and I don't even think about it. The power goes off sometimes, but I wake up pretty quickly when that happens, and there are so many things to worry about these days, I just don't have the energy for that one! Do get a surge protector to protect your machine, but don't worry about you & lightning!

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 7:52 pm

Lightning can also kill you while setting in the livingroom, with you XPAP safely in the Bedroom. The only garrente you get with life, is know you are dieing all the time. Jim

RosemaryB · Post by **RosemaryB** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:15 pm

Remember, the hose itself is plastic, and the mask is plastic with two rubber connectors at each end of the hose. There aren't any wires in the hose and it is filled with air. Unless you are using the Aussie Heated Hose, there's no metal to conduct electricity. My guess is that even if your machine got fried, the electricity wouldn't go up the hose to you. (Your rainout would have to be a steady stream of water, it seems to me).

I'm no electrical expert, anyone who is, feel free to correct me.

GumbyCT · Post by **GumbyCT** » Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:28 pm

I would say - if you are concerned about that, get a DC power source to use during those events. Lots of choices there.

That would isolate you from the AC power but is not a guarantee of eternal life.

HTH,
GumbyCT

ColinP · Post by **ColinP** » Wed Feb 13, 2008 2:34 am

Hi

There is a risk that the lightning will can damage your CPAP machine, which can be reduced by using a surge protector, but if I understand your question correctly, you're more worried about being electrocuted because you're using your CPAP. There is no chance of a surge on the power coming through your CPAP and causing you to be electrocuted. You are isolated electrically from the CPAP, and as safe as you would normally be lying in your bed.

Colin

sleepie · Post by **sleepie** » Wed Feb 13, 2008 2:43 am

Jim your right----NO ONE GETS OUT ALIVE!!!!!!!!

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Sun Feb 17, 2008 7:45 pm

Martha Stewart claims to have been struck by lightening twice. Once it came thru the pipes when she was doing dishes. The other she was sleeping in a huge metal four poster bed (and she survived both attempts by lightening on her life). Stay away from the pipes and big brass beds, get a good surge protector and i bet you won't have even the bad luck of Martha.

Jen

Gerald · Post by **Gerald** » Sun Feb 17, 2008 10:00 pm

The strip type surge protectors purchased from places like Lowe's or Home Depot are generally worthless. Nearly all of them use "metal oxide varisters"......and one little surge will generally knock them out. After that, there is no more protection.....and there's no way to test so that we know if there's protection or not.

The only surge protector that I have confidence in....is made by ZeroSurge.
Their website is Zerosurge.com.

A ZeroSurge saved my butt when we had an almost direct hit near my business. My server was unharmed....but only one terminal "froze" and had to be repaired. Other than that, we had to repair the building electrical system because a number of outlets were actually smoking after the strike.

I've used ZeroSurge for about 15-years.......and I won't consider anything else.

Gerald

RichCMH · Post by **RichCMH** » Mon Feb 18, 2008 9:33 pm

sock...
When I was a about 6, my mom was struck by lightening. She was standing about 8 feet from a screen door when lightening hit the TV antenna tower, jumped over to the rain gutter, down the spout and jumped to and thru the screen door (jumping across a large farmhouse porch to do so) only to give my mom just a little prickly jolt on her arm. Our TV antenna, tuner and TV didn't fare as well.

Cheers.

lifeartist59 · Post by **lifeartist59** » Tue Feb 19, 2008 1:06 am

I found this post interesting since last night the wind took out our power for several hours. I don't have a battery backup, and the wind was so loud I was up for the duration. I am pretty sure the plastic hose would not be a conductor and that unless you were touching the machine the very moment the lightening struck you would be fine. It sure woke me up when the air stopped flowing in the mask!

CPAP WITH LIGHTING

CPAP WITH LIGHTING

Re: CPAP WITH LIGHTING

last night we lost power

Mask