WARNING!!!

[alnhwrd]

"I worry more about spiders or other creepy crawlers climbing in the hose when I hang it up to dry. I try to give it air flow before I put it on and hope they loose traction first. Jim"

Now THAT"S a thought that will keep me awake at night! Ugh!

[pc_5150]

"I worry more about spiders or other creepy crawlers climbing in the hose when I hang it up to dry. I try to give it air flow before I put it on and hope they loose traction first. Jim"

Now THAT"S a thought that will keep me awake at night! Ugh!

Just read that myself and had the very same thought. That's nightmare material right there.

I hear mosquitoes like humid and water-filled places...maybe there's a mosquito hive building in my HH and I'm just waiting to inhale the larvae so they can incubate in my sinuses before they hatch!!!! OH NOES!

[bdp522]

I use an old (but clean) knee hi stocking to slip over my nasal pillows each morning. Makes sure nothing can get up there but still allows air flow so the hose dries.

Brenda

[CentralScrutinizer]

While I've only been using CPAP for a month... I've only cleaned the hose once... No problems yet...

However, it seems logical, that there are probably as many different conditions are there are people who use CPAP. I could fully understand that one person might have problems if they don't wash and/or dry their hose on a regular basis, where someone else might be able to go years without ever cleaning the hose, etc...

This is the first I've ever heard of this type of issue... and for sure will keep me more aware of how carefully I will look after my CPAP gear... I'm not saying I'm going to start cleaning and drying my gear every single day... but I will for sure pay a bit more attention to it then I have been...

I may turn my HH off for the summer... it seems I really don't need it anyway, since the humidity in my home probably averages about 55% in the sumer. (I use AC pretty much on any day that gets above 78). In the winter on the other hand... my house humidity probably averages about 40 or no more then 45% humidity and have found the HH useful. IF my normal air humidity was above 60% I'd definitely be concern about growth of funky things in my CPAP gear...

[deerslayer]

WOWthis thread sure has been a civil war of sorts. ..& yes have seen this topic come up since this greenhorn has been posting here. having an auto immune disorder i had the crap scared out of me when given cleaning instructions, like others i'm sure....cleaning ones equipment is one topic that comes down to what you feel comfortable with- What has worked for me may not work(feel comfortable with)to someone else. having been a food handler most of my life,i sota have an awareness of what will & won't make you sick-but not a know -it-all . i have tended to moderate cleaning since starting & thrown in a dash of common sense. twice a week i clean mask parts in warm ivory liquid/water sol......once a week (or two) wash mask,hose,and humidifier in warm ivory liquid-white vinegar sol.....otherwise every morning i take tank from machine & add proper amout of distilled h2o & replace in machine....I like that idea of having a spare hose to alternate for drying purposes rock on fellow hosers

[EarlyStarts]

I have been on CPAP for over 5 years. Much less than many of you. I only use tap water in my humidifier. I just add more water every other day or so and don't bother dumping the old stuff out - it is just water. I don't ever wash the hose either.

I do wash the mask regularly so it doesn't get oily and leak. I change the white filter when it gets dirty and I think, "boy, I am glad I didn't breathe in all of that black junk caught on the filter."

I must be lucky to be alive but I did save a lot of time to do other fun things rather than washing hoses or tanks or buying special water.

[rested gal]

I have been on CPAP for over 5 years. Much less than many of you. I only use tap water in my humidifier. I just add more water every other day or so and don't bother dumping the old stuff out - it is just water. I don't ever wash the hose either.

---

I must be lucky to be alive but I did save a lot of time to do other fun things rather than washing hoses or tanks or buying special water.

Other than that I use distilled water only (our tap water leaves a scaly buildup in the water chamber) I do the same as you, EarlyStarts. I don't dump the unused distilled water out...I just add more as needed every two or three days. Been doing it that way for years with no problem.

I worry more about spiders or other creepy crawlers climbing in the hose when I hang it up to dry. I try to give it air flow before I put it on and hope they loose traction first. Jim

Now THAT"S a thought that will keep me awake at night! Ugh!

Well, then THIS old thread (link below) should keep you awake for several months!

Aug 18, 2005 subject: Worst CPAP moment Creepy old topic started by chrisp
viewtopic.php?t=4223

[socknitster]

If you have moisture building up in your hose, then you need to evaluate how you are setting your humidifier. Having moisture in the hose all the time is a bad idea--I agree. Not only could stuff potentially grow (just look at the walls of my otherwise very clean shower stall) but this also is indicative of a rain-out problem.

If there ISN'T moisture visible in your hose, I really doubt much could grow. The constant air flow all night should keep things dried out and that shouldn't support growth of much of anything.

And there really is a threshold of tolerance for germs that will be different for everyone. For example, washing fruit does NOT wash all the germs off that could be there, only decreases them by a power of magnitude, making them far safer. Most people wouldn't have a problem with rinsing off a melon and eating it. But someone with a weak immune system could potentially get sick from the very miniscule amount of germs present on the rind that get transferred to the fruit upon cutting. It really only takes one germ after all.

So, I consider it highly POSSIBLE that oceanpurl could have gotten a lung infection from her hose--if the right conditions were met AND she was particularly susceptible at the time.

I understand the incredulity of some of these posts but not the disdain. If your newborn baby was on cpap--do you think you would be as cavalier about cleaning? I'd be curious about how cpap devices are cleaned in a nicu environment. I'll be a lot more often than some of you clean yours--but then you are otherwise healthy with an intact immune system.

People did at one time, and in many places still do, sleep on dirt floors. But those whose immune systems couldn't or can't handle that amount of germs don't survive these kinds of circumstances.

I think it is fine for oceanpurl to try to warn others. We can all take her advice with the grain of whatever personal salt makes sense to us, depending on our individual health and living conditions allow.

Jen

[alnhwrd]

Rested Gal,

Thanks for the link. Who needs to spend money (and gas) going to see the latest Hollywood horror flick when you can read CpapTalk for free? About halfway through the thread I started thinking about an article I read once that claimed people ate X number of spiders a year, and there it was, you already had a link to it (As a side note, have you noticed that links have become to computers what footnotes are to books? You follow one, it leads to another, and another, ad infinitum!) Maybe that is why since I started taping my mouth closed I am hungry in the morning

[rested gal]

(As a side note, have you noticed that links have become to computers what footnotes are to books? You follow one, it leads to another, and another, ad infinitum!)

As another side note, your mentioning footnotes reminds me of a little novel called The Mezzanine by one of my favorite authors, Nicholson Baker. Footnotes are not usually my cup of tea -- I usually regard them as interrupting, sidetracking annoyances that I wish weren't there (yeah, I could simply "not read 'em", but...heck, they're THERE!) But, the footnotes in his book are little treasures.

[ColinP]

I have been on CPAP for over 5 years. Much less than many of you. I only use tap water in my humidifier. I just add more water every other day or so and don't bother dumping the old stuff out - it is just water. I don't ever wash the hose either.

I religiously follow the same regimen

I'm glad my ResMed continues running slowly for a while after it's been switched off to dry the hose and mask out though - I reckon it's a feature worth having.

Colin

[klutzo]

I clean my nasal pillows daily, and the hose, filter, headgear and HH weekly. I use Dawn and cold water, as instructed by my DME.

I've had thrush for about a week and did not know why. I've also had chest congestion for the past three days. I use only distilled water in my HH and keep it set on "one". I only dump the HH once weekly when I wash it, but add more histilled H20 each morning. Every morning, after cleaning my nasal pillows and the area around them, I run the machine with the HH off until everything looks totally dry.

This morning I was doing my weekly cleaning of the machine parts when I noticed theire was a coral pink growth on two areas in my HH. I had to really scrub hard to get rid of it. I know this is a mold, since I've seen similar colored mold on shower curtains.

I am now terrified that this may have caused my thrush and congestion. I have an abnormal immune system from Lyme Disease and am allergic to almost all antibiotics now.

Do any of you have any idea what I did wrong for this to happen? Any idea what the coral colored type of mold is called, or how to get rid of it once you are infected?

Thanks,
Klutzo

[Guest]

According the recommendations from the manufacturers, you need to clean you humidifier every day. But even if you do not do that, not emptying your water everyday is asking for trouble, IMO. Even though you were running the system to dry out, since the water was there, even without heat, it really is not getting dry. Since you have had some problems, suggest you go out to daily cleaning and drying of the humidifier at least for a while to see if the problem comes back. Add the water to the humidifier only in the evening before you go to bed, so water does not stand in there all day.

It is possible that the problems you have had may have nothing to do with that 'mold' you saw. We humans have an amazing capacity to attribute causes to anything we happen to see. If one gets a cold the first week of using a cpap, it is easy to think it was because of the cpap. However, if you are new to cpap, it is possible that the increased pressure can cause some discomfort in the chest and abdominal areas while the muscles are getting used to handling the situation. In any case, discolored stuff in the humidifier or anywhere in the air stream is certainly to be avoided!

[xyz]

es
> I only use tap water in my humidifier. I just add more water every other day or so and don't bother dumping the old stuff out - it is just water. I don't ever wash the hose either.

Here's a timely article in today's news related to this subject.

----------

LA Reservoir Covered With Balls to Protect Water
June 11, 2008

Los Angeles -- Hundreds of thousands of shimmering black plastic balls were dumped into one of the city's last open-air reservoirs to prevent a sunlight-fueled chemical reaction that can harm the water supply.

Workers on Monday unleashed 400,000 of the hollow, 4-inch "shade balls" down a slope to cover the surface of the Ivanhoe Reservoir, which provides water to parts of downtown, central, and south Los Angeles.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power drained two of its six remaining open-air reservoirs because a rare sunlight-and-chlorine reaction tainted the water with bromate, a cancer-causing chemical.

The amounts were small and didn't violate federal water regulations, but the water was dumped as a precaution.

The plastic spheres are "a cost effective method of creating shade without elaborate construction, parts, labor, or maintenance," the department said in a statement.

The balls are a temporary fix while the city completes an underground water storage project to replace the open-air reservoirs within several years.

----------

Ah, the fresh smell of bromate in our humidifiers.
"L.A. -- it's a nice place to visit, but don't drink the water."

"Didn't violate federal regulations": How many federal bureaucrats -- or L.A. water dept officials, for that matter -- drink that stuff? They're all down at Costco loading up on bottled water, lol.

For 7 cents per night, I'll continue to use distilled water.

sn
> If there ISN'T moisture _visible_ in your hose, I really doubt much could grow.

Huh? And how much is "much"?

> The constant air flow all night should keep things _dried out_

Um, doesn't the humidifier deliver _moist_ air to the hose? Continuously. Isn't that why they call it a HUMID-ifier?

_________________

CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): humidifier, hose, news, Power

[socknitster]

[quote="klutzo"]I clean my nasal pillows daily, and the hose, filter, headgear and HH weekly. I use Dawn and cold water, as instructed by my DME.

I've had thrush for about a week and did not know why. I've also had chest congestion for the past three days. I use only distilled water in my HH and keep it set on "one". I only dump the HH once weekly when I wash it, but add more histilled H20 each morning. Every morning, after cleaning my nasal pillows and the area around them, I run the machine with the HH off until everything looks totally dry.

This morning I was doing my weekly cleaning of the machine parts when I noticed theire was a coral pink growth on two areas in my HH. I had to really scrub hard to get rid of it. I know this is a mold, since I've seen similar colored mold on shower curtains.

I am now terrified that this may have caused my thrush and congestion. I have an abnormal immune system from Lyme Disease and am allergic to almost all antibiotics now.

Do any of you have any idea what I did wrong for this to happen? Any idea what the coral colored type of mold is called, or how to get rid of it once you are infected?

Thanks,
Klutzo