Using your North American CPAP in Europe

[christo]

Anybody know what I have to buy to make my CPAP ResMed Elite II work with the electricity plug in Europe.
It says in the back

AC 100-240V 50/60Hz, 110 V 400 HZ, 2.5 A
DC: 12V,2.5 A

Thanks in advance,
Christopher

[Davidwnc]

Something to adapt the American plug to the one of the country(s) you are going to be in.
Which country(s)?

[bearded_two]

You just need an adapter to adapt your power cord's plug to fit the outlets used in the country(ies) that you are going to. It would also be a good idea to carry a long, cheap extension cord with you. Your CPAP will automatically adjust to the voltage.

Although off-topic, I noticed something interesting in the specs that you provided; it is specified to also work off of 110 V 400 Hz -- which is normal aircraft AC power.

[Davidwnc]

Although off-topic, I noticed something interesting in the specs that you provided; it is specified to also work off of 110 V 400 Hz -- which is normal aircraft AC power.

It's normal for some airlines, not for others, sadly, as I am having difficulties with it (see viewtopic/t45678/A-CPAP-that-will-work- ... ights.html ) Unfortunately I have the REMstar Plus M series, which does not list the 400 Hz as being compatible.

[bearded_two]

I should have clarified it; airliners use 110 V 400 Hz (3 phase, 110 V per phase) on the internal aircraft systems, they also use 28 V DC. I suspect that when 110 V 60 Hz is provided, they actually use an inverter to convert 28 VDC to 110 V 6o Hz.

[timbalionguy]

I should have clarified it; airliners use 110 V 400 Hz (3 phase, 110 V per phase) on the internal aircraft systems, they also use 28 V DC. I suspect that when 110 V 60 Hz is provided, they actually use an inverter to convert 28 VDC to 110 V 6o Hz.

The power available in the cabin of a commercial aircraft would be 60 or 50 Hz. The 400 Hz capability though, is interesting. Might possibly be for military patient capability where 400 Hz power availability would be more likely. It could also be that the off-the-shelf switching power supply they used in the machine would do 400 Hz, so they carried that over to the product specs.

[Davidwnc]

The power available in the cabin of a commercial aircraft would be 60 or 50 Hz. The 400 Hz capability though, is interesting. Might possibly be for military patient capability where 400 Hz power availability would be more likely. It could also be that the off-the-shelf switching power supply they used in the machine would do 400 Hz, so they carried that over to the product specs.

It depends on the Airline - some airline supply AC at 400 Hz.
It is because the generators run at 400 Hz as they are physically smaller and therefore lighter (i.e. cheaper for the airline...)

[christo]

Yes, I just needed a simple adapter with two round pins that fits into one hand, and just enables the plug of the machine to fit into the round holes of the wall sockets (see http://www.kropla.com/!c.htm). The CPAP machine adjusts itself to the countries voltage. The country BTW is Germany.
I don't need to worry about different voltage or anything like that. I got it for 12 Euros ($ 18) at the airport. You can probably get it cheaper somewhere else, but an International Airport will most likely have a store that sells them.


Thanks,
Christopher

[billbolton]

The power available in the cabin of a commercial aircraft would be 60 or 50 Hz.

Mostly not.

Its usually 400Hz, as the weight and size of the at-seat power units to deliver a domestic supply voltage is a lot less with a higher frequency. For a commercial aircraft, both fixed weight and size are always a very important considerations, and there may be a lot of at-seat power packs (usually one per 2 to 3 seats)

Cheers,

Bill (IEEE)

[afcdmc]

This a nice webpage to use when traveling http://www.seatguru.com/ to check if the airplanes have a power otlet to use a Cpap

[elader]

This a nice webpage to use when traveling http://www.seatguru.com/ to check if the airplanes have a power otlet to use a Cpap

not that simple - most if not all airlines require prior approval, most won't let you use the AC power at all - they will insist you have enough battery for 1.5X the length of your flight.

[Davidwnc]

not that simple - most if not all airlines require prior approval, most won't let you use the AC power at all - they will insist you have enough battery for 1.5X the length of your flight.

That really depends on the airline? I've never had a problem with it. If you check many airlines require prior notification (as opposed to permission) of CPAP. That's just my experiences with AA, BA, Qantas, Continental, (and for a future flight with Cathay Pacific.) As for the battery, it's not that they insist on the having enough battery, it's more that they can not guarantee you power during the flight so they want you prepared. I don't have a battery (only a cigarette lighter adaptor) and again, I've not had a problem.