Traveling with CPAP

[mhorowit]

I just completed a trip from Washington Dulles to Albuquerque ,NM and return.
TSA is MUCH more professional than when I last flew and they were polite, and knew what they were doing. They spotted it on the x-ray machine and said they needed to swab it for explosives, so putting it in a clear plastic bag did no good. I didn't ask that they change gloves, but did watch the process.
When I got to the gate, I asked if I could go aboard earlier to insure I had a secure place in the overhead and she said, "sure, just come in after the first class pax".
Having a tag identifying it as a medical device did no good. I was polite, they were polite, all went well. - Mike

[rested gal]

Sounds like it all went smoothly...and politely, Mike. That's nice to hear.

[TheDreamer]

The idea of the plastic bag is because they say you're supposed to take it out and put it in a bin .... like a laptop.... And, then afterwards they swab it for explosives.

First time I flew, I left mine in my bag and let them take it out etc. Going out, the agent was fine with trying to figure out how to get it out of my bag so she could swab it. Coming back the agent wasn't so nice about it. But, still had to figure out how to get it out etc.

This last time, I took it out and put it in the tub and sent it through (machine in a ziploc bag)....again there were differences in how things went.

Going out, the agent put on new gloves (I didn't ask) opened the ziploc bag I had it in, swabbed it, put it back in bag....and that was that.

Coming back...the agent said "what hell is this thing doing in a plastic bag". Shouted at me that she's going to have to take it out of the bag to swab it...like I didn't know that they would have to or that I was stupid....umm, you just showed everybody that you're the stupid one.

Other than that....no problems.

The Dreamer.

[plr66]

Yeah, I've mentioned before that the ziplock doesn't make a lot of sense to me either. Just complicates the process that we don't want to slow down even more. Not to mention that we risk our machine when putting the TSA person in a position of having to remove it from that ziplock and replace it in that ziplock.

I recommend not using a ziplock! If you're squeemish, then just take your machine out of your bag and place it on a grocery bag in the bin. Make it easy for TSA to access as they have to, and throw the bag away when you re-pack your machine into your carry case.

[dhaxelbarqs]

With CPAP titration (split night or entire night), the patient wears the CPAP mask and pressure is adjusted up and down from the prescribed setting to find the optimal setting.
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[TheDreamer]

The ZipLoc bag forms an air pilow to pad the machine in my bag.

And, it isn't rocket science to open and close a bag...they do it all the time....they opened my other bag and rumaged through without saying anything...

The Dreamer.

[bearded_two]

I don't bother with putting my machine in a plastic bag when I travel. My CPAP bag provides sufficient protection and I am not concerned about getting cooties during the TSA inspection. I keep my mask in a zip-lock bag to keep the straps from getting tangled with other stuff. I don't usually keep my hose in a plastic bag, but I sometimes put it in a bag if I don't have a rubber band to keep it bundled.

I put my machine in a ziplock bag when I went on Windjammer cruises -- I put EVERYTHING in ziplock bags when I went on Windjammer cruises. Luggage and hand carried bags had been known to end up in the water on rare occasion when they were being transferred between the launch and the ship. Luckily, I never had any of my bags end up getting wet.

[harry33]

I know this is against all expert advice but when I fly, including in the USA, I simply put my CPAP in my checked in bag and never mention it, they would see it in their xray but Ive never been questioned or asked to open my bag

[bearded_two]

The TSA is probably not going to be concerned about a CPAP in checked luggage. I don't check my CPAP machine because luggage is subject to rough handling, delay, loss, rifling, and theft. I also don't want to get stuck overnight somewhere en-route without CPAP. Another potential issue is that I usually carry a CPAP battery in my CPAP bag, and it isn't supposed to go into checked luggage.

If I were on a non-stop flight home and had to check my CPAP machine, I probably would do it. knowing that I am very unlikely to be delayed overnight en-route to home and knowing that the CPAP that I am exposing to damage and loss is a back-up machine and that I have other machines at home.

[TheDreamer]

But how clean are the bins that you put your naked CPAP machine into....remember that people have taken their shoes off and they get put into the bins.

Hmmm, I think stepped in something my neighbor's dog left in the yard as I was running to catch my cab.... (sadly, its happened to me more than once...)

The Dreamer.

[ajen68510]

Last time i flew with my old Cpap machine , the security guy broke my filter holde r off, and never said anything. The old machine had a difficult filter to remove, so he just broke the tabs off, thru it all back in the bag. Did'nt find out till i got to hotel that night.

[JayC]

On my last trip (airline out of Boston Logan) when I got to my destination, I changed the filter I had been meaning to change....and I found the one in there was in backwards.........!!!!!

I have been having a rough stretch of months, but I am reasonably sure I did *not* put it in backwards...especially given the use patterns on it. I eventually realized TSA likely removed the filter as part of their checking (after I watched them swab, or maybe that was the time they got to their station after finding me but before I got my bags collected off the scanner belt output...)

I will make a point of checking the filter AND the cover as I put it back in my bag after going thru TSA......thanks for the comment!!

J