Cpap got a gooood cleaning this a.m.

[base2balls]

Whoaaaaaa,, I gave my cpap a goooood cleaning this a.m. and I had been a little lazy at getting that done. I can't get over how dirty my headgear was. I put it in a bowl with some Joy dish soap and used my hands to squeeze it a few time and the water was so dirty you couldn't see the bottom of the bowl!!!!. I did this a couple times and changing the water wiht the soap in it. I took the entire mask apart and gave that a good cleaning and also the nose bridge protector that I bought from padacheek.com and I also gave the humidifyer a gooood cleaning so it should all be comfortable wearing it tongiht. The hose I let soak in the joy dish soap and vinegar for a half hour and it's hanging in the shower now to dry out so about a half hour before I go to bed I'll coil it up and put it under the electric blanket to finish drying it and then it will be nice. I guess tomorrow I'll wash clothes and throw the hose cover in the wash too. I'll have to make a second one so I can change off when one gets dirty. I still can't get over how dirty the headgear was. I pressed it between two towels to blot out eccess water. Dang I shouldn't get that lazy about keeping my equipment clean. Well I'm going to go lie down for a spell. So every one enjoy the rest of your day, Huggies, Fay

[Jaylee]

Wow, how long was it? I clean mine every week. I use a toothbrush to clean the humidifier.

[dog_tired1]

Hi.
I have about a month in as a cpap user. I hate cleaning all my gear!! It is such a pain in the rear end. I was getting too lax and let it sit for too long without giving it a through cleaning. Here and there I was wiping my mask with cpap wipes, but that was the most I did. I am also lazy about washing the hoses out. It is so messy. I have to admit I don't have money to burn, but I usually buy a few new hoses and use a brand new one every week. I wash out the used hoses, but for some reason haven't used any of them yet, because I have a secret fear that they will get mold or something of the like when hanging them to dry.

The other night I took apart my mask, headgear and humidifier and washed them from top to bottom and dried them. It sounds silly, but I couldn't wait to go to sleep that night having squeaky clean equipment. It is like putting brand new sheets on the bed and you can't wait to dive in, lol!

[Jaylee]

A new hose every week?

[base2balls]

I generally clean the machine every week but for the past weeks I had done it two aweeks at a time, but the headgear has been washed maybe once or twice since I got it last February. I've sure been a lazy old bag. Well I'm just going to have to get my rear in gear and keep up the maint on my equipment. I have the h4i humidifyer so I can't use a tooth brush on it , but do need to find a nice soft one to clean the vents on the mask. I was thinking of making some sort of dauber to clean the humifyer with and I will be able to bend the wire. I 'm thinking of putting a small micro fiber cloth on one end and then stitck that part in to the humidifyer to clean it and then wala! it'll be a lot cleaner. Now that I'm giving myself some ideas on that, I best get started on making one. Enjoy your day, Huggies, Fay

[echo]

hay Fay don't freak out too much, could be that the headgear fabric is still bleeding its color (mine still does after multiple washings and I'm pretty sure it's not all just grime! ). I clean my humidifier tank weekly if I remember to, the foam filter monthly or more often if travelling, the mask silicon daily-ish, and the mask & hose hardly ever.

Anyhoo happy cleaning love these cleaning threads

[dog_tired1]

Jaylee,
Lol, I have only been using cpap for only about a month so I am sure I won't be buying any more new hoses for a while. I recently bought 4 brand new hoses in the original packaging on ebay for $15 incl. shipping and whenever I see a good deal like that I scoop them up.

I don't know why I have such a fear of germs in my hose. I guess it is because I can take apart all my other cpap equipment and clean them and dry them with sanitized paper towels. The hose relies on air drying which sort of freaks me out, because I worry about dust, mold and particles in the air landing inside the wet hose while it's drying.

I am a worry wart because I spent a month in the burn unit with horrible 3rd degree burns hooked up to all sorts of machines. They did skin grafts on me and I ended up getting a life threatening infection with out of control fevers. The skin grafts didn't take because of the infection raging through my body. I was told that I got the infection most likely from the skin graft machine having microscopic germs or the machine not being sanitized right. This is a big reason why I guess I am so phobic.

Take care,
Dee

[echo]

Dee, try drying your hose by connecting it to your cpap and let it run for a while. Mine us usually dry within 15 minutes like this, even though the pressure at the hose isn't the full pressure. Also, swing your hose around a few times to get all the excess water out before connecting it. I hold the hose at the middle and swing each half around a few times. If your bathroom's big then you don't have to worry about knocking out the lights

Sorry to hear about your burn experience. I hope all is better now!

[dog_tired1]

Hi Echo,
That is such an awesome tip! I will hook it up to the machine and let it dry that way. I would have never thought about that. Thanks so much. I love this forum!!

[echo]

I know, that's one of my favorite tips I got off this forum too!! Can't remember who told me though.

BTW you ARE using a fine disposable filter on your cpap, right? https://www.cpap.com/cpap-filters.php

Note if you're into the anti germ philosophy, you can also get a bacteria filter between the hose and the HH. Personally I don't think it's necessary (and I do NOT want to start the discussion about whether germs can travel in the humidified air or not, that has already been debated a million times here), but just mentioning it in case it gives you peace of mind!

[dog_tired1]

Hi Echo.
Thanks for the reply. I am using some kind of foam filter. I bought a few of them and haven't had the need to change it yet, because I have only been using this particular machine for a week and a half (this is my second machine and is a Fisher & Paykel SleepStyle 244 that I won on cpapauction.com). I got this one because my S8 EscapeII is not data capable (learned the hard way). I still use the S8 Escape, for naps. That bacteria filter you sent a link for seems interesting. Maybe I will give it a try.

Thanks so much for all the info.

~Dee

[echo]

hey Dee last post before I go to bed... you can use the fine filter under the foam filter. highly recommended!!! read up on it at the cpap.com site, they discuss the fine vs foam filter. you should use both as the foam filter won't capture everything. cheers!

[dog_tired1]

Echo,
Thanks for that info. I didn't know that. Where can I buy these particulat filters for the SleepStyle 244? I only see the foam ones being sold. Do I buy any size and cut them to fit? Thanks for any tips you can give me. Sorry for the complete and utter stupidity. I seem to learn a new thing everyday on this forum and it's wonderful.

Best wishes,
Dee

[Bob_w]

Try this link

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... tango.html

Bob W

[echo]

Hi Dee, I am confused, are you using the S8 that's in your profile or the F&P sleep style 244 as you wrote below?

The fine filters for the latter are here: https://www.cpap.com/productpage/dispos ... -pack.html
The ones for the former were given by Bob above. Looks like the s8 only takes one filter, not the foam and fine filter. So I learned something new too!

Don't worry, the only stupid question is the one that's not asked We are all here to learn!