Where to put the machine

[thewritejerry]

How important is machine placement? I have mine on the end table next to my bed. But the end table is a few inches taller than the bed and the tech mentioned it should be lower than my sleep position (though he also felt the tiny difference would not be a problem).

I've been using my CPAP for a week now. First night went very well. Second night okay. Since then, terrible. And in the past three nights I wake up with a lot of moisture under my nose plugs. Sweat? Maybe, but we keep the house cool. Am I leaking humidity or am I seeing the effects of gravity making the humidity just gather there?

My pressure setting is 7. I ramp up from 4. Humidity is set at 2.

Should I be rearranging furniture?

[brazospearl]

Jerry, the moisture you're feeling might be rainout. This is a common problem, and it has several easy solutions. The first is to reposition the machine so it's lower than your bed so that gravity helps keep the water out of your face. So, yep, looks like it's time to rearrange some furniture. Next, cover your cpap hose. You can buy special blankies, but the easiest/cheapest way is to cut holes in socks and slip the hose through them. This insulates the hose from the temperature difference between the air in the hose & the air in the room. You might also want to try some hose management system, as some of those help keep the moisture under control. Changing your humidifier settings can help, too.

[Janknitz]

First, you want to see where that rainout is occurring. I get rainout in my nasal pillows, but NEVER in the hose from the PR S1. That's because my nose is warmer than the air in the hose, but the PR S1 does a good job of equalizing things so that there is no rainout in the hose. So a hose cosy may not make a big difference in your rainout issue (it does nothing for me). The "heated" humidifier in the PR S1 doesn't really heat the water to ANY noticeable extent, and I think that's the problem with nasal pillows--cold air from the humidifier meets warm nostrils.

Secondly, if you cannot position your machine below the level of your bed, you can position the HOSE to go uphill by using some sort of hose management system. Take a look at what is made commercially for hose management on a site like cpap.com, and take a look at homemade options on the lab rat page here viewtopic.php?t=15104. The theory is any hose condensation will travel back down into the machine instead of into your nose.

But truthfully, with the PR S1, I'll bet you a doughnut you are not having any condensation in the hose itself. It's all in the nasal pillows. Positioning the hose and covering the hose seem to make no difference at all, IMHO. You need to warm the air getting to your nose. I haven't figured out how, yet. I might try an Aussie Heated hose this winter as I'm getting darn tired of having a wet nose like a dog. And Padacheek has just sent me some covers for the nasal pillows themselves to try out--maybe that will help.

[jdm2857]

The "heated" humidifier in the PR S1 doesn't really heat the water to ANY noticeable extent, and I think that's the problem with nasal pillows--cold air from the humidifier meets warm nostrils.

You've got it backwards. Condensation (rainout) occurs when warm, moist air is cooled. Since cool air can hold less water vapor than warm, the excess water condenses out of the cool air and becomes liquid water.

[LoQ]

You've got it backwards. Condensation (rainout) occurs when warm, moist air is cooled. Since cool air can hold less water vapor than warm, the excess water condenses out of the cool air and becomes liquid water.

I wonder if Jankintz could be saying that the cold air from the humidifier is meeting the warm moist breath air in her nostrils. The air in the hose is causing the moisture laden breath air coming out of the nose to cool, causing the condensation?

[massive]

You should definitely check if the condensation is just in the nasal pillows. I've had this problem too. My CPAP is at about the same level as my head but my hose goes down behind the bed and back up to me so gravity shouldn't really be a factor.

I agree with janknitz, it's probably the temperature or humidity difference between your nose and the air coming in. I actually keep my humidifier off now as that seemed to make the problem worse and I prefer to breath cooler air. I don't know how that logic really works out but I only get rainout from the humidity from mouth breathing now.

Do you have a full face mask? I use one of those and the only time I have any problem with rainout is when I accidentally roll onto my back and breath mostly through my mouth.

[GumbyCT]

How important is machine placement? I have mine on the end table next to my bed. But the end table is a few inches taller than the bed and the tech mentioned it should be lower than my sleep position (though he also felt the tiny difference would not be a problem).

Certainly the machine should be lower than your head. I keep mine on the floor so it doesn't fall and spill water into the electronics. I keep it in a clear plastic Sterilite container with a cover. The cover doesn't seal because of the hose but that allows for the needed air to get in while muffling the M series roar. It also helps to keep the dust out too.

I've been using my CPAP for a week now. First night went very well. Second night okay. Since then, terrible. And in the past three nights I wake up with a lot of moisture under my nose plugs. Sweat? Maybe, but we keep the house cool. Am I leaking humidity or am I seeing the effects of gravity making the humidity just gather there?

My pressure setting is 7. I ramp up from 4. Humidity is set at 2.

Should I be rearranging furniture?

Raising the temperature in the room 1 or 2 degrees can make a difference in the rainout. As can decreasing the humidifier setting, keeping the hose under the covers, using a hose cover, or a variety of other solutions.

Searching and reading this forum is the best way to get more ideas.

[brazospearl]

If the problem is not rainout from the hose and is JUST in the mask,other measures might need to be taken. This hasn't been a problem for me, but I remember seeing a thread where people talked about putting a sort of "wick" in the mask to absorb any moisture there. Might be worth doing something like that.

[thewritejerry]

As always, great suggestions! Thanks everyone!

I was actually having a meltdown thinking about rearranging the furniture - something that my wife really doesn't want me to do. But the space is kind of tight. I was going to buy a little table today to put it on - making things even more cramped. I'm glad I checked here for other suggestions before going to the store.

In true "how many people does it take..." fashion, my wife and I never even thought of doing what GumbyCT does - putting it in a small container on the floor (being sure to leave plenty of airflow). This would work great for our set-up!

Of course, if the rainout continues, I'll be using some of the other suggestions here!

[massive]

Good luck, hope that takes care of the problem.

[thewritejerry]

Well, the machine placement move went fine once I stopped over thinking it and just made a little stand next to the bed. But I definitely do have nose pillow rainout

It's irritating and keeps waking me up - which is counter productive to say the least.

I have a half-face mask at home and I'll give that a try tonight.

[nanwilson]

Jerry
If your night table has drawers in it, use that. At home I have my machine on the night table at head level, but in my motorhome I have a corner bed so am REALLY cramped for space. I have a cupboard above my head, and thats where I put it...but use a hose cover to keep the hose warmer.
Cheers...Nan

[Physician]

How important is machine placement? I have mine on the end table next to my bed. But the end table is a few inches taller than the bed and the tech mentioned it should be lower than my sleep position (though he also felt the tiny difference would not be a problem).

I've been using my CPAP for a week now. First night went very well. Second night okay. Since then, terrible. And in the past three nights I wake up with a lot of moisture under my nose plugs. Sweat? Maybe, but we keep the house cool. Am I leaking humidity or am I seeing the effects of gravity making the humidity just gather there?

My pressure setting is 7. I ramp up from 4. Humidity is set at 2.

Should I be rearranging furniture?

Do you really need the humidifier ? Have you tried using your unit without the humidifier ?