Has anyone used the instructions for sterilizing the Activa?

[Moogy]

I just found the sterilization instructions that clinicians use if the mask is going to be used by a second person. I want to give mine a really good cleaning before using it again. Has anyone used the hot water technique? Any advice or warnings?

My Activa cushion had a DIRTY little accident. Somehow it jumped from the counter into the bathroom trashcan (I STILL can't figure out how it got there--I guess it is a very "active" Activa.) By the time I found out it was missing, Hubby had dumped the bathroom trash into our very large, very filthy can, then added about 5-6 heavy bags of junk on top of it and hauled it to the curb. (We are moving, so I was dejunking the kitchen cabinets.)

As I was tearing around in the middle of the night (late bedtime) looking for it, a sleepy hubby says, "I saw a mask in the bathroom trash--I thought it was the part that you were complaining about, that it didn't work right..."

So at 2 a.m., we were out at the curb with a flashlight digging through the trashbin, since the trash-pickup truck was coming the next morning. There it was, deep in the can, buried in junk but apparently not damaged...

I can't bring myself to use it after only a simple wash, and the sterilization instructions are intimidating.

Thanks for any help or advice...
Moogy

[chdurie2]

Ah moogy,

If it were me, I would just give it a good wash with hot water, and even then, not too hot.

Really, it sounds yucky, but nothing in your trash was disintegrating, was it?

I'm a firm believer of the restaurant theory of germs/bacteria/whatever--how long was the food on the floor? the activa mask in the garbage, whatever? What was it really exposed to, besides your general feeling of ycch?

What are these sterilization procedures that are so intimidating?

wash it off. rinse it. forget it. you'll be fine.

good luck.

caroline

[davem]

If you don't need your Activa right away you might try using a hospital grade disinfectant on it. It's called Control III Disinfectant. The sleep clinic I got my equipment from started me using it. I've been using it for about nine years and it hasn't hurt me or the equipment. You can order it over the net from several places. Seems like it's supposed to kill just about anything.

Here is a link that describes the product.
http://sleepquest.stores.yahoo.net/coiiidi.html

I'm not familiar with the Activa, but if you're talking about the nasal interface piece that's all plastic, you might try putting it in the dishwasher. The sleep technician that gave me the disinfectant said she put her AND her husband's nasal pillows in the dishwasher every few days to disinfect them. I've never done it with mine, but I guess it might be worth a try if the only other alternative is to throw it away.

Just a thought. Good luck with the cleaning!

Dave

[birdshell]

Just to let you know: I lost the little circle end of the Mirage Swift. The RT said she knew of no one who had ever used the 'meticulous' cleaning instructions included in the manual--in other words, taking it apart. OK, OK, my family tends to be cleaning freaks.

Anyway, the RT at the DME provider told me she was going to bleach the Mirage Swift before sending it on to the sleep lab. Seems that they do so all the time.

So, with a good soapy hot water bath and rinse and a 10 minute bleach water soak (usually the amounts of bleach-to-water are on the side of the the bleach bottle), you could meet the health department requirements for eating off of your mask! I don't know about harming it, but could the sleep lab or DME providers give you any advice?

[chdurie2]

i dunno about dishwasher, but i put all my stuff once through my front-loader washing machine on the most delicate cycle.

caroline

[HappyHoser]

How about a soak in some pretty warm distilled water with vinegar, followed by a thorough rinse with some nice smelling ivory dishsoap?

[Darth Vader Look]

Garbage diver eh If it was my garbage it would be gone because we have dog dirt (for lack of a better word) in ours. I have used isopropyl alcohol on mine with no problem. I then washed it in hot to the touch, not burning hot water and soap and rinsed it well with no problems. The dishwasher idea might not be great because of the plastic retainer ring attached to it. Who knows what that 140 degree or hotter hot water might do to it.

[chdurie2]

Personally, I'm not in love with either vinegar or bleach, because I think you would be inhaling either one for a long time. I would think the sleep lab or dme is using a very mild bleach solution. But maybe I'm wrong. And I'd also be nervous about the hot water in the dishwasher.

Caroline

[birdshell]

[quote="chdurie2"]Personally, I'm not in love with either vinegar or bleach, because I think you would be inhaling either one for a long time. I would think the sleep lab or dme is using a very mild bleach solution. But maybe I'm wrong. And I'd also be nervous about the hot water in the dishwasher.



The RT's at my DME provider recommend using a 1 part vinegar and 10 parts of water soak for 30 minutes at least once a week for masks, hoses, humidifiers, and assorted parts. This is after a hand washing and rinsing in hot, sudsy water. (I use Ivory unscented dishwashing liquid, as Ivory bar soap is not really a pure soap. Ivory bar soap is 1/4 moisturizing lotion and only the sensitive skin formulation is fragrance-free. That includes the unscented, which has a masking fragrance.)

As to the bleach, it would be used similarly to the vinegar soak after a good hand washing and rinsing in hot, sudsy water. This is the preferred method of sanitizing for restaurants, school cafeterias, and other places inspected by the health department.

Of course, after sanitizing with either vinegar or bleach the CPAP accoutrements would be rinsed well in hot water and then air-dried. After soaking and rinsing, I've never yet noticed an odor with the vinegar/water solution.

Bleach is used in drinking water supplies, in swimming pools, in restaurants, in all kinds of places. It ensures the health of the general population cheaply and thoroughly. As with almost any other substance, the concentration is crucial. Here is a link to a good overview:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dish_sanitizing

Dishwashers sanitize, but I would also be careful. I do know that my 'builder's special' dishwasher does not destroy plastic by melting it into interesting sculptural works of art. Other dishwashers do seem more artistically inclined. Maybe trying with an almost-worn-out set of nasal pillows would be worthwhile. With my luck, the nasal pillows would melt and drip and ruin the dishwasher AND one of my favorite dishes.

But then--aren't the nasal pillows made of silicone, which is now being sold in kitchen supply places for baking dishes, pot holders, trivets, and cooking spoons, spatulas, etc? If it can go in the oven or stir things on the stove, then it may survive the dishwasher....

Okay, now that I've talked myself into a circle of logic it is someone else's turn!