travel woes

[Hoover]

Greetings,

I'm back from a 2.5 week vacation to Morocco & NYC. I researched plug converters, packed an extension cord, put a new filter in my apap, etc.

1) Somehow, when I arrived the plug adapter turns up missing but it wouldn't have mattered anyway as apparently there are 2 different styles of outlets in Morocco and I prepared for the wrong one - a kind man at our hotel ran out and got me 2 adapters. We spent the first two nights in Casablanca - playing lots of video games prepared me for driving downtown where there are many traffic circles and 2 lanes become 4 (with no added lane space) with big trucks, taxis, motorbikes, donkey pulled carts and buses all vying for space with jallaba-ed grandmothers scooting across the street in between. At least the latter were not spewing black smoke. The air there is very polluted.

2) My machine sounds like a plane getting ready for take off - my AHI is still fine so I try not to worry about the current ruining my machine (which the manual says is fine with their electricity). Night two the incoming air smells like fresh paint - what usually happens when I need to change the filter. I try to ignore it. Next night it is worse and I look at the filter and it is completely filthy - blacker than I've ever seen it after only 3 nights and I have no spare. I try in vain to wash it - soak it -press it gently dry in towels. Still stinks. I peel off the dirty paper layers leaving the plastic mesh in place and wash the grey foam filter well and keep doing that every night.

3) Night 5 - I lie down to use the machine and it does not turn on. I try again. I change outlets. I start to panic. It is the extension cord - fried by the higher voltage - the machine is OK although it still sounds horrible.

4) Back in NYC - machine sounds better.

5) Back home machine sounds fine - new filter installed.

But I came down with a monster flu - and I have only had a minor cold since I started using the machine 15 months ago.

Any ideas about what I might have done filter-wise? Next time I'm bringing a ton of extras - and based on the quality of the air in the larger cities I probably could have used 6 more!

[plr66]

OHHH~~~This is very troubling news, Hoover! And it wasn't too long ago that someone was writing from Cusco Peru, with a non-functioning cpap. If I'm not mistaken, this problem is not limited to Remstar, as I believe that machine was a PB 420G. I have a trip coming up early next year to Egypt, and I have been asking lots of questions to prepare for hauling the apap. I thought the surge protector would be the last issue I needed to address. Had never occurred to me that an extension cord would need to be constructed for the higher voltage. Groan~~Wonder what else I'm missing. Got the filters! Thanks for the tip. Do you think the loud sound of your machine could have anything to do with it not holding up under the conditions of high altitude flight? (I think the guy in Peru mentioned that as a possibility). Do you think it was permanently damaged as a result of your trip?

[Paul56]

Two different outlet types for Morocco are listed at this link:

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

Seems like this link would be a good place for travelers to find country electrical information.

[hobbs]

http://international-electrical-supplie ... guide.html