Humidaire 3i - how often for refill/clean?

[wongnog]

Hey guys. I've got the Humidaire 3i heated humidifier for the Resmed S8 Elite II and was just a bit confused about how often I should be filling it with distilled water and how often I should be cleaning it. I just started CPAP last week, and what I was doing was filling the water line up to max with distilled water and letting that run to low (took about 3-4 nights), then fill it up again. It runs empty by the weekend, so then I rinse the unit with soap and water. But then I was looking through my DME's checklist for how often I should clean/replace things, and she had marked that the water should be changed every day. That seems like a waste of water to me, I suppose I wouldn't need to fill the unit to max each night but still I'm going to be dumping stuff out in the morning. I seem to recall she said if I was going to use tap water then I'd have to rinse with soap after each use. Do you guys think what I'm doing is okay?

[bdp522]

If you were to use tap water you would need to clean the HH well daily. I use only distilled water and just top the tank off as needed. Haven't cleaned it in months! When I do clean it, I never take it apart! Just swish it with soapy water, rinse well, swish with vinegar and water, rinse very well.

Brenda

[wongnog]

whoops i knew I should have used the search feature Looks like this has been discussed and some of my questions have been answered before: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36837&p=323065&hili ... re#p323123

So my next question is what kind of soap/additive-free detergent should I use? I've just been using normal liquid hand soap for cleaning my mask, hose, and humidifier. Should I get something special?

[packitin]

I use the antibacterial "soapsoft" brand that comes in the little pump top containers for about a dollar each, that one can obtain at most any drugstore. I clean the humidifier one a week, use only distilled water, and clean the mask every day, and the hose once every two weeks while I'm in the shower. I hang the hose up over my shower outlet for a minute of two while I'm drying off, then take it to my bedroom to finish drying out.

[billbolton]

I've just been using normal liquid hand soap for cleaning my mask, hose, and humidifier. Should I get something special?

As long as the liquid soap doesn't have too many additives, that should be fine.

The only real concern is the mask seal, as some additives (including antibaterials) can reduce the life of the thin fexible material used to make seals, so the "plainer" the soap, the better

The humdifier tank and and hose are both made out of much tougher materials and can be washed out with just about any sort of soap or detergent.

At home, I just top up my H3i tank with distilled water as needed, and wash it out with plain hot water every couple of weeks.

When travelling I use tap water, and wash it out with hot soapy water every morning.

Cheers,

Bill

[sleeplessinaz]

Hi---I never empty my water out--I just top it off every night --the water tank is clear as a bell!! I wash it once a month if that. Never had a problem if you only use distilled water which I do. I use Dr. Bonner's Peppermint Castile Soap that you can get at Hi Health. The soap is pure soap and when you use the peppermint on your mask or nasal pillows they smell so clean and fresh. I use that soap in my hose too --washes out clean and leaves no residue --just a good clean smell.

Carrie

[bdp522]

I use Dawn dishwashing liquid. Have been since the beginning. Works just fine for me.

Brenda

[Claire]

I only use distilled water and just top it up. I do a vinegar/water soak about once a month and then do a soap and wash. This seems to work fine.

However, I was travelling in Egypt when I first started CPAP. I couldn't find distilled water there so I used bottled water for 5 weeks. My humidifier has had a cloudy aspect to the plastic ever since then. At first I did a lot of vinegar soaking to try to clear this up but nothing works. Of course, this doesn't affect usage in any way, but I do wish it was shiny and bright again.

[kopoloff]

I empty the thing every morning (onto the basil or the coriander or the rosemary) rinse with tap water, leave to dry during the day, then refill at night with tap water. On Saturday morning I fill it with warm soapy water (just liquid hand soap) and 10% vinegar, leave to sit for 10 minutes, then flush and rinse and leave to dry.

After 3 months, the tank is crystal clear, just like new, and I've had no colds or sinus infections or anything else.

Cheers

k