humidifier water question

[greenfx]

I have build in humidifier in my apap machine. The technician told me to change the (unused) distill water daily and clean with a weak solution of vinegar weekly.
Everyday, water is left in the container and I have to drain it. Is this not a waste of distill water ? In just a day use, there can't be bacteria contamination ?

How often water should be changed ?

[happysleeper]

Hi Greenfx,

I've wondered the same question. What I'm currently doing is emptying the humidifier tank of the distilled water every morning, and then letting the CPAP machine dry it--my S9 blows air gently as it cools down and dries the tank. I'm not worried about germs adding up in a dry humidifier. I also dry my hose this way.

Happy Sleeper

[Wulfman]

This link (and subsequent links) should cover all the questions you may have......or haven't even thought of yet.....

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=50163&p=460694&hilit=water#p460694

Yeah.....it's a waste.


Den

[bearded_two]

Dumping the water daily is not a waste, a study found that bacteria can grow in humidifiers if the water isn't dumped daily. Washing the water chamber weekly with a vinegar solution is also a Good Thing. Link to study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2556912/

I am not a clean freak, I don't routinely clean anything -- I also don't use a humidifier. I used a humidifier for a couple of months or so and gave up using it; I dumped the water daily and washed the water chamber and hose in a vinegar solution every two weeks. For the vinegar solution, I used one part white vinegar to one part tap water. You can rinse it with a little baking soda if there is a vinegar odor.

[Wulfman]

Some more information and a visual aid:

http://www.talkaboutsleep.com/sleep-dis ... humid9.htm


Den

[billbolton]

Link to study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2556912/

That study is contrived to the point of being useless in any practical sense. Its been analysed to death here previously, but just one of the the big give-aways on just how contrived it is, is this......

Flow rates were set to 20 cm water pressure, providing flow rates of 60 to 70 liters per minute (LPM)

.... the maximum possible flow rate, that very few xPAP uses ever approach. And even more tellingly by this fine-print-in-the-orginal "footnote"....

Disclosure Statement

This study was funded by Pall Corporation. All authors are, or were at the time of the study, employees of the Pall Corporation.

The findings were contrived to support the need for an inline filter made by the company that did the research.

Cheers,

Bill

[greenfx]

So, does it mean that once I use the water in the humidifier container, it needs to be replaced everyday ? What about the water which I bought in one liter can from Walgreens - that stays for longer than a week after being opened ?

[brazospearl]

greenfx, I only ever add to the water in my humidifier, and have only emptied it when I was traveling. Seven months in, and no problems with mold or anything. MIne runs in passover mode, but I don't know if that makes a difference. I figure the air is filtered before it blows over the water, and any germs from my breathing out can't fight against the pressure of the air flowing in. Some people here clean their equipment a lot more than others, find what works best for you.

[Wulfman]

So, does it mean that once I use the water in the humidifier container, it needs to be replaced everyday ? What about the water which I bought in one liter can from Walgreens - that stays for longer than a week after being opened ?

To which point are you specifically referring?

I go months without dumping my water. I use passover (no heat) humidification......and top off my tank every few nights. I keep my distilled water in smaller containers in the refrigerator. I've never even taken my humidifier tank apart or "cleaned" it.......just periodically dump the remainder, rinse with hot water, shake out what's in there and refill with more distilled......it still looks like new.


Den

[bearded_two]

If you are too cheap to dump the water from your humidifier, it might be better to remove the humidifier and not have to pay for distilled water at all.

[Wulfman]

"Waste not, want not".

I'm pretty friggin' cheap......um, er, I mean "conservative".


Den

[Lou Cypher]

At 89 cents a gallon, I am not worried about the tiny bit I dump everyday......

I am a clean freak, after all everything in that chamber will pass into your throat and lungs for one third of each and every day you are alive......

so I wipe it dry every dry, yes I use Q tips to get in the corners etc.... I told you I was a clean freak...

clean it once a month with vinegar and water, rise and dry ...

Once a month I soak the inside of every hose with vinegar and water , rinse and dry.

I change my hose every 3 months, mask also.....

Now for those of you who have been using these things for the last 10 years and never did anything, I say... that's ok...

If you are happy and comfortable with that, good, I am happy and comfortable with what I do.....

Now , this item has been posted over and over, do what ever makes you comfortable and happy and live with it.

And now for something completely different....

move on folks, nothing to see here........

[LoQ]

Now for those of you who have been using these things for the last 10 years and never did anything, I say... that's ok...

If you are happy and comfortable with that, good, I am happy and comfortable with what I do.....

I completely agree. Each person needs to do what they are comfortable with.

Conditions vary. Some people have not had any problems with just topping off for months or even years. Others have mentioned finding things growing in their humidifier tanks. What one chooses to do may be based on empirical evidence. I don't doubt that that will vary from person to person.

[rubymom]

I used to just top it off and only cleaned it maybe every month or so when I would travel. Used vinegar every now and then. A few months ago, I noticed the water was getting cloudy and there were little things floating around. Kinda grossed me out. I only ever used the humidifier in passover mode so I decided to ditch the humidifier completely. I haven't missed it a bit. And it's nice not to have to worry about the water.

[xyz]

At 89 cents per gallon, 1 cup per day costs 5.6 cents. (89/16)

Say you use around half of that cup during the night.

Throwing out the other half in the morning, which is what I do, costs you 2.8 cents.

Think of all the questions in the forum about itching.

There are probably more people who are allergic and do not know it than there are people who know that they are allergic.

Do the reasonable and the easy things related to hygiene and in the long run things will be better.