Mask leaks

[Carisa2j]

I just got my CPAP about 4 days ago. I have the Resmed S9 series. The first night I did great. I had a happy face for mask leaks. For the past 3 nights I have gotten a sad face. Up to 42 leaks. How do I stop the leaks. Is my mask too tight. Not tight enough?

[Nite Ranger]

Welcome, I dont have the knowledge to help you ,im sure someone that does WILLhelp, they will need to know what kind of mask,pressures etc. I have been having mask leak problems myself for sometime and just found that a seam is not sealed on the elbow top on my simplus ffm causing this leak wonder if anyone else ran into this, so maybe inspect your mask closely,very close. GOOD LUCK !

[The Latinist]

We'd be glad to help, but we need to know what kind of mask you're using. Could you go to User Control Panel > Profile > Edit equipment, select your equipment and choose to display as "Text"? There are literally hundreds of masks, and what works for one may be exactly the wrong thing to do with another.

[DEXSUZ]

Carisa:

The entire ordeal of making a mask work is an art, not a science. In the successful 17 months with my Quattro FX I've made alteration after alteration en route to satisfying nights of sleep. Among factors which lead one to make ever-so-slight changes are:

1) What time of year it is and how warm/cool it is
2) How humid or dry the room environment is
3) How long one's hair is or what style one has adopted
4) What positions on the pillow one has come to utilize
5) How old the mask and straps are, and
6) How energetic one feels as days proceed.

Long ago I gave up the stubborn idea that I'd found THE best and permanent set-up for my nightly wearing of the Corey Crawford mask (as I call it in honor of our magnificent Chicago Blackhawk goalie and his apparatus). It will always be a work in progress but anything beats how horrendously poor so many of us on here slept for years and (at least in my case) decades.

God bless.

[library lady]

As the others have mentioned, do edit your profile to include your mask and machine models for specific help. In the meantime, I can tell you that I had a horrendous time with leaks in my first few weeks of cpap. Then I learned about mask liners. I bought some, and they were a game changer for me. I didn't have nearly as many leaks, and now most of my leaks are within the normal range for my mask, the AirFit F10, and my backup mask, Quattro Air. I am able to sleep through 98% of the leaks I do have. I use RemZzz liners, available from most DMEs and cpap.com, but many forum members swear by Pad-A-Cheeks, available online at http://www.padacheek.com.The liners act like a gasket to aid the seal, as well as to protect your cushion from facial oils.

Also, especially if you do not use liners, but even if you do, wash nnd dry your face thoroughly before putting the mask on... this usually means no moisturizer at bedtime.