Too Much Aromatherapy Oil, Possible Machine Damage?

[W0lfman250]

Hello and thank you for taking the time to read this!

I was having trouble getting used to my AirSense 10 unit with P10 Nose Pillows, so in my infinite wisdom I tried to implement some Aromatherapy to help with my sinus issues.

Unfortunately, I might have gotten a bit overzealous, I dint place any oil IN the humidifier, but I did place a SUBSTANTIAL (10-15 drops) amount of food grade essential oil on a cloth near the intake 1-5" away.

Now, its the next day and I noticed my tube/P10 smelled like the oil (even though there was none near by). Panicked, I checked the rest of the machine, and sure enough, there is a very thin film of oil around the openings to the unit.

At this point, I am at a loss, I am worried that A) I permanently damaged my unit less than a week into owning it B) I now have the same thin oil film in my lungs.

Any help/guide dance/recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

[Cardsfan]

I would try to clean it the best I could with some rubbing alcohol on a paper towel. I don't know what else would cut through greasy film. (the outside of the machine only)
On the mask and hose- try washing it with LOTS of Dawn dish soap.
After you get it as clean as you can, try running it to blow some fresh air through.
Also, change the filter.

[Cardsfan]

If you can still feel a slimy film inside the long hose after u clean it, and it still smells, you may need a new one. Hopefully the filter trapped the worst of it.

Dump out the humidifier and clean it really good too. Hot soapy water and Dawn dish soap. Or Baby shampoo.

[Goofproof]

Your FACTS in you post does not compute.... putting the oil on a cloth 1 to 5 inches away from the machine would not allow it to get into the machine, unless tyou heated the oil into a vapor, that got drawn into the machine intake, and cooled into a oil again, UNLIKELY. You need a better story. Jim

Unless you used Mexican jumping bean oil, then all bets are off. The machine will pick up the smell of anything drawn into it, but it should not be oily.

[W0lfman250]

First off, thank you for the reply.

I managed to get the film off the tubing/mask/humidifier, unfortunately I don't have any replacement filters as I just received the unit last week, and at this point I would think it would do more harm to run the unit without the filter?

Hopefully the oil dissipates (as it did off the cloth to the machine) over time. For now, I will run the machine without any oils and hope for the best!

Thanks again!

[Goofproof]

If oil did somehow get into the machine, running it without a filter in place would be one of the WORST things you could do. The dirt will get in and stick in the machine on the oily surfaces. Odd's are your oil is just moisture, I hope. Jim

[W0lfman250]

If oil did somehow get into the machine, running it without a filter in place would be one of the WORST things you could do. The dirt will get in and stick in the machine on the oily surfaces. Odd's are your oil is just moisture, I hope. Jim

Perhaps you are right!

The machine definitely does have a distinct, yet faint eucalyptus smell to it, but it seems that the oily layer might have just been from my finger sweat as I was in a panic.

So...hopefully no real harm done, thanks for putting me (a tiny bit) at ease.

[LSAT]

eucalyptus is terrible...I put a few drops in a room vaporizer and it left a film in the tank that was impossible to remove. Soaked it in vinegar and water for days.

[icyura10]

Go to your DME and beg, grovel, plead for a replacement filter for your machine.

You should have received 1 or two replacement filters when you got the thing, but not all DME's do the same thing and then there's insurance and goofproof's given you the straight skinny about running your machine without a filter at this point in time... not a good idea!

Don't believe him, get a plastic tube, spray some non-stick cooking spray in it, wash it out with water, then dump a very little bit of talc down the tube and see how much you get out at the other end...

I'm sure you'll get the idea real quick

[grayghost4]

Wash the filter in mild soap and put it back in the machine

[chunkyfrog]

AFTER IT IS DRY, of course.

[Aclyesia]

I not really sure that oils on a cloth a few inches away could get into your machine, but I can say that I've experienced residual aromatherapy scent that lingers for a day or two after the oil source is removed.

A few days into my therapy I decided to try a peppermint oil as my sinuses were a bit clogged. Though subtle, it continued to have that minty scent for a few days after I stopped using it too. At first I thought that somehow it got sucked inot the machine too, but after replacing the filter and washing my mask and hose, the scent was gone.

[chunkyfrog]

Aromatherapy oils work because they are volatile; fine particles do indeed vaporize and move about in the air.
These particles can and do deposit on surfaces, like in the nose, or cpap machine.
Strongly scented ouls, like eucalyptus or mint only require microscopic amounts to be noticed.
The oil remains volatile, and will continue to dissipate as air flows by.
Run the machine without using it to "rinse" out the scent.
Put alcohol/vodka on a clean cloth a few inches upwind from the intake, but not when YOU are connected;
AND FOR ONLY A FEW MINUTES. Alcohol will help lift away the oils, even in vapor form.