AirSense 10, AutoOn/Off & EPR

[salinas212]

Today outta the blue my machine ran continually for 4+ hours after mask removal. I didn't catch it after leaving the bedroom for hours before returning! It's always (far as I know) previously only run a few seconds then shut down. I searched all the usual suspects, here, Google, there and everywhere else and while it is somewhat common issue there's been no guaranteed 100% remedy that doesn't omit an option or two. And since I know someone'll ask, I'm using latest version ResMed F20 mask so compatibility shouldn't be an issue with latest version AirSense 10. There were several approaches that seem to work including the obvious, ie; reach over and turn it off. However I'm unwilling to forfeit the auto on/auto off feature so I investigated other options. Only one I found that was acceptable to me was turning EPR off. But it works! Hate throwing what I'm sure is expensive features out the window but "when in Rome... " Frustrating that all this comes from a 7 day old machine with a 2 day old mask from the same manufacturer.

Would love to hear someone 'round these parts might have found or stumbled on to a less restrictive work-around as that relates to machine's feature set. TIA!

[LSAT]

Check to make sure the auto on is still set. EPR would not have done anything.

[salinas212]

Since I spent most of the pm doing this it's one of the, if not 'the' very first things I confirmed. Good to go! And while I too struggled with how EPR affects this I saw a couple explanations that explain how it does since exhalation pressure is part of the mask dynamic. But most important thing is it corrected the issue summarily and on-the-spot! Sadly it also increased exhalation effort. Not a deal breaker but more than I've become accustomed to. Least I've only been onboard a week and can acclimate.

[Pugsy]

What pressure are you using?

[salinas212]

4/8 (ramped in case that matters). BTW my yesterday's EPR off setting which worked (turned off automatically) repeatedly for auto shutoff testing yesterday failed dismally first thing out of bed this morning. It was on the nightstand blowing out the end of an unmasked hose after almost 4 hours before I turned it off. Seems it'll work for short testing but not when used for overnight or extended sessions. Massively frustrating!

[Pugsy]

Your pressure is so low that the machine doesn't know when you take the mask off because it can't sense enough of a resistance change to know that you are no longer attached.

It happens with some people with some masks at lower pressures.
Has nothing to do with EPR being used or not.

I have SmartSense (auto on/off) enabled on my AirSense 10 machine. The auto on works great but the auto off doesn't. With my pressure and my mask the machine simply doesn't know that I have taken the mask off.
I have to reach over and push the button to turn it off.

So...that's what you are going to have to do...reach over and turn it off manually or be prepared to use higher pressures.

[salinas212]

Thanks Pugs! I have considered that as it was mentioned in several of my search results. What I can't understand is how/why it worked perfectly for 5 days before suddenly not working at all. And due to an old right shoulder wound, compounded by more recent arthritis and being a left-side sleeper it's pure torture to roll completely over then put my right arm over my head to hit the off button. As an aside I did try a setting of 4/12 & 4/10 settings respectively on 2 consecutive nights but got super painful aerophagia. Couldn't believe how painful that was... felt like stomach heartburn! Ok, ok <sigh> I'll stop being a crybaby now and adapt.

[Pugsy]

If reaching over is painful just take the mask off...get up out of bed and then turn it off. It's not the end of the world if the machines blows a little while with you not attached.

Sometimes the line where the pressure is enough to trigger the auto off thing is a fine line...maybe with your mask and your breathing it just needs to be higher than what you are using when you wake up.
How much higher....dunno.

[chunkyfrog]

Pugsy, same here.
Auto on works fine--auto-off, not so much. (Never did)
Either pressure, the mask, or design goof.
I sit up before shutting off/removing the mask,
because I hang it up high, where the cat cannot easily reach.

[Pugsy]

Pugsy, same here.
Auto on works fine--auto-off, not so much. (Never did)
Either pressure, the mask, or design goof.
I sit up before shutting off/removing the mask,
because I hang it up high, where the cat cannot easily reach.

It's the mask cushion/pillow that causes the machine to not do the auto off thing at our pressures.
It works immediately if I just pull the pillow off.
If we were using higher pressures I think it would work just fine but I see no sense in using higher pressures just so auto off works.
Not a big deal for me to push the button but I suppose someone could just pull the pillow off the frame.
Maybe that's what the OP here in this thread can do since he has bad shoulders and reaching over is difficult.

I had forgotten about just popping the pillow off the frame as an option. I did it just to see if the machine would shut off without the pillow on as a way of seeing if auto off would ever work..and it did.