Best Cleaning Procedure

[babydinosnoreless]

DME just lied again and said I would need the N-20 nasal cushions 2 x a month instead of just once for the ff mask. I told them no, I would get off of Amazon and save my insurance company a whole lot of money. They wont trade the f-30 mask like they told me within 30 days. They are a bunch of liars and thieves.

I tried wiping ff masks with the cleaning wipes they gave me at first but would make me break out. So like a dumb idiot I decided to try on my nasal cushion. Nope. Last two days face has been red and sore. Lightbulb went off. (Yeah I was kinda slow on that one) Back to the warm water and dawn for me. If cushions wear out sooner, I will just replace from Amazon.

[prodigyplace]

If I wear out sooner, I will just replace from Amazon.

You are available on Amazon?

Have a link?

[Pugsy]

Insurance allows 2 nasal cushions per month....but you don't have to buy more using insurance after you get the 2 if you don't want to.
It's the same thing with nasal pillows....I could get 2 per month but didn't need 2 per month...so I got my 2 and then simply didn't order any more until I needed them.

Don't let the DME set you up for any sort of auto shipment stuff. That's how they make their money...sending you stuff all the time that you probably don't need but they do it because insurance will pay for it.

Also do the math...I don't know if you have much of a new deductible now that there is a new calendar year...but if you do and you won't come close to meeting that deductible...you will probably be money ahead to just use Amazon or EBay.

The FFM mask you are stuck with but hate....sell it at a discount and use the money to buy something else.

Those cleaning wipes...sometimes they contain stuff that our bodies don't like.
I learned that just from the wipes at WalMart offered to wipe off the carts. I had a horrible reaction to it...hands got red, on fire and big red hot whelps on my forearms where they rested on the cart where I had wiped it.
No more wiping the cart for me unless I bring my own wipes.

[prodigyplace]

My current DME claimed they needed to check / harass me every few months for supplies since it was required by insurance.

I checked with my Anthem insurance and they do not require that but say the DME can set their own rules. I phoned the DME and they say they took me off the list.

[babydinosnoreless]

Oops went back and fixed.

If I wear out sooner, I will just replace from Amazon.

You are available on Amazon?

Have a link?

[babydinosnoreless]

Insurance allows 2 nasal cushions per month....but you don't have to buy more using insurance after you get the 2 if you don't want to.
It's the same thing with nasal pillows....I could get 2 per month but didn't need 2 per month...so I got my 2 and then simply didn't order any more until I needed them.

Don't let the DME set you up for any sort of auto shipment stuff. That's how they make their money...sending you stuff all the time that you probably don't need but they do it because insurance will pay for it.

Also do the math...I don't know if you have much of a new deductible now that there is a new calendar year...but if you do and you won't come close to meeting that deductible...you will probably be money ahead to just use Amazon or EBay.

The FFM mask you are stuck with but hate....sell it at a discount and use the money to buy something else.

Those cleaning wipes...sometimes they contain stuff that our bodies don't like.
I learned that just from the wipes at WalMart offered to wipe off the carts. I had a horrible reaction to it...hands got red, on fire and big red hot whelps on my forearms where they rested on the cart where I had wiped it.
No more wiping the cart for me unless I bring my own wipes.

Oh I do have a deductiable that starts all over. The DME has consistantly lied and given me trouble. I am all done. Amazon until I meet my deductible. I am more than happy with the
N-20 you sent me. Rather than selling the f-30 I will decide if I dislike it or the dreamwear less and then you will get one or the other for your donation box to help someone else.

I am just ticked they are screwing my insurance company.

As far as the wipes go, my skin is such a problem and even baby wipes would sometimes give me an issue when my kids were little. I will just stick with a little dawn and warm water. Replacing cushions a little more frequently is better than hives.

[Mark55]

I use wipes on my nasal pillows every night or two, and wash my humidifier tank in hot water once a week IF I remember it. My tank is over a year old and still looks like new. (use distilled water)

I wash my hose in hot water and dish soap every few months, give or take. It's also still like new, with no smells at all embedded in the plastic, or any leaks.

I was going to replace my pillows about every 2 months, but found they still worked fine and decided why throw them out just to follow a schedule? My current Brevida pillow is probably over a year old and still looks and functions as new.

Most of the stuff DMEs tell you concerning cleaning and replacement of parts is total bull, and simply designed to inflate their profits at your expense.

Also,.....my mother wanted to buy me a SoClean machine for Christmas,.....I asked her to please spend the money on herself. I am another that thinks they are a scam, and question whether they are even good for your equipment or yourself.

[zonker]

Wow same pillows for 2 years?? Ok I clearly still have a lot to learn. In other threads I've read I've seen frequencies matching my own.

So when I've replaced my mask it's mostly cause the headgear gets so stretched out it leads to more leaks. But I'm not really washing the headgear frequently - so what else can I do about that?

i defer to the honorable palerider below. (or is that above? internet lingo confuses me!) but yeah, two years. i don't have any leaks yet but i'm always on the lookout. like palerider, i DO have a spare pair of pillows, just in case.

say, that's a tip in itself. if you can, try to have backups on all the things. you never know when something is going to fail and you will need a spare.

[zonker]

I've had several people (who clean stuff every day) say that the P10 pillows 'quit working' after a week or two... and then I'd show them the Resmed P10 video (that someone was bitching about the other day) where it says "if the inner cones get inverted, pop them back out" and every one of those people came back with "WOW! IT'S FIXED! THANKS!"

interesting, I thought.

there's naught as strange as folk, as our british friends say. i think a lot of "do it yourself" attitude has been washed out of the american psyche. and i hasten to include myself in that lot. we just have been trained to be a disposable economy.

but in this instance, my cheap nature wins out. can't stand the thought of throwing something away when i can just be smart about making it last longer.

[Okie bipap]

My wife and I were both raised in homes with modest incomes. Then, I spent 20 years in the military as an enlisted person. We learned long ago to make do with what we have, and to use it until it breaks or wears out. We don't change things just because someone will supply us with a new one. However, I do admit to buying different masks just to try them. Normally, I just pass these on to others who can use them. I have returned a couple when I remembered to do so early enough. Normally, I keep trying to make a mask work until it too late to return it. I hate to say I can't make something work.

[palerider]

I tried wiping ff masks with the cleaning wipes they gave me at first but would make me break out. So like a dumb idiot I decided to try on my nasal cushion. Nope. Last two days face has been red and sore. Lightbulb went off. (Yeah I was kinda slow on that one) Back to the warm water and dawn for me. If cushions wear out sooner, I will just replace from Amazon.

I've used a squirt of plain, unscented purell and a kleenex on my mask cushions, for nine years now. (obligatory disclaimer: not because of germs, but because the purell cleans the cushion really well, easily and cheaply).

It's cheap and easy, easier than soap and water every day, and doens't leave any skin irritating residue.

[Berks]

I've been told boiling won't work / isn't a good idea on mine since they're the gel kind... Is that incorrect?

I have done the boiling and baking soda trick with regular nasal pillows but I have never tried it with the gel pillows.
I have my own misgivings about the gel part holding up.
BUT.....if the gel pillows are destined for the trash can anyway...don't have anything to lose and worth an experiment.

A little hint from someone whose tap water is "hard"....don't use it for the boiling and don't use it for the final rinse.
The silicone was way too cloudy from minerals after it was all over. I was disappointed but then decided to try it using distilled water for the boiling part and the final rinse and the pillows came out sparkling clear and feeling great.
Now if your tap water isn't particularly mineral laden it probably won't matter but if it's like mine...the silicone might end up more cloudy.

Do you do ALL your cleaning in distilled water?

[Pugsy]

Do you do ALL your cleaning in distilled water?

No.....the only time I did the distilled water cleaning was when I did the boiling and baking soda trick just to see how it worked.
Any other cleaning is done with tap water...washing and rinsing.
The distilled experiment was just see why I wasn't getting nice clear silicone like others were getting and I figured out it was the minerals in my tap water.
I am on a well and in a part of the country where iron and limestone is present in abundance in my water.

[Gryphon]

When it comes to cleaning your PAP stuff, a few things to consider, it's not only that a person's cleaning regiment needs to be set to their own personal taste. IE: are you a germaphobe or did you love high school/college microbiology and just don't care any more. But... what is your "Bedroom Environment" like?

Do you currently have an active mold problem in your house or not? Do you live in a dry climate or a wet one, is there a higher rate of airborne flora/fauna in the location you live in then say one of the CPAP user's who never cleans his or her stuff. I only mention this because I was able to experience first hand a difference in what my cleaning schedule "had to be" from one place I lived vs were I live now.

I'm fairly sure the house I lived in 6 years ago had an active mold problem. We would clean the windows and other locations in the house fairly regularly but still find black mold growing on window moldings inside the house when we would clean. The windows were old and the house was a bit drafty vs were we live now. Also outside of were my bedroom was there was a huge tree that would brush up against the house and provide a lot of shade. It was a perfect place for mold and other micro flora to thrive just outside my bedroom window. I would have to take my mask apart and clean it in dawn and warm water at least once a week or I would find black mold growing on the seal edges of the mask were it interfaced with the mask frame. I would have to take my hose and scrub it out with a hose brush and hot water and soap at least once a month or I would find black mold growing in it as well and the dank smell of being under someone's house would start to emanate from my CPAP gear.

Fast forward 6 + years to the house I live in today... I haven't had to clean any of my cpap stuff since. I will clean my mask when or if it gets grubby from oils from my face but that's about it. sometimes I'll just wipe it with an unscented baby wipe. If I happen to be actively sick and I'm coughing or sneezing or blasting the inside of my FFMask with random unpleasant things from the whole being sick process, I make sure to clean my mask in hot'ish water and dish soap with a smell I like but otherwise I still don't have to clean like I did where I lived before.

My recommendation when it comes to cleaning is a few things.

Do what your comfortable with to a point. If you have the determination and dedication to clean your stuff all the time then that's your business. It's unnecessary and can lead to wearing out your mask seals and other parts faster but if you sleep better at night knowing all that, then that's still fine, CPAP suppliers have to make money after all and it takes all kinds of people to make the world turn.

Keep in mind that the best approach maybe more like - clean mask and humidifier maybe once a week and hose once a month or so. Use the manufactures recommendation but take them with a big grain of salt and adjust accordingly. My cleaners of choice are a simple dawn dish soap - Sent free, or pick a smell you like that doesn't tickle your nose or you can use some mouth wash as a cleaner, rinse your stuff well ether way so you don't leave soap or alcohol on it.

For the mask baby wipes work fine, don't feel like you have to spend lots of money on "Magic CPAP Wipes" just like you don't need to invest in the "SO-Clean" that only cleans the "MAGIC CPAP GERMS" that only really live in the imaginations of the so-clean marketing department.

On the other hand if you don't care and would rather not clean your stuff ever... that may be fine as well but don't be a dumb bunny, if your going to do that at least pay attention and inspect your gear to see if it actually needs to be clean. When it comes to the sanitary condition of respiratory equipment, ignorance isn't always bliss. Just use your head and inspect your gear for signs that it needs attention and act accordingly. 2 or 3 times a year inspect your mask and seals under a bright light and look for any thing that needs to be cleaned off. Same with your hose - hold it up to a light and look through it and see if there is any grime in there you don't want. If it's clean then, it's all good. Over all just exercise common sense.

Also think about your house hold cleaning regiments. Are you having to clean your house more often because of mold or mildew with bleach and other chemicals? do you feel like your fighting a loosing battle with grime and gunk in your home? or do you just dust occasionally with a damp rag? This could translate into what your going to have to do to keep your PAP clean and if your having to clean all the time because of mold you may want to have someone come and inspect your house to see if you have active mold growing inside the walls or some other serious problems. If you have a mold problem it can make you really sick so you'll want to get someone who is knowledgeable with this issue to help you deal with it if you haven't been able to fix it on your own.

Best luck to everyone with your CPAP gear.

Rest well,

Gryphon

[LinkC]

Wow! I tried the renewing trick by boiling my mask parts.

HOLY CRAP!

My mask is like new. All with a little BiCarb!
I should say MASKS. I treated my drawerful while on a roll. Lifetime supply!!

Dang!