humidifier cleaning

[audreycat]

I am responsible for cleaning my husband's CPAP equipment. Letely the
heated humidifier has a kind of slimy coating inside where I cannot get to
it. The areas that I can reach with my finger come off easily enough, but
how can I clean the rest and what is causing this slimyness. I have tried
letting it soak in the vinegar water and shaking it with salty water.

I clean it once a week with vinegar water, we use filtered water to
fill it.
thank you for your advice,

Sara

[danw61]

Always use distilled water not just filtered water. I take it your humidifier chamber is not one that will come apart. Is your chamber such that you could put the end of a washcloth or something inside & push it around with a toothbrush or something?

Good luck,
Dan

EDIT: I should have said, fill it with distilled water for use. You can still use the vinegar/tap water for cleaning.

[OldLincoln]

Some thoughts on cleaning. Since you didn't list the rquipment, I'm assuming it has small holes and doesn't come apart.

1. Mix vinegar/water about 50/50, fill container to brim and soak 4 hours.
2. Pour about half out and shake vigorously, pour rest out and rinse.
3. Put fresh vinegar/water mix in about half way, feed in 2 paper towels, stir with toothbrush handle or other non-pointy object.
4. Remove the paper towels (they really do come out), and rinse.

It should look like new. If not you may need a new container. If, however, you are stubborn, fill the sucker with vinegar and let soak all day to see what happens. I had gunk once and filled mine with vinegar and put in the back bath in the morning. It wasn't until that night I remembered I left it there and it was real clean.

[birdshell]

Although you did not fill out your profile, I am guessing that your husband has a ResMed humidifier.

While mine can get a bit coated with white scale, when I am using tap water, it has never gotten slimy. I clean mine weekly.

Here is another post I wrote about my cleaning method. Maybe it will be useful. Click Here for My Cleaning Regime

Best wishes!

Karen,
Whose family may be OCD about cleaning

[RiverDave]

slimy = fungus or bacteria. Great suggestions above. Crushed ice is a good abrasive, too.

[birdshell]

Dave, great idea!

I have tried to think of something to put into the chamber to shake it around but anything I thought of was either too dissolvable (rice or beans, etc.) or too much of a danger going down the drain (bb's, beads, etc.). Crushed ice would do the abrasion while being a safe alternative if it went down the drain!

I'll have to try it!

Karen,
Who has been known to melt rambunctious students with one raised eyebrow

[shanrob]

I have had the same problem. I used a brush that is designed to get into all the nooks and crannies of my sewing machine to free it from dust, it bends to any shape you want and you can manoever it to clean off the slime. It takes a bit of doing.. but it does the job. Perhaps you can look into sewing machine supplies in sewing shops.

regards Shanrob

[audreycat]

great ideas guys, thanks for the replies. Yes it is a Resmed humidifier with small holes in the top, and no I cannot take it apart. I am going to try the crushed ice and then the paper towel thing. Any thoughts on bleach? Also, I will switch to distilled water. Should that take care of the cause or am I just doomed to this type of slimy cleaning every few months?
Sara

[Bearded_One]

Dried beans should make a decent abrasive and they can be ran down the garbage disposal.

I would be very careful about using chlorine bleach because it damages aluminum, and the reservoir may have an aluminum plate on the bottom.

[Lilluanu]

my RT suggested using a bottle brush (I have a resmed humidifier, too). She also said a gentle dishwasher soap would be a good cleaner, which I have found to be true. Plus it smells so much nicer than vinegar.

[RiverDave]

I bleach mine as needed. I just fill the humidifier with water and add about an ounce of bleach. Let it sit for a while and rinse multiple times. Good point about the metal plate. Bearded one.

Birdshell - I can't take credit for the crushed ice thing. Picked it up in college while I worked graveyard at a convenience store (about the fastest way to get burnt coffee out of a carafe).

[txnative]

The ResMed Manual for the 3i HumidAire says to use a mild detergent daily.
For weekly cleaning it says to use one part vineger to 10 parts water.

In my case, there is no way that I am going to clean out the tank every day, or even every week.

I try to clean mine out once a month. Most of the time with detergent. Sure smells better than vineger.
Also, there is a small cap to be used for cleaning. It is yellow in color. Came with my unit.

I do use distilled water! Always!

[danw61]

I can't take credit for the crushed ice thing. Picked it up in college while I worked graveyard at a convenience store (about the fastest way to get burnt coffee out of a carafe).

That's funny Dave, I did the same thing while in college (Graveyard at a 7-11). We used ice & salt to clean the carafes.

[xyz]

ac;
> it is a Resmed humidifier with small holes in the top, and no I cannot take it apart.

The moral of this story is to never buy a humidifier that can't be taken apart for cleaning. They cannot be cleaned thoroughly.

Continue to use the vinegar rinse. A 50/50 solution is fine. Let it set for a while before emptying and rinsing.

Do not use bleach under any circumstances.
Use distilled, not filtered, water. It makes everything else easier/better.

After the vinegar rinse you might try washing with a free & clear soap like Seventh Generation dish liquid. Be sure to rinse really well. This is another problem with this type of humidifier. Not only can they not be cleaned easily, they can't be rinsed well/easily either.

[THier]

I use orange Listerine to clean my humidifier, hose and mask, I get the extra jumbo bottle from the warehouse club, it is fairly cheap and goes quite a long way, and leaves evrything orange smelling. anyone know of problems of using Listerine,, it seems to work fine for me. Of course I have a Respironics "tank" so cleaning the humidifier is a snap.

Tom