What do you do when you buy a mask in good faith and you try it and it sucks? The merchant won't take it back. What do you folks do it that case?
Gary
What to do with a mask that does not work out.
9 posts
• Page 1 of 1
-
sleepylady
- Posts: 203
- Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 11:42 am
Hi Gary,
We add it to our collection of other masks in our reject drawer for posterity. Ok kidding aside, some people do try to sell the mask. Others keep it for spare parts. We all, or at least most of us, have a mask or two or three that don't work. I have two with the second being used as backup, though I pray the awesome mask I have doesn't break. That would force me to use my backup, which is torture.
Melinda
We add it to our collection of other masks in our reject drawer for posterity. Ok kidding aside, some people do try to sell the mask. Others keep it for spare parts. We all, or at least most of us, have a mask or two or three that don't work. I have two with the second being used as backup, though I pray the awesome mask I have doesn't break. That would force me to use my backup, which is torture.
Melinda
it's a keeper
I have a few of those that qualify in the category of "not quite right". I plan to keep them around. It may be that the annoying part that contacts the face may someday be replaceable with a newer design. That happens. In fact I am thinking there could be a robust "after-market" market for snap-in replacement parts for masks that are "pretty good" excpept for a design flaw here and there that the manufacturer insists is not a problem, or doesn't seem inclined to address.
Also the longer I use the APAP, the greater my tolerance for having something touching my face. (I went through the same stages when I first needed glasses, and now I absolutely won't be without them). At least one mask that made me jump out of my skin, now feels "not so bad". I will keep it for an alternate if something happens to my "main" gear.
Plus, if I come up with some new invention related to CPAP I will certainly need to try it out on my cat first. No WAY I'm going to put that back on my face. (Sorry PETA, with all the cat avatars on here I couldn't resist).
Some more random thoughts on the subject:
.Worst case, paint a big on it, or a laughing/crying image, and hang it on the wall with your ballet slippers. That's GOTTA be good for hours of dumb conversation.
.Give it as a gift at your office party gift exchange. Watch it re-appear next year at the same party. And the next.
.Post it on eBay under medical equipment, CPAP. Use a stopwatch. See how many seconds until they pull the ad and revoke your account. Repeat the experiment, different name, different time of day, holidays, weekends. Probe for weaknesses in their system.
.Get another just like it. Stitch them together. Sell it as a Playtex Living BREATHING... oh nevermind.
.Serious entry: Somebody here or elsewhere must have the same kind of mask and actually LIKE it. Have you tried selling it? Some masks have changed owners even here on the forum.
. Better yet, find out who else uses and likes it. GIVE it away. Make a friend.
Also the longer I use the APAP, the greater my tolerance for having something touching my face. (I went through the same stages when I first needed glasses, and now I absolutely won't be without them). At least one mask that made me jump out of my skin, now feels "not so bad". I will keep it for an alternate if something happens to my "main" gear.
Plus, if I come up with some new invention related to CPAP I will certainly need to try it out on my cat first. No WAY I'm going to put that back on my face. (Sorry PETA, with all the cat avatars on here I couldn't resist).
Some more random thoughts on the subject:
.Worst case, paint a big on it, or a laughing/crying image, and hang it on the wall with your ballet slippers. That's GOTTA be good for hours of dumb conversation.
.Give it as a gift at your office party gift exchange. Watch it re-appear next year at the same party. And the next.
.Post it on eBay under medical equipment, CPAP. Use a stopwatch. See how many seconds until they pull the ad and revoke your account. Repeat the experiment, different name, different time of day, holidays, weekends. Probe for weaknesses in their system.
.Get another just like it. Stitch them together. Sell it as a Playtex Living BREATHING... oh nevermind.
.Serious entry: Somebody here or elsewhere must have the same kind of mask and actually LIKE it. Have you tried selling it? Some masks have changed owners even here on the forum.
. Better yet, find out who else uses and likes it. GIVE it away. Make a friend.
He who dies with the most masks wins.
I actually once thought of starting a museum display with the assortment I initially went through and have
collected over the years. Alas, I think I finally tossed some of them.
What is more interesting is the plaster face cast, urethane positives, and the special "gaskets" I made to fit between some mask and my face.
Note to mention the many boxes of DuoDerm I went through until I got something to work on its own (DuoDerm: a gel pad dressing that I could cut to fill in the low spots at about $2.50 per night). I still keep DuoDerm and pack it in my travel bag in case something goes wrong on a trip and I have to use another mask. The DME sent me home by fit testing me with DuoDerm pads to get a face seal.
The mask I finally made work has 5 modifications to it (ResMed Full Face mask - the original one). The Series 2 does not work. I need a "deep" cushion, not a shallow one. Good thing the key parts are the same with the Series 2 and available. I even sent one of the urethane positives to ResMed back in early 2000 so they had an idea of the problems and was hoping they would come out with a deep cushion that would work.
I should probably try some of the new FF mask to see if they would fit better. On the other hand - why spend the money now when I have something that works.
Anyone else out there with a “deep” nose (attributable, in my case, to Germanic decent).
Perry
collected over the years. Alas, I think I finally tossed some of them.
What is more interesting is the plaster face cast, urethane positives, and the special "gaskets" I made to fit between some mask and my face.
Note to mention the many boxes of DuoDerm I went through until I got something to work on its own (DuoDerm: a gel pad dressing that I could cut to fill in the low spots at about $2.50 per night). I still keep DuoDerm and pack it in my travel bag in case something goes wrong on a trip and I have to use another mask. The DME sent me home by fit testing me with DuoDerm pads to get a face seal.
The mask I finally made work has 5 modifications to it (ResMed Full Face mask - the original one). The Series 2 does not work. I need a "deep" cushion, not a shallow one. Good thing the key parts are the same with the Series 2 and available. I even sent one of the urethane positives to ResMed back in early 2000 so they had an idea of the problems and was hoping they would come out with a deep cushion that would work.
I should probably try some of the new FF mask to see if they would fit better. On the other hand - why spend the money now when I have something that works.
Anyone else out there with a “deep” nose (attributable, in my case, to Germanic decent).
Perry
-
neversleeps
- Posts: 1141
- Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2005 7:06 pm
- Location: Minnesota
There is actually a solution out there I have never tried.
The "Total" face mask. Can't find a picture to upload - but here is a link to a downloadable pdf file.
http://www.respironics.com/download/dow ... 004274.pdf
This is obviously a 2nd generation of the concept. When the first "total" face mask's first came out (about 2000) it was much more cumbersome.
I recall reading a review by a guy who tried it with a BiPap. As the mask pulsed up and down on his face he could only think of the creature in the movie "Alien" - and gave up after a couple of hours.
Another issue is how well it works at pressure. I run 16-20 APAP. Keeping a FF mask on is interesting enough at those pressures - I can't imagine a Total face mask.
Perry
The "Total" face mask. Can't find a picture to upload - but here is a link to a downloadable pdf file.
http://www.respironics.com/download/dow ... 004274.pdf
This is obviously a 2nd generation of the concept. When the first "total" face mask's first came out (about 2000) it was much more cumbersome.
I recall reading a review by a guy who tried it with a BiPap. As the mask pulsed up and down on his face he could only think of the creature in the movie "Alien" - and gave up after a couple of hours.
Another issue is how well it works at pressure. I run 16-20 APAP. Keeping a FF mask on is interesting enough at those pressures - I can't imagine a Total face mask.
Perry
9 posts
• Page 1 of 1