Got my new Tap Pap today!

[sleeplessinaz]

I ordered the Tap Pap the other day from CPAP.com and I arrived a day early! Woohoo! I saw that it was on sale for $79.00 plus free return insurance, so I wanted to give it a try. I followed the boil and fit instructions and washed everything up so I am all ready for tonight's first try.

Ant tips or ideas from users of this mask to make things easier? Also - how long so those nasal pillows last? They kind do look flimsy compared to the Nuance.

[Pugsy]

Also - how long so those nasal pillows last? They kind do look flimsy compared to the Nuance.

I am still using my very first set of nasal pillows that I got back the first of March of last year. They don't look real pretty but they still are comfortable and don't collapse and seal just fine. I wash them once a week.
I haven't been using it the past 5 weeks or so because have a bad tooth (bottom back molar) and the mouth guard makes it hurt a little more because I tend to clench my jaws. I have been using the AirFit P10 instead. Plan to go back to the Tap Pap once we get the tooth fixed.
The bad tooth is not related to the mouth guard. It's a 30 year old crowned tooth and it looks like a bit of decay under it after all this time. I will need a new crown so been waiting to put the money together for it...those puppies aren't cheap.

So while the pillows may look rather "flimsy"..they are remarkably sturdy. If they hadn't yellowed being out in the air and if I close my eyes they feel just like the unused back up spare I bought and I can't tell which pair is the ugly pair.
I think you will find that they last a long, long time.

So roughly 11 months of use on the one pair with a few nights off when I tried the Nuance and the Nano.

[sleeplessinaz]

Thanks for the reply! I see that they cost $22.00 if they need replaced. I hope I can get used to the mask - I am excited to try it out tonight!

[Lazer1234]

Thanks for the reply! I see that they cost $22.00 if they need replaced. I hope I can get used to the mask - I am excited to try it out tonight!

I dare almost promise that you will love TapPap even more than your previous masks. Guaranteed!

[Pugsy]

I don't guarantee anything but there's a good chance that you will like it once you get past the teeth thing.
I will be surprised if you don't have some tooth discomfort initially...unless you are using to wearing some sort of oral appliance. That was the biggest issue I had but then I have never used any sort of oral appliance..no braces as a kid or anything. It took me about 2 weeks for the tooth discomfort to go away...it wasn't horrible discomfort and only took a couple of hours each morning to abate but it was there.

We all have different needs/wants/preferences and what does the trick for one person may be a hated feature by another person. So one man's advantage can be seen as a disadvantage by another person.

There are masks out there that some people just love and they think it is the greatest thing since sliced bread and I would rather have my fingernails torn out one by one than use those masks.
It doesn't mean it is a bad mask...it's just a bad mask for me because I have a set of different preference as to what makes me happy or is a deal breaker.

We can get ideas from others about how a mask might work out but in the end the only real way to know how it will work out for the individual is for the individual to try it. What I might say about it really doesn't mean squat unless your preferences and needs are exactly like mine and chances are..they won't match exactly.

[Lazer1234]

When I first warmed in hot water so I got teeth hurt first night. The next night so I warmed gently again and loosened a little on the fit, but still got hurt. For the third night so I loosened further a bit, then it fitted perfectly with no pain in the teeth.

[sleeplessinaz]

Hi there,
Well my first night was good I think. I feel rested this morning for sure. My numbers were 0 leaks and AHI was 0.08 and no centrals. I did wake up a few times when my mouth opened and the teeth guard came loose and flipped on my tongue. I may boil it again after a few more nights to see if it will fit tighter. I had no teeth hurting but then again I used to sleep with a mouth guard for TMJ for about a year.

I love the fact there is no headgear! Yay! No headgear hair in the morning! I never slept with the hose routed above my head before, so that is going to take some getting used to. Not too bad for night one.

[Pugsy]

While I don't use a hose management system so that the hose goes upward hanging overhead, I have always sort of routed the hose up and around the bed pillow laying on the mattress and then coming down to my face. I don't like having the hose laying on my chest or under the covers. I get too entwined with my usual tossing and turning.
So the routing of the TapPap really was no different than what I do with any other nasal mask except it is more rigid to start with and actually helps keep the hose where I want it.
For those used to doing something else it make take a bit of adjustment but I think it's worth it.

I love the fact there is no headgear!

Me too...no headgear and no straps on my face...huge plus. Especially nice for those of us who have issues with headgear sizing and the one size fits all approach doesn't work so great. For the most part I am good with one size fits all but I understand that others aren't so lucky..

When the Tap Pap first came out I had another reason to want to try it besides the lack of headgear. I seemed to have developed some jaw clenching bad habits and I was having some pretty painful TMJ issues because of it. I had been toying with buying one of those cheap boil and bite guards anyway to see if it would help reduce the TMJ pain.
So I got to kill 2 birds with one stone by using the Tap Pap. No headgear and something to help with TMJ pain (which it did help a lot as it pretty much eliminated it totally) and those nasal pillows don't move at all. Any leak I see on my report is pretty much guaranteed to be mouth opening leak.

I did have to go to the size medium in the nasal pillows where I had always used XSmall or Small in the others. The Small almost would work but it wasn't quite as forgiving and they leaked sometimes and enough to wake me up. Weren't huge leaks but annoying enough to wake me up so like I always say...even if leaks are tiny...if they wake you up they need to be fixed.
I think it's the lack of the big cushiony rim with the TapPap pillows which makes the size a little more critical for me.
I can use the Smalls but fit and angle have to be just perfect and with the medium close is good enough. Since I hate fiddling to find "perfect" I just let "close" be good enough.

[sleeplessinaz]

Yes, I used the Medium pillows as they were already installed when I got the mask. I usually use smalls too but the mediums seem to fit fine, so if it ain't broke, I am not gonna try and fix it. Lol!

[rosacer]

How long last the mouth guard?

I have been using my Tap Pap since last November, I love the fact that I have not marks on the face each morning Other than the fact that the mouth guard shrinks (because of the difference of temperature between my mouth and the cool room) if I don't put a towel around the moment it comes out of my mouth, I'm really happy with the mask.

[Pugsy]

How long last the mouth guard?

Don't know...the one I am using is from the first of June last year I think it was. It looks horrid but still works fine. I got it when they changed to the new skinnier mouth guard.

Have you tried having your mouth good and moist when you put the guard in at night to see if it helps with that snugness?
I found it seemed to help getting the guard to slide in place if mouth was good and moist.

[rosacer]

Hi Pugsy

I think the problem with the mouth guard is that it shrinks when I take it from my mouth and I let it at the room temperature which is around 71 F. If I put a hand towel around it and I let it that way until I will use it the size doesn't change and I don't need to put it on hot water again. If I let it at the air it takes 3 days and it becomes tight and gives me teeth pain.

Other than that small problem (solved now) I like that mask to the point of been using it instead of the Headrest or the FF (Mirage Ultra) I was using until last December. I became a mouth breather no matter how much I try to stop that thinking at keeping closed the mouth or trying to put the tongue on the roof of the mouth. My tongue is not big enough now to keep the seal I use a face compression garment for neck surgery, it works somehow and doesn't let the marks the chinstrap let. In any case the chin strap didn't work much, I have a Ruby style.

[sleeplessinaz]

Two nights down - so far so good. No complaints. Yet. Haha! I hope the mouth guard lasts as it seems kind of thin. I still might boil it again this weekend to get a tighter fit.

[nanwilson]

Two nights down - so far so good. No complaints. Yet. Haha! I hope the mouth guard lasts as it seems kind of thin. I still might boil it again this weekend to get a tighter fit.

I thought the same thing about it being too thin, but I have been using mine since June, same mouth guard, same pillows......... absolutely love it, no head gear YAAAYYYYY.

[sleeplessinaz]

Haha! I love not having headgear! That's the best part about this mask. I had a high leak rate last night - which I never have. I was kind of disappointed in that number. No centrals tho. Hoping tonight will be better.