No longer running out of water

[AlabamaAl]

Thanks PR, I realize there are always trolls on every forum that think they are the brightest bulb in the pack. I looked into commercially available products, the example by Chevie was one of them... a very expensive piece of crap that would clutter up the nightstand, add additional costs for replacing hoses, and would bypass the internal humidity sensors built into the cpap.

I have no major leaks other than occasional mask slippage. I keep the humidity cranked to max because my sinuses are happy when the machine is close to rain out conditions. Alabama also gets those occasional polar fronts that drops the air temp into the single digits. Granted they are fewer and further between than the northern states, but even one night with bone dry air can wake me up several times a night with a bone dry tank, and stuck together mouth parts. I have tried an external room humidifier, but the net result was to rust my guns, and provide little relief to the sinuses.

This will be my last post on the subject unless someone needs information on how it was put together so they can build one for themselves. Call me a liar, think I'm an idiot, or a "Rube", It really doesn't matter. It works for me. I'm not making anything off the design, just giving an example of how I solved my problem.

Bless yalls hearts. Stick a fork in me I'm done.

[VikingGnome]

I live in Mississippi and run out of water every night about 4 AM. My room humidity in the winter with central heating is below 25%. I use FF mask what rarely leaks. My BiLevel pressure settings are 22/18. I suspect my water loss is primarily due to high volume of air requiring more water to maintain 70% humidity at mask. I found that a small room humidifier to increase ambient humidity helps a bit but not a total solution. Generally only able to increase humidity up to 35% with room humidifier. Humidity in the summer with central air is around 40% and I still run out of water. I wake up when chamber is dry with hot face in mask and tongue stuck to roof of mouth. I keep a quart bottle of distilled water next to PAP so I can quickly refill tank without getting out of bed and becoming too awake. It would be great if manufacturers would offer two sizes of humidifiers.

15 years ago when I got my first CPAP, a Sullivan V elite, I had a large passover humidifier that sat underneath CPAP. I think it held a gallon of water and never ran dry. But it was not warm air. I suppose it would work with my S9.

[palerider]

elegant and inexpensive solution on the market - https://www.cpap.com/productpage/fisher ... ifier.html

which probably

1. costs a lot more
2. is more cumbersome
3. precludes use of a heated hose

[Pugsy]

I have lived in Alabama many, many years ago. In the northern areas and in the mountains it can be a lot colder and dryer than people initially think Alabama humidity might be. Plus people use various house heating forms which can additionally dry out the air especially wood heat in the winter which is notorious for pulling humidity from the air.
Respironics machines at maximum humidity delivery could conceivably use a full tank of water during the night without leaks being a problem. I have had it happen and it wasn't leak related and where I live now in SW Missouri it isn't all that dry.
I have never had the need to use more than one tank of water though and I use max humidity also.

We do what we have to do to keep the nasal mucosa happy because when the nasal mucosa get dried out they get really ugly.
I applaud OP for his ingenuity on how he keeps his nasal mucosa happy. I know of at least one other person who needed to add an additional humidifier to his circuit to keep his nose happy.
Hey...whatever works is fine.
I trust OP to know if his leaks are a problem or not...it's not rocket science.

[Midnight Strangler]

My wife would absolutely not allow something like this in our bedroom.



But I know they do things differently in Alabama. To each his own.

[JDS74]

When there is no rain for several weeks during the fall and winter months, the humidity falls. Water usage by the humidifier goes up. Yes, one night I had to fill it three times.
Since I don't plan to set foot on a plane there is no problem with the set up. If I ever had to, I have a spare water chamber available. As long as I get a comfortable nights sleep, don't wake up with stuck mouth parts because I ran out of water, and my AHI stays around 1, as it has for several months I couldn't care less what some say about the set up. It dang sure works for me. I shared it because I am sure that there are others that have the same problem I had with running out of water at night.

Looking for a different chamber, I found a couple of snap storage containers that have clips on all four sides that may hold up. I'll check to see if they can hold pressure and report back.

[herefishy]

Don't mean to be whiny, but why is nobody with this problem trying a passover humidifier along with their current setup? Just curious.

[JDS74]

'Cause using a passover humidifier eliminates the use of heated humidifier controls. You can get heat using the HC150, for example but controlling the heat and humidity gets iffy.
The heated hose also will no longer work.

[herefishy]

See, I thought that was what people were thinking, that I was advocating a passover humidifier in lieu of the regular one, but I'm saying to run the hose from the regular humidifier to the passover, instead of straight to the mask, then out of the passover to the mask. Wouldn't that be better than trying to rig up something with a canister? Or am I not seeing the big picture?

[palerider]

Or am I not seeing the big picture?

correct.

[herefishy]

OK, I'll shut up and go my way and let you guys go yours.

[bwexler]

When you run more then one humidifier you lose the benefit of the heated hose and the humidity control of the original humidifier. The extra canister is intriguing, but adds a bit of awkwardness to cleaning, filling, and replacing the original water chamber as well as the new canister.