Limescale build up inside the water compartment

I've been using bottled water like Evian for the water compartment of the humidifier. Am I in fact using the correct type of bottled water? Been doing this for a few years now, and I'm getting quite a bit of limescale in the water chamber - which I have to clear out periodically. God only knows how clogged up the CPAP itself is. Can anybody give me a tip?

Distilled water is what you want... or else plain tap, but not other bottled ones.

Vinegar will dissolve the lime deposits, and if they are heavy, or impair the humidifier, a new water chamber is not expensive. I have used tap water for years without a problem. Bottled water like Evion contains minerals which improves taste, but can leave deposits. Distilled water by the gallon costs about 89 cents per gallon here, and will be deposit free, but you still need to watch hygiene and rinse the tank.

Headintheclouds wrote:I've been using bottled water like Evian for the water compartment of the humidifier. Am I in fact using the correct type of bottled water? Been doing this for a few years now, and I'm getting quite a bit of limescale in the water chamber - which I have to clear out periodically. God only knows how clogged up the CPAP itself is. Can anybody give me a tip?

EVERY manufacturer recommends using "distilled" water. It's in the user manuals.
So, NO, you're not using the preferred type of water.
Any other form of water would have minerals or chemicals which would cause the buildup you're asking about.
For the most part, distilled water runs about 80-some cents a gallon at Walmart.

The CPAP itself shouldn't have any "clogged up" issues. The air comes in and is filtered before it goes through the machine. And, the water chamber is the last place the air flows before entering the hose going to your mask.
If you "drink" that same water, it isn't hurting you. So, other than some scale buildup, it won't hurt you in the CPAP either. The airflow (heated or not) creates water vapor by passing over the water in the tank. Water vapor can't carry the scale out of the HH tank to you because the scale molecules are larger than the water molecules, so that's why it's left behind in your tank.

Be sure to change/clean your air intake filters on some regular schedule before they can clog with dust.

And, for the buildup, some vinegar/water solution should work fine if you feel the need to remove it.


Den

.

Yes on vinegar, yes on distilled, no on bottled water, no on CLR in my opinion.

You don't normally need the vinegar once you get the scale cleaned off and start using distilled.

If you have to use something other than distilled water, dump the tank and rinse it every morning to prevent buildup. It's better to refill the tank in the evening, but as long as you dump the "used" water out every day and rinse, it will reduce scale buildup.

Insurance will usually pay for a replacement tank every 6 months. It's a good idea to get a spare tank or two. Clean the old tank up really well, and if it's still OK, clean one tank very well every week and then switch tanks for the next week. I think letting them dry out well keeps the germs down.

When I had my S9 Autoset I used RO water and rinsed the humidifier every month or two . At about the two year mark I got a new water chamber and couldn't tell the difference between the old and the new.
With my PRS 1 960 I am about 4 months into a new chamber using the same RO water and it has the scale build up that would not clean up soaking in a dish soap solution or the dishwasher.
What is so different about the PR chamber compared to the S9?