CPAPtalk.com

Air Jordan wrote: What do you think about not using the humidifier? I never put water in mine and haven't given a thought to washing the humidifier tub or the hose. Maybe I should start washing them? How often?

I would think it would be needed less often. Not sure how often though. Maybe once a month?

If ever.
Once a month is reasonable; more adds wear to delicate materials,
and wastes water, time, energy, etc.
Moving air prevents debris buildup inside the system.
The filters stop more dust, etc. than you breathe when out of bed.
EXCESS cleaning is of no value for healthy people with working immunity.
The UV light in my hearing aid conditioner kills odor,
but my hearing aid rarely goes in my nose.
Hmmmm . . .

ShinRyoku wrote:

Air Jordan wrote: What do you think about not using the humidifier? I never put water in mine and haven't given a thought to washing the humidifier tub or the hose. Maybe I should start washing them? How often?

I would think it would be needed less often. Not sure how often though. Maybe once a month?

After 8 years, I took mine off and put it back in the bag. Never took it out of the bag to clean it again.

The air in my bedroom is the same I breath all day, only cooler. I keep Ice Water on my nitestand to sip. Jim

You know what I think people should do in terms of cleaning anything...anything in their life...their house, their toilets, their bodies, their cpap stuff???

Whatever they feel comfortable doing for whatever reason they might have in their heads.

Doesn't matter how I might clean my house, or my toilet, or brush my teeth, or in what frequency or with whatever cleaning aids I might want to use...and the same goes for my cpap cleaning or not cleaning.
Doesn't matter what anyone does or doesn't do except for me and my stuff.

I get to decide what it is that I am comfortable with and that's what I am going to do.
Whatever I can sleep good with..that's what works for ME.
Doesn't matter what I am cleaning or how or frequency...it's MY stuff and MY life and MY sleep.

So people should do what THEY want to do and make up their own minds and be happy with THEIR choice. Doesn't matter if it is the same choice that I might have or anyone else for that matter.

If they feel and sleep better doing whatever (or not doing whatever) then that's just fine by me.
It's not my place to dictate how someone cleans their house, toilet, whatever and especially cpap stuff.

If vigorous cleaning causes problems...replace the item...it's your money you are spending. I don't care how you spend your money.
If not cleaning something causes a problem..replace the item...again it's your money and I don't really care how you spend your money. Not my job to watch your pocketbook for you.

I just don't get why people get so defensive about what they do or don't do. No one comes to my house and tells me how to clean my house (wish to hell someone would come and clean it for me though ).

Folks...do or don't do whatever it takes for YOU to be comfortable with whatever you do or don't do. Don't worry about what someone else does or doesn't do. You aren't going to change their mind and make them do or don't do whatever you elect to do about anything.

If something or even potential something bugs you about anything...that's a good enough reason to do something to ease the bugging for you. The fact that it doesn't bug someone else is irrelevant.

Cleaning of the cpap stuff...for me that's personal choice just like the cleaning of my house or my car or my whatever.
It's my decision and I am good with my decision but how you clean your house or your car or your whatever...that's up to you.

Pugsy wrote:I just don't get why people get so defensive about what they do or don't do.

Here, it is a nice little sport. A quaint diversion from the usual humdrum of leaky masks, bricks, 4 - 20 settings, lying DMEs.

I can't wait until the next newbie says they have been washing and cloroxing all their stuff three times a day.

Please don't ban the bashing of mysophobes.

Hang Fire wrote:I can't wait until the next newbie says they have been washing and cloroxing all their stuff three times a day.

Please don't ban the bashing of mysophobes.

I won't ever ban anyone for just voicing their own opinion...germophobes or people who love dirt...or the in betweens...or the people making fun of the other side whatever that is.
It's how some people voice their opinion that can get them into trouble and no one here has even come remotely close to that line in the sand.

We are always going to have the same heated discussions about cleaning...I saw all of this (minus the UV thing) nearly 9 years ago and hundreds of times in between. Same discussion...different people sometimes and sometimes same people...same differing point of view...same results ...we all quietly go back to doing whatever it is we want to do anyway. Nothing at all new here except the UV thing.

People who voice their concern about germs...germophobes...well they have to be able to take the heat from those people who don't lean that way.
Just like those people who aren't so worried about the germs have to be able to take the heat from the germophobes.

As long as people "attack the message and not the messenger"...I won't be banning anyone or even slapping anyone's hands.
I think most of us know what that means.

There are always going to be certain topics that bring about some rather heated discussions. It's just part of life on the forum.
Cleaning is one...using products like the UV thing or the SoClean is another...using exhale relief...not using exhale relief...using humidity...not using humidity....which mask is better or horrible...and the list goes on.
Someone always just HAS to changed someone else's mind because they think the other person is doing something stupid. Doesn't matter what it is..that's just the way it is. So they beat a dead horse to further death trying to bring about that change and it isn't going to make any difference one way or the other.

And yeah...I almost mentioned scrubbing things 3 times a day ...hey, if that's what someone wants to do then that's fine by me if it lets them sleep better at night.
The mind is a powerful thing...sometimes it's good and sometimes its bad but it is still very powerful indeed.
WHATEVER it takes for a person to get good sleep...that's fine by me. If that means washing things a gazillion times for peace of mind...that's fine by me. If it means never washing anything because you don't want to risk tearing it or wearing it out...that's fine by me too. It's WHATEVER it takes for each individual to have peace of mind about whatever they are doing or not doing that lets them sleep good about their decision...that's the important thing.

All you guys here even with the heated discussions and I know the behind the scenes eyeball rolling....yep...I know it's been done because I did it myself....no one has come even close to being ugly enough to get their hands slapped.
Heated discussions...even the same ones we have had hundreds of times before now...are welcome here.
Just as long as the heated part is directed at the message and not the messenger.
No matter how we might personally feel about just how stupid one person's point of view is.....they have a right to that point of view just like we have a right to ours.

It's funny though...it's almost always the newbies that try extra hard to change the thinking of the forum veterans.
I often wonder why they try so hard and want to chime in and say "who are you trying to convince...me or yourself"?

At any rate...continue on with the heated discussion...I predict another long thread about cleaning or not cleaning depending on which side of the fence a person is on.
And I really don't care which side of the fence a person is as long as you all play nice with the heated discussions. I will read it when I have time and need a laugh.

And yeah....germophobes will likely be a target of some "bashing" here because there seem to be more people who aren't on that side of the fence. It's life...germophobes probably already know that they are in the minority anyway.
Just as long as it is the general principle (be it fear of germs or love of dirt) that takes the knocks and not the individual getting stoned and attacked personally...I am good here.

Carry on and have fun. I have to go clean my house...YUCK...no one came over to show me how to do it better. Damn.

What we need is a Ozone, utlra sound, Dawn and Distilled scrub, 1 hour in a pressure cooker, then spray with DDT. Put it on wearing clean rubber gloves, do not breath into the mask. Jim

What a cute term: "mysophobes"

Pugsy wrote:It's funny though...it's almost always the newbies that try extra hard to change the thinking of the forum veterans.

It seems exactly the opposite to me. I am a newbie, and I couldn't care less whether the forum veterans wash their CPAP stuff, brush their teeth, or wipe their behinds after using the toilet. In contrast, several of the forum veterans seem intent on pretending that I personally invented some crazy idea of washing my CPAP hose while they know full well that it is frequently recommended .

ShinRyoku wrote:It seems exactly the opposite to me. I am a newbie

I can see where you might think that way but after seeing hundreds of this very same discussion during the past coming on 9 years now...it's usually the newbies who are trying to change the forum veteran's minds.
Usually anyway...there's always an outlier in anything.

Now it can seem like the forum veterans are doing the bulk of the attempted mind changing but that sort of goes along with the number of veterans who lean towards the "dirt lovers" side of the fence.
There's more forum veterans than newbies no matter which side of the fence you are on.

But don't think for one minute that all the forum veterans are on the dirt lovers side of the fence...not the case at all..it's just this particular group is a bit more vocal. I know long time veterans who are tried and true germophobes or maybe they just want additional peace of mind or whatever. They scrub their equipment daily...all of it and have done it for years and years. It gives them peace of mind to do it so who cares...sure not me.
Heck I know a couple who are closet SoClean users.....but prefer to stay in the closet about it.
Those forum veterans who are on the (I want to clean stuff) other side of the fence just aren't quite as vocal as this particular group happens to be.

The New-bee's tend to die off from failing autoimmune systems, brought on be lack of use, by germ-a-fobs.
Jim

ShinRyoku wrote:while they know full well that it is frequently recommended .

Lots of unnecessary things, and many stupid ones, are "frequently recommended".

it's "frequently recommended" that you don't change your own pressures.
it's "frequently recommended" that you don't bother looking at your data.
it's "frequently recommended" that you only buy machines from your local DME at whatever ridiculous markup that they charge.
it's "frequently recommended" that you throw away perfectly good supplies and buy more *on their schedule* which just happens to be the minimum times that insurance will fork over for more stuff (funny, that).
it's "frequently recommended" you just blindly trust your doctor to care about you.

Anybody else? other "frequently recommended" bs, not necessarily about cpap?

I only started xPAP about 8 years ago... I guess that makes me a newbie.

I wash my hose, humidifier tank, and mask every week. I don't sanitize anything. I have found that the outside of my hose and head gear gets dirtier than anything I can find on the inside.

I also have an older machine that tends to aerosolize the humidifier water somewhat, so I take advantage of that by adding a small amount of salt to my humidifier water. It's just like sleeping on the beach and I have no issues with congestion.

Somehow I have managed to stay healthy and have no plans of changing my cleaning regime.

palerider wrote: Lots of unnecessary things, and many stupid ones, are "frequently recommended".

I never suggested that something being frequently recommended must be correct. Nor do I care if anyone else believes it or washes their anything.

My point was that given that "forum veterans" are well aware that something is frequently recommended, it is disingenuous for them to act like a "forum newbie" invented the idea out of thin air for no reason.

ChicagoGranny wrote:

ShinRyoku wrote: in my hose despite rinsing with hot soapy water

Why are you washing the inside of your hose?

RicaLynn wrote:

My concern about my current cleaning process is that I'm not sure if mold could grow in my hose despite rinsing with hot soapy water...

Again, why are you WASHING the inside of your hose?

ShinRyoku wrote:act like a "forum newbie" invented the idea out of thin air

Thick air. 10 - 20 cm H2O.