Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
tizzzle
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2022 2:17 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by tizzzle » Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:38 am

Iamstumped wrote:
Fri Aug 19, 2022 7:24 pm
As a long haul, OTR truck driver, and someone who has used an inverter hooked up directly to the battery, the only reason that you would need to run the engine, would be to keep the battery charged, otherwise it will eventually run down, and you will need a jump start.
The inverter will power the CPAP just fine, without the engine running, but the battery will eventually run out of juice.
I've used an inverter for at least 10 years. Small refrigerator, TV, microwave, CD/blue ray player.
so you are saying you use an inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter? and the car can be completely shut off?

tizzzle
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2022 2:17 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by tizzzle » Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:43 am

tizzzle wrote:
Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:38 am
Iamstumped wrote:
Fri Aug 19, 2022 7:24 pm
As a long haul, OTR truck driver, and someone who has used an inverter hooked up directly to the battery, the only reason that you would need to run the engine, would be to keep the battery charged, otherwise it will eventually run down, and you will need a jump start.
The inverter will power the CPAP just fine, without the engine running, but the battery will eventually run out of juice.
I've used an inverter for at least 10 years. Small refrigerator, TV, microwave, CD/blue ray player.
so you are saying you use an inverter plugged into the cigarette lighter? and the car can be completely shut off?
or do you need to be in accessory mode at least (lights, lighter, etc).

Iamstumped
Posts: 157
Joined: Tue May 17, 2022 2:56 am
Location: Kansas City, Mo.

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Iamstumped » Sun Aug 21, 2022 8:02 pm

If you hook directly to the battery, it does not matter. You will only need to run the engine long enough to keep the battery charged up.
There are two types of plugs is most vehicles. One is the cigarette lighter plug, which only works when the ignition is turned on, and the other is a power plug, which works all the time, even if the ignition is turned off.
You will have to try each plug, to see if it is power plug or not.

Iamstumped
Posts: 157
Joined: Tue May 17, 2022 2:56 am
Location: Kansas City, Mo.

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Iamstumped » Sun Aug 21, 2022 8:05 pm

When I was driving the truck, I had my inverter hooked directly to the batteries.
Trucks have four 12v batteries hooked up in series.
I had a 2500 watt inverter, which required that it had to be hooked directly to the battery.
But you can get a smaller inverter that can be plugged into the power or cigarette lighter plug.

lynninnj
Posts: 1267
Joined: Mon Jul 25, 2022 8:56 am

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by lynninnj » Mon Aug 22, 2022 4:22 pm

I am watching a wicked storm in my area, dropping trees and knocking down power lines. Right now the sky is black and we have had a ton of rain. This afternoon we had a large tree fall adjacent our power lines, just missing them and lost power at the house for a few hours a short time ago. (I think it is back?)

I am really hoping like heck it goes back on and stays back on. These issues are why I have been following this thread so closely.

I have 2 mostly fully topped off Halo Bolt car jumpstarter/chargers about the size of a vcr tape. https://www.qvc.com/footers/el/pdf/E229 ... ctions.pdf They have a regular power plug in them and it says 65w max output. The AS11 is 65w I believe. 5Ah and 14v.

So....if I turn off the heater and humidifier, maybe just maybe I can get thru one night without power with those babies?

Its days like today which makes me follow along with this. I know one thing-one or two nights of being without power and having to get a motel room is roughly the cost of one of these portable power banks. So I really want to get more info on a good ready made version to get me thru multiple days. Just gathering data and thank you all.

_________________
Machine: AirSense 11 Autoset
Mask: ResMed AirFit N30 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Newbie who loves her machine!
Beware the schoolyard bullies, mean girls, and fragile male egos. Move along if you can’t be kind.

Rob K
Posts: 642
Joined: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Rob K » Mon Aug 22, 2022 5:09 pm

tizzzle wrote:
Fri Aug 19, 2022 2:24 pm
Hi everyone, I'm new to the forum. I spent nearly an hour searching messages and can't find what I'm looking for.
QUestion: I'm looking to use my cpap with my car's battery using an inverter. Simple question: Does the car need to be running to draw power for the entire time that I am asleep? To use lights/accessories, must I start the vehicle?
Alternatively, if I used direct hookups to the battery iteself, does the same answer apply?

I've ready dozens of articles on this, plenty of info about amps, watt conversions, etc. I just wnat to know if the car needs to run, and any nuances with that answer, most appreciated.

Thanks!
It depends on your vehicle and whether or not the power is turned off with the key. With older vehicles there often is power to the cigarette socket all the time, newer vehicles not so much. I thought I read somewhere that it might be possible with some newer vehicles to change settings so that you can have power at the receptacles even with the vehicle off.

I've never run a pap machine on my vehicle battery because I do not want to drain the power from it in any way and risk having the vehicle not start and be stranded. In an emergency I might, but before that happens I would do a test at home and figure out how much the battery gets depleted.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: AirFit™ N10 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Resmed F10 Mask for colds. When camping on battery power I use P10 mask and PR 560p machine.

Rob K
Posts: 642
Joined: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Rob K » Mon Aug 22, 2022 5:14 pm

glacierjay wrote:
Sat Aug 20, 2022 8:56 am
I'm back from my 14-night backpacking trip around Mount Rainier.
- Jay
That was quite the undertaking. If you get a chance post some insights of what you learned about using your z2/power banks while on the trail.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: AirFit™ N10 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Resmed F10 Mask for colds. When camping on battery power I use P10 mask and PR 560p machine.

Rob K
Posts: 642
Joined: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Rob K » Mon Aug 22, 2022 5:37 pm

lynninnj wrote:
Mon Aug 22, 2022 4:22 pm
I have 2 mostly fully topped off Halo Bolt car jumpstarter/chargers about the size of a vcr tape. https://www.qvc.com/footers/el/pdf/E229 ... ctions.pdf They have a regular power plug in them and it says 65w max output. The AS11 is 65w I believe. 5Ah and 14v.

So....if I turn off the heater and humidifier, maybe just maybe I can get thru one night without power with those babies?
Those appear to have a pretty low capacity. I suspect you won't get much time out of them. If you don't want to test them while you sleep you can give it a try while your sitting around in the evening. That way you will have some idea of how long they would last without having to deal with them in the middle of the night when they run out of power for your machine.

I see the Z2 has gone up $200 everywhere since May when I bought mine for $600. The manufacturer must have raise the price.

I've never run a Resmed machine on battery power so have no idea how much power it uses. It will also very greatly depending on your settings. You will probably get better answers if you start your own thread. People might be coming here to read about wilderness camping. Start a thread on running your Resmed on batteries and I'm certain you'll get a lot of replies from people that have done that exact thing. If you do I'll contribute since I'm about to take on that endeavor myself. I have a two week trip planned in the late fall to a somewhat remote location. There is electricity so I will use my Resmed Aircurve 10 Vauto but there are early winter storms that can cause power outages fairly often. I'll be bringing my Renogy Gp14 72000mah power bank for a back up and will have to buy an adapter cable plus do a test to see how much time I can run my full size Resmed machine.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: AirFit™ N10 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Resmed F10 Mask for colds. When camping on battery power I use P10 mask and PR 560p machine.

lynninnj
Posts: 1267
Joined: Mon Jul 25, 2022 8:56 am

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by lynninnj » Mon Aug 22, 2022 6:29 pm

Rob K wrote:
Mon Aug 22, 2022 5:37 pm
lynninnj wrote:
Mon Aug 22, 2022 4:22 pm
I have 2 mostly fully topped off Halo Bolt car jumpstarter/chargers about the size of a vcr tape. https://www.qvc.com/footers/el/pdf/E229 ... ctions.pdf They have a regular power plug in them and it says 65w max output. The AS11 is 65w I believe. 5Ah and 14v.

So....if I turn off the heater and humidifier, maybe just maybe I can get thru one night without power with those babies?
Those appear to have a pretty low capacity. I suspect you won't get much time out of them. If you don't want to test them while you sleep you can give it a try while your sitting around in the evening. That way you will have some idea of how long they would last without having to deal with them in the middle of the night when they run out of power for your machine.

I see the Z2 has gone up $200 everywhere since May when I bought mine for $600. The manufacturer must have raise the price.

I've never run a Resmed machine on battery power so have no idea how much power it uses. It will also very greatly depending on your settings. You will probably get better answers if you start your own thread. People might be coming here to read about wilderness camping. Start a thread on running your Resmed on batteries and I'm certain you'll get a lot of replies from people that have done that exact thing. If you do I'll contribute since I'm about to take on that endeavor myself. I have a two week trip planned in the late fall to a somewhat remote location. There is electricity so I will use my Resmed Aircurve 10 Vauto but there are early winter storms that can cause power outages fairly often. I'll be bringing my Renogy Gp14 72000mah power bank for a back up and will have to buy an adapter cable plus do a test to see how much time I can run my full size Resmed machine.
Thanks. Good advice. I really didn’t want to hijack your thread but I find the portable gadgetry interesting. I have enough small power banks to stream prob 100 hours of netflix on a tablet.

But those two little guys may be the ONLY thing I have. We just got our power back and we have another tree in the driveway so hoping for the best.

My biggest concern is not damaging my precious coap with these things. No adapter yet for the AS11.

Please post whatever portable ready charger you get for your regular machine.

And thanks Rob! I find your travels very interesting!

_________________
Machine: AirSense 11 Autoset
Mask: ResMed AirFit N30 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Newbie who loves her machine!
Beware the schoolyard bullies, mean girls, and fragile male egos. Move along if you can’t be kind.

Rob K
Posts: 642
Joined: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Rob K » Tue Aug 23, 2022 9:35 am

lynninnj wrote:
Mon Aug 22, 2022 6:29 pm
Please post whatever portable ready charger you get for your regular machine.
I'll be using my Renogy GP14 72000mah power bank to run my full size Resmed machine. I see now that you had already started a thread on the subject, I'll post over there.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: AirFit™ N10 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Resmed F10 Mask for colds. When camping on battery power I use P10 mask and PR 560p machine.

Iamstumped
Posts: 157
Joined: Tue May 17, 2022 2:56 am
Location: Kansas City, Mo.

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Iamstumped » Tue Aug 23, 2022 11:49 am

www.portableoutlet.com
I have the PO160UPS
When plugged into the wall outlet, it stays charged until the power goes out, then it powers your CPAP machine, without skipping a beat.
You just plug the battery into the wall outlet, then plug the power cord from your machine into the battery.
An AS11, without humidifier and heated tube, should run for about 10-11 hours.

Firedexxer
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2022 5:04 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Firedexxer » Thu Oct 13, 2022 5:09 pm

Kind of off topic sorry. Have you guys noticed any degradation in battery life in colder temps? If so how did you solve that problem?

Rob K
Posts: 642
Joined: Sun Feb 05, 2017 5:22 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by Rob K » Thu Oct 13, 2022 8:21 pm

I haven't used my new lithium batteries and Z2 in the cold yet, just my old agm batteries with my Philips machine. With the big agm batteries I had to leave them out but I would use a double sleeping bag or a sleeping bag liner and put my machine in between the bags so I didn't have to touch all the cold plastic. That also pulled warm air from the bag instead of cold air from outside. Of course the outer bag is extra roomy so I could keep the machine at the end of the bag by my feet. You just have to make sure that the intake for the machine is not going to get blocked.

The lithium batteries and Z2 machine are small enough you could devise a way to keep everything warm inside your extra roomy sleeping bag. I'm sure putting the equipment in a plastic container with some holes drilled in it to let in air would work just fine. That would keep any soft materials from laying over and blocking the intake of the machine. Drilling a hole for the hose would be a good idea also. My Z2 has an adapter that potentially could break and it would be best if that was protected inside the box.

In real cold temps one of the biggest challenges is keeping condensation out of your mask. Best to have your head and mask completely in the bag and point the vent toward an opening so moist breath can escape your bag. It would be great if there was a mask that had a remote vent at the end of a hose so you can run that outside the sleeping bag. Nothing worse than condensation from your body and breath in a sleeping bag when temps are real cold.

Also pumping in cold air from outside into your lungs with a machine cools your body a lot. When I started using cpap in camp I had to dress a lot warmer at night to keep warm. It helps a lot if you can keep the machine and your head in the bag.

_________________
Machine: AirCurve™ 10 VAuto BiLevel Machine with HumidAir™ Heated Humidifier
Mask: AirFit™ N10 Nasal CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Resmed F10 Mask for colds. When camping on battery power I use P10 mask and PR 560p machine.

glacierjay
Posts: 20
Joined: Sun May 01, 2022 9:04 am

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by glacierjay » Thu Mar 23, 2023 12:46 pm

Firedexxer wrote:
Thu Oct 13, 2022 5:09 pm
Kind of off topic sorry. Have you guys noticed any degradation in battery life in colder temps? If so how did you solve that problem?
I took a drive to Mexico and back January-March. There were a couple of cold (30-ish F) nights driving through Oregon and Nevada. I was camping in my pickup truck canopy so it was not as cold as a tent.
Most nights I used my Z2 APAP and the Renogy GP-14 battery. I charged the battery from the cigarette port on the truck every day so I can't really comment on how battery life was affected (normally the GP-14 lasts me up to 9 nights so it is not surprising I had no trouble with 1 night). It delivered power all night long and no issues keeping the APAP running. I had the battery next to me on the mattress & I believe the temperature inside stayed in the 40s all night long.
One night I used the Henhot HH-PB-05 battery and it also lasted all night. I have been having an issue with the Henhot at times and also experienced it in the colder weather. When I first start up the Z2 it runs for about 5 seconds then stops. Then when it re-starts it keeps running. Sometimes this happens twice before it keeps going. A couple of times it has quit briefly in the middle of the night, then continues after the Z2 reboots. I have not had time to troubleshoot whether the issue is with the battery, the trigger cable, or the Z2. I don't think the problem is in the Z2 as it never happens when I run it on AC power. I also don't remember it happening on the Renogy battery with the same trigger cable so I suspect there is something causing the Henhot battery to stop supplying power for a couple of seconds. I do not think it is temperature-related as it has happened inside my van at 65 degrees. Maybe I should stop recommending the Henhot batteries even though they are my favorites in size/weight and value.
I have not tried winter camping yet. I would be inclined to leave the battery inside my sleeping bag if I did. Not sure about the Z2 -- I think I'd be fine breathing the outside air. I guess it would be no different from what I'd experience if I didn't use the apap machine at all. I never use the heated air even at home.
FWIW, we got another early entry permit for the wonderland trail. Maybe I'll do another 2-week backpacking trip on Mt Rainier this summer. I'll certainly be doing more backpacking as soon as the snow melts and will post any learnings here.

stevenal
Posts: 154
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 2:00 pm

Re: Cpap for extended wilderness camping?

Post by stevenal » Thu Mar 23, 2023 1:30 pm

Is this a 12V battery? Zs want 15V.
AirSence 10 Autoset, Dreamstation 2 backup, Swift FX, Z1 for travel.