Hose Melted!!

Here is the exchange with Donald,
Note time frame from shipment Late April to failure late May to disccovery of coils penetrating hose late Jun.

I'm going to order a replacement hose right now.

TerryB

-----Original Message-----
>From: Donald Fischer <don.fischer@optusnet.com.au>
>Sent: Jun 20, 2006 3:04 AM
>To: TerryB <terryblauser@earthlink.net>
>Subject: Re: Sleepzone Heated CPAP tube order
>
>SleepZone wrote :
>
>G'day Terry from the land of OZ
>
>The heating coils are wound on the outside of the tube itself ..... ata resistance of 13ohms and 12v X1amp not enough heat is produced tocause any melting or problem like that .We have heated tubes on test24/7 at even high ambient temps above 30 degrees C and thereis noproblem .... The worst that can happen is an open circuit we havenever had a short circuit ... in either case the tube will simply notheat ... the product is very low power 11 watts .. and certified andlisted category safe TGA Australia which is the eqiv USFDA .
>
>So ... if the hose is damaged in some way it would be due to amechanical cause not heat or melting ... Does the tube leak air ... ifnot all is A OK
>
>Hope this helps
>
>Don Fischer
>
>
>
>
>
>TerryB wrote:
>Hello Donald,
> I hope things are going well down under.
>
> I have a concern about my Heated Hose and I'm hoping youwill set my mind to rest. I was rinsing out the other day and I lookedin the two ends and found heating coils visible inside the hose at oneend and not the other end. Does this mean that I have managed tooverheat the coils and melt them through the hose and that the hosewill fail soon in this area? I suppose it could also mean this is theway the coils are anchored so they dont change position. If it is asign of overheating then I am concerned about my ability to use theequipment safely as I know that some nights I decide to remove the maskfor a while and I forget that I should unplug the hose. On the otherhand could it be that the failure mode of the first transformerprovided too much current and fired this area?
>
> So you see my concerns.
>
>Thanks in advance for any information and guidance.
>
>Terry Blauser
>
>
>
>
>-----OriginalMessage-----
>From: Donald Fischer
>Sent: May 22, 2006 6:04 PM
>To: TerryB
>Subject: Re: Sleepzone Heated CPAP tube order
>
>Don Fischer wrote :
>G'day Terry what you have told us we really appreciate I will take thisup with our transformer supplier its the first prob we have had
>considering we test B4 shipping
>The heated tube apart from physical damage is petty well indestructablewe have never had a heating element problem
>
>All the best any probs we would appreciate knowing
>
>SleepZone
>
>
>
>
>TerryB wrote:
>Hello Don,
> This afternoon readings are 13.3 Ohms hose,
>1.2 ohms transformer output winding.
>Not much voltage out of the transformer. o.5 millivolts butthe good news is it is at 60 hz.
>The transformer did OK for two weeks but went in the middleof the night.
>
>Listen, don't worry, I got a free transformer that lots ofmy predesessors didn't get. I'll go to Radio Shack and get one likemost of them had to do.
>
>Best Regards,
>
>Terry
>
>
>
>
>-----OriginalMessage-----
>From: Donald Fischer
>Sent: May 21, 2006 6:43 PM
>To: TerryB
>Subject: Re: Sleepzone Heated CPAP tube order
>
>
>
>SleepZone wrote :
>
>Terry,
>havent had this problem before as we test every transformer prior toshipping. The hose should be reading 13 ohms resistance,
>and the transformer should show an infinite output impedance.
>If you have access to an voltmeter, can you please confirm the outputvoltage is 12V AC??
>The transformer we supply is AC.
>
>If you could, can you re-check the impedances and AC voltage and getback to me?
>For other simple troubleshooting see attachment
>
>Please
>
>Regards,
>Don Fischer
>
>TerryB wrote:
>Hi Don,
> I wonder if you have been having any bad reports onthe power supply you are sending with the AHH on USA shipments? I hadcondensation problems last night a first since receiving the HH, andupon checking I believe the power supply has failed. I read no voltageon the output. The hose is reading 6 ohms DC resistance. I hope youcan verify that this is correct for the hose as I will go and get aRadio Shack Power supply if the hose is not the cause of the powersupply failure. Since I see less than 1 Ohm output winding resistance,I believe the transformer secondary has shorted in the power supply.
>
>
>Best Regards,
>Terry Blauser
>
>
>-----OriginalMessage-----
>From: Donald Fischer
>Sent: Apr 27, 2006 5:33 AM
>To: terryblauser@earthlink.net
>Subject: Sleepzone Heated CPAP tube order
>
>G'Day Terry Blauser from Australia "down under"
>
>Thank you for your order, which we will ship tomorrow Friday 28th April2006
>on Mastercard Authority for US$ 109.00 # 428735
>allow around 7 to 10 days for delivery ... which is receipted.
>
>A better nights sleep awaits you... Guaranteed
>No More Cold CPAP Air... No More Annoying Rainout
>
>[]
>Sincerely Don and Carmen Fischer
>SleepZone CPAP Products
>
>
>
>

Don't you have a digital camera to show them the impossible melted hose? Maybe the guy is actually from Missouri.

I tried to photograph it, but couldn't light the inside well enough to show up.

My brother went to Australia on business and I contemplated sending a piece of hose with him. I couldn't stand the thought of a return to rainout while waiting on a replacement.

I have ordered a replacement this morning.


TerryB

Hmmm ... I must have misunderstood the severity of the "melted" hose. From the origianl post, I got the impression that a melted hose would easily be something that could be visually documented with a camera ... my mistake.

It sounds like Ellie's hose changed shape. Mine essentially had the heater windings move from all outside the hose to a considerable number of partial coils now located inside the hose. When I get the replacement I'll probably feel like more adventurous experiments like slicing open the cover, etc. I have a thought that I may be able to use a fiber optic light pipe to get some light inside to light a photo. I may try that this evening.

TerryB

UPDATE

I linked Donald to this thread and he has emailed me that there is a free new hose on the way and he wants me to send the old hose, I'm going to try to send just a piece.

TerryB

Sorry, obviously that was me, not trying to be anonimous the auto login sometines works sometimes not.

TerryB

Ellie, it looks like contacting Donald at Sleepzone.com.au may pay off.

_________________

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the first sleepzone hose I purchased was just a few weeks old when the interior of the hose cuff melted, totally closing the air flow off. I returned it, and was sent a free replacement. Now the replacement hose wiring has burned in two, getting ready for bed, smelled a burning odor, and the wiring was hot and burned. If this had happened while during sleep, it could have resulted in a fire. I have written to sleepzone, but am beginning to feel a little nervous about the overall safety of the hose.

Maybe a little rain on my nose isn't so bad?

Anonymous wrote:the first sleepzone hose I purchased was just a few weeks old when the interior of the hose cuff melted, totally closing the air flow off. I returned it, and was sent a free replacement. Now the replacement hose wiring has burned in two, getting ready for bed, smelled a burning odor, and the wiring was hot and burned. If this had happened while during sleep, it could have resulted in a fire. I have written to sleepzone, but am beginning to feel a little nervous about the overall safety of the hose.

Maybe a little rain on my nose isn't so bad?

Did you get a new transformer with the replacement hose? Are you using the same transformer with the new hose that burnt up the old hose? Jim

Sorry I haven't had a chance to report lately. Too much going on around here. Last Thursday, I finally got a chance to e-mail Don at Sleepzone. Did this shortly after 12 noon and around 5:30 or 6:00 p.m. (same day) he called to talk to me about the problem and told me that he would have a new hose in the mail to me by the next day. I am sending the old one back to him so he can try to determine the problem with it. Mine also burned completely. I am trying to figure if I have done anything differently than anyone else and so far in seeing your posts, I can't tell that I have.

snoredog,
The two failures I had were seperated by twelve months. If it was a defective radio shack adapter, it seems it would not have taken twelve months for the replaced hose to fail.
I feel I have persoanlly experienced two potentially critical concerns - hose A, the "lining" in the cuff collapsed, melted into a solid plug- totally blocking all airflow
And now,hose B, the wiring burning in two.
I would say the hose needs some type of fuse to shut down if the wiring is overheating.
I'm not an electrician, just an average sleepy person, so the fuse may not be the answer, but I am hoping the safety concerns will be resolved soon, before someone does have a fatal fire or air restriction.