Breeze Vs. Swift

Well, I received my Swift today. I put it on for a nap this afternoon and I think I fell in love. Right on my head out of the package, no adjustments, straps pretty loose, and no leaks! I know it is going to be a little hard because I side sleep a lot, but no upward pressure, as with the Breeze. Thanks all for you help. Jen

Good luck with it Jen. I've got a mask for every mood, it seems. I've mostly been in a Swift mood lately. I do roll up about a 1 1/4 inch by 2 inch piece of mosquito netting (clean, of course) and put it in the barrel of the Swift which takes it from very noisy to very tolerable for me, the noise sissy. At first, I thought it was wasted money because of the noise, but now I think it's a great little interface and I switch off between that, the Breeze, and the UltraMirage nasal mask when the nares get sore.

Sleep on sister!
Jim

Hey, can someone do a Rested Gal style illustration of how to noise-reduce the swift?

I've heard people comment on it lots of times, but I'm not quite sure I get it.

Liam, he can be a little slow sometimes.

I used the Breeze with medium pillows (tried other sizes but they just didn't work or were uncomfortable) for 5 weeks. Absolutely hated it. I was constantly adjusting and readjusting the headgear. Every time I moved it shifted side to side. I could never get it small enough. Also had trouble with the hose popping out of the back hose guide all the time. In addition I could not adjust the angle of the nasal pillow shell where I did not have constant heavy pressure on my upper lip. it was also breaking off my hair along the midline where the headgear rested.

Ordered the Swift on my own and love it. The Breeze had noise on the inhale and so does the Swift, but I think the Swift is actually quieter. I do not find it noisy at all otherwise. Yes, the exhaust is diffused but it is diffused at an angle of about 45 degrees downward. If it is winter use the heat on your humidifier and it blows nice warm air on your arm or hand if it gets in the way. In the summer a cooler breeze might actually feel refreshing, so I don't worry about that. I sleep on my side most nights and find the seal of the Swift very dependable. you can actually take your finger and move the barrel from side to side while your machine is one and find that the seal really doesn't break.

I did find that for some reason my hair was breaking off on the side I slept on so I purchased a mesh cap, cut off the top straps, make small holes in the bottom strap, took off the Swifts headgear and used the bottom straps, putting them back on themselves to tighten or loosen. Since they are elastic with velcro they tighten quite easily. i don't have the ends of the headgear straps flapping around as before and my hair stays pretty much in place. Because the mesh cap is elasticized it stays in place pretty well too, although I've thought about making a "bridge" strap from where the original top straps were to the bottom strap to make it a bit snugger around the front. And after only a month, my hair is noticeably thicker.

haven't tried the Aura, but I'm staying away because of the headgear.

Seems like people like the breeze OR the swift, but hard to predict without trying, unfortunately.

I currently rotate between the Swift and the (more quiet) Activa. I used the Breeze for awhile and felt it was greater pressure pulling up on the nose and the hardware was not particularly comfortable for me, but it had its good points too. What turned me off to the Breeze was bad build quality and poor customer service to back up the apparently non-existent warranty. Even after they "improved" it they missed a couple of major defects.

Is the Swift perfect? I wish!..... It was pretty hard on my nares to get used to it, but that was solved by AYR lube and rotating with the Activa. The exhaust, well it blows... They definitely could have done better with that but I find its not THAT hard to make sure its not blowing on pillow or sheets or arms, although I wish it was better diffused and aimed UP.

I took care of the noise issue by stuffing a bit of tulle, mesh-like, fabric in there. (and how did I happen to have THAT laying around? Oh, there goes my reputation on yet another forum....) Ask for it at your local Fabric store by name. Just stuff a small strip into the cylinder and make sure you don't feel ANY reduction in exhaust flow.

Headgear and weight is about as minimal as you can get. I run the hose UP, and flipping when you turn it is about like getting used to flipping a pony tail back and forth...or so I would imagine. I attach it to the headgear with the supplied velcro loop just BELOW where the headgear branches. Attaching above that fork doesn't seem to work nearly as well.

I also use a small thermarest type pillow on top of a pap-pillow for good ledges to hang over and hardware absorbing.

works for me anyway.......

I can only speak about Breeze.\
I am perhaps biased, because I cannot imagine anyone ever using anything but a Breeze.

My postings on Sleepnet.com were removed because some thought I was a sales rep. This is a problem since many newbies come to any forum and ask a question for the millionth time without knowing how to search archives.

I contend that most problems people have with a Breeze is not being able to adjust it properly.
Sometimes you have to bend the metal band to prevent pressure that cannot be adjusted away.

There should be absolutely NO noise in the newer models. The original ones were quite noisy, but not any more.

There should be virtually NO pressure on the nares if adjusted properly. This is usually by the plenum nut- the square one.
To test the pressure necessary to hold it in place, simply put your finger under it- between the top of the nose and gently raise it up. You will see that it will maintain a good seal with virtually NO pressure. It should never touch the top of the lip at all.
Now go and adjust it to that pressure and it will work fine. It is more an art than a science to adjust it.

I love being able to talk on phone with it on and simply flip it off to get up.
ALWAYS lift it off by peeling it off from the BACK- not the front.

Fixing one is a snap with a soldering iron to melt it back together. Sometimes you have to use an old one to get a splint to provide more strength. then weld them together and it is fixed. This was also prohibited at sleepnet because he thought it was too dangerous for general posting.

go figure.

Putting side straps down very low across the front of the Breeze always held it in place absolutely fine for me. No movement of the headgear at all or sliding sideways.

Even with the straps down so low, it could still be lifted on/off just as easily, without even undoing the straps.

The Breeze is still one of my favorites even though I use my "deconstructed" Aura all the time now.

I alternate between using both. I'm a side sleeper and I don't like anything going over my head. Unfortunately, the Breeze hose goes over the top of the head. I'm a side sleeper, and if I'm facing my husband, I can blast him out of bed. Not very romantic.

I use the small pillows and find it quite comfortable. I also agree with others that when turning, the fittings can change and I find it a bit of pain when cleaning to reassemble and refit everything. Despite all this, I am managing to sleep with it. At times though, I find that I change nasal systems in the middle of the night. Haven't found the right one yet.

The Breeze is very lightweight, comfortable and doesn't blow on my hubby. My only problem with the Breeze is that it's too wide for my face. I'm thinking of getting a small contour pillow, which might help solve the problem. I wish they made a narrower frame to go with the small pillows.

I've had it with masks. They always leak and I hate the markings on my face when I wake up. I also feel so much freer with the nasal pillows ~ ah, no claustrophobia.

I'm thinking of trying the Aura. Any input from people using the Aura with small nasal pillows would be greatly appreciated. From what I've seen, it looks like the Aura also goes over the head, but if it stays put while moving, I guess I'll manage with that. Thanks,

Klady

Klady I think you meant the Swift on the second paragraph where you talked about it being too wide for your face.
Another advantage of the Swift is you can have the straps rather loose. It seems to seal in the nostrils by pressure inflating them, so tightness of the headgear is not all that important.

I loved the easy on off, adjustment, and fit of the Breeze, but for me it wasn't good for back or side sleeping. I could eventually get the plastic piece settled on my pillow and still get a good seal, while on my back, but rolling my head left or right even slightly pushed on the plastic and caused leaks on the nasal interface. Both the Aura and Swift are much better in that respect. When I sleep on my side I don't seem to rotate my head an exact 90 degrees... more like 45, which is a bad position for that plastic back piece.

For me I'm a dedicated Swifty for now, until Aeiomed releases their larger nasal interface for the Aura, then I'll rotate.

Janelle wrote:Klady I think you meant the Swift on the second paragraph where you talked about it being too wide for your face.
Another advantage of the Swift is you can have the straps rather loose. It seems to seal in the nostrils by pressure inflating them, so tightness of the headgear is not all that important.

Thanks for the correction. You're so right ~ I sure wish the Swift was narrower. On the whole, I would prefer it to the Breeze.

Klady