Water in humidifier

Barnaby · Post by **Barnaby** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 1:52 pm

What is the problem of using tap water in the S7 resmed humidifier..i have lots of bottles of water but don't want the expense of buying distilled water or even bottles of drinking water at the supermarkets.

Thomas · Post by **Thomas** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 2:06 pm

To put it bluntly, tap water is full of crud.

Distilled water costs .58 cents per gallon at WalMart and lasts a long time.

Tom

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 2:24 pm

I used tap water in my first heated humidifier. Got tired of having to soak the scaly sediment off the inside of the plastic water chamber periodically -- and especially off the metal bottom. Noticed that the metal was getting pitted.

When I got a new machine with new heated humidifier, I began using distilled water only. It's been months now and I haven't cleaned the chamber once. I just add more distilled water as needed - stays crystal clear.

As Thomas said, distilled water in gallon jugs is very cheap - available at WalMart and at supermarkets. Distilled is not high-priced like bottled drinking water. Nor does it contain additives like they put in bottled drinking water to give the water "taste". Distilled water contains nothing that would leave sediment in the chamber.

NeurosurgeryNP · Post by **NeurosurgeryNP** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 3:20 pm

Keep in mind also that bottled drinking "spring" water also had minerals in it that can leave crud in the chamber.

snork1 · Post by **snork1** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 4:00 pm

Its probably more a cost tradeoff than anything, since it should only be water vapor getting up to you....well that and the mold and stuff growing in the tap water in the chamber if thats used.

I have had my humidifier over a year, using distilled water, and even swishing that out and changing it daily. I have yet to open or clean the humidifier and it still looks BRAND NEW.

"Boil" it dry with tap water and you can destroy your chamber in one night with pitting from the tap water. And certainly over time it will need replacing much more frequently with tap water. At the price of CPAP equipment, i would rather pay for the distilled water.

But it is certainly a personal preference.

chrisp · Post by **chrisp** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 6:07 pm

That depends on your definition of Tapwater. Where I live its full of minerals from the limestone that is our aquifer. After 1 filling the tank has scale floating in it. Just south of here its a horrible sulpher smelling muck. Oil Wells! You wouldn't want to drink it. Or breathe it. We don't all have clean , pure N.Y.City style tapwater. 50 cents a gallon lasts a few weeks.

Its Only Water Vapor !

Cheers,

Chris

Barnaby · Post by **Barnaby** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 9:03 am

Maybe I should also have said that in the first month of use of the s7-ResMed with humidifier I have washed it out several times and never see any residual matter in the plastic resevouir. The tap water here in So. Fla I have not used as yet..So thank you all for your input.
My daughter uses this model and says that she wouldn't use tap water because of the impurities that would get into her lungs. Is this a fact???

Thomas · Post by **Thomas** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 10:15 am

Sometimes I get water going through the hose to my nose (hey I made a rhyme ), so vapor isn't necessarily all you will get. My well water smells bad enough just in the shower. Wouldn't want to smell it all night for sure.

Tom

photogal · Post by **photogal** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 12:58 pm

Tap water contains all sorts of minerals. Anyone wants to find out just how much YOUR water contains, just take an old metal pan you don't mind ruining and put tap water in it and let it boil all day, adding more water, and finally boil it dry or near dry. You'll end up with all this white stuff coating the pan. I don't want any of that making its way into MY lungs. I think some of it would, too.
Do any of you remember when the cold air humidifiers using tap water left a white dust all over the furniture, and people were advised not to use these anymore for babies? The concern was what went into the lungs. Steam IS better, leaving a lot of the minerals behind, but I don't want to trust how much goes into my lungs considering the humidity goes straight from the humidifer to my nose, and does not pass GO. (or settle anywhere else but in me.)

gailzee · Post by **gailzee** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 3:48 pm

If...........you lived in NJ you'd never ever use tap water. It's disgusting. It's distilled or nothing. My area sits on a radon infested septic loaded aquafer. You'd never drink it, let alone put it in some poor pc of equipment. Ugh.!
I also lived in Fla. I'd use distilled there too...it's recommended in my model humidifier and it seems fine.

stanley shotz wrote:What is the problem of using tap water in the S7 resmed humidifier..i have lots of bottles of water but don't want the expense of buying distilled water or even bottles of drinking water at the supermarkets.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 9:17 pm

Been using tap (well) water for five years. Have had no ill effects. Save your money and use the tap water, dump each morning and let dry.

LDuyer · Post by **LDuyer** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 9:23 pm

You might consider getting of those filter distillers, like a Britta. Don't know how well they work, but if it works OK, it might be cheaper, and handier to use. Also, the distilled water is good for drinking and other things, like in an iron. Just a suggestion.

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 11:29 pm

Guest, I wasn't at all worried about ill effects to me from using tap water in my humidifier. I used tap water for almost a year in my first one. No illness.

The reason I changed to distilled water in my second one was because I didn't want to continue having to periodically clean/soak out the sediment build up in the chamber. The sediment was coating the inside wall of the plastic chamber and the metal bottom of the chamber.

For me, it's easier to spend the 50 - 75 pennies a month for a gallon of distilled water and not have to clean the chamber at all. I just add distilled water as needed. I never take the chamber off, never dump the water, never rinse it out, never soak it, never clean it. The plastic stays beautifully clear now...no sediment, no buildup of hard to clean scale. No illness.

LDuyer · Post by **LDuyer** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 11:48 pm

Actually, now that I've started using the bought distilled water, I like having the gallon jug next to my nightstand. It's actually handier than traipsing back and forth each night, filling my cup with water and then filling the humidifier. ..... I like anything that can allow me to be lazy. Ha!

Linda
who is plenty lazy

IWannaSleep · Post by **IWannaSleep** » Sun May 01, 2005 4:44 am

Tap water is full of salts, minerals and lots of other stuff, that will cause pitting of the metal parts and leave lots of crud (evaporated minerals et. al.) in the water chamber. It's unlikely any of the crud would find it's way into your nasal passages or lungs, the water only gets there through evaporation (turns into a gas by adding heat). The salts and minerals do not evaporate which is why they build up in your humidifier, they are what's left over after the water evaporates.

Come on distilled water is very cheap, keeps everything nice and clean, and will maximise the life of your equipment. There shouldn't even be a question, just use distilled.

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