CPAPtalk.com

If you live near the coast you may not need as much humidifier as you are using. There should be good moisture in the air....so like others have said, turn down the humidifier.....When I visit the coast (Santa Cruz area) I don't use the humidifier at all....

I use a AEIO Headrest (Aura) mask that is prone to rainout (the section from the hose hookup to the pillows). The house is warmed by wood heat (dry), and I keep the machine well below the level of the bed. I also run my hose under pillows above my sleeping position. I still get a bit of rainout at times but it seems like it's only in the last 4" or so -- the section that has the pillows. I've always had the impression that it's my exhale that condenses as I don't seem to have any condensation in the hose itself. I also keep my humidifier set at 2 - no more. Usually it's at 1 in summer, but since the wood stove drys the air a lot I usually set it at 2 for winter (so far).....

Keep at it....
take care
cheers
goose

If it was me, after I turned down the humidity dial a bit, and warmed up the room a bit, I'd try putting some fleece around the Mirage hose to see if that helped.

With the Aussie Heated Hose adding some heat to the air, the fleece might be enough to warm up that last section of exposed mask hose and prevent the rain-out, which is likely happening there.

That's a lot easier to do than the Repti Heated Cable solution and may bear some low hanging fruit.

Let us know how it goes. Others may have similar issues. Rain-out can be really annoying!

Keeping the machine below the level of the bed seems like a possibility. I keep hearing the word "fleece" mentioned. Is this simply a piece of cloth that can be purchased at a material store or something thicker and more wool like?

For my first hose cover I went to the closet and pulled out what I call a small fleece blanket, maybe it's called a "throw", that my niece had "created" and sold in a fund raiser in a girl scout project (*sigh*... I'd rather have cookies!) by:

(1) buying a small fleece blanket (maybe it's called a "throw" meant to put on yourself when you watch TV or read); and
(2) cutting strips around the edges that remained attached, to which she;
(3) tied knots in to make it look "girl scouty", or something.

For my second hose cover I went to the sale rack at the local fabric store and picked up a 2-blanket combo craft kit, one solid colored fleece blanket, one printed fleece blanket, that were meant to be sewed together for greater thermal effect or prettiness (I guess). It cost $10 bucks as I remember, was standard blanket sized, was made of what they labeled "fleece" on the shelf price tag, and will last a few more hose projects, if I need more of it.

You can see photos of my "fleece" following the "My Setup" link below.

packer mentioned "polar fleece". I think this is something a bit better and perhaps more expensive, but I'm not sure since I've never seen it. It could be the same thing, for all I know. I'm not exactly a fabric expert.

Most insulation works by simply trapping air, which is itself an insulator if it is not moving (not convecting heat), so any think material should work. This "fleece" stuff is nice for a hose and mask cover because it is both thick and light, so it doesn't weight the mask or hose down and is easier to move around when tossing and turning.

I bought the polar fleece cover for aussie heated hose here
on cpaptalk- polar fleece is a soft aric-
kind of thick- I imagine it is used for vests- jackets - blankets etc

also gave a couple bucks more and she made me a nice cover
for the shorter, smaller aura hose

I asked for some scraps and we used those to sew
around the little tubes that come around your nose

It seems like a lot of work but I do find aura most comfortable- and less
leaks- especially side sleeping

I use aflex on 3- house is dry [ WI in winter- lots of heat ]
bedroom is 60- I need to refill container each night-
I use about 2/3 of the reservoir every night
that is a lot of water-[ I use RO water from my sink ]
yet very little rain

I must say it occurs to me as I write this- boy I really
do go to any length for this apnea business !!! packer

packer wrote:I must say it occurs to me as I write this- boy I really
do go to any length for this apnea business !!! packer

Apnea, it's not a disease, it's a life style.

Snooze_Blues wrote:

packer wrote:I must say it occurs to me as I write this- boy I really
do go to any length for this apnea business !!! packer

Apnea, it's not a disease, it's a life style.

There ya go!

Thank you all for your good suggestions. I turned my humidifier down to 2. Rainout decreased considerably. However, my nose feels more irritated - missing the warmer air of the higher level. Oh well, guess you can't have everything.

If it's not enough humidity, don't stop tinkering yet.

I had the same experience when I turned down my humidity setting. At first I thought, oh well, I guess I'll just gut it out. But I didn't like the dry, congested nose every morning so I kept trying new stuff.

[I covered the hose with fleece. Failure.] I insulated the hose. Failure. I double insulated the hose. Failure. I heated the hose. Partial failure (or partial success I suppose). Then I heated the mask. Presto! Well, almost. Now I sometimes run out of water before morning and get a bit of the dryness, but that will be an easy enough problem to solve. Just add water.

Snooze_Blues - By heating the mask I assume you mean that you covered the exposed area from the end of the hose to the beginning of the mask?

Nope, he really means heating it! Look at his set-up (in his signature).

I assume it is "he" since "Mother Snooze_Blues" and "Mrs. Snooze_Blues" made the covering.

Very impressive setup, Snooze_Blues!!!


O.