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I stick with distilled only -- not because of any fear of health problems from using tap water. I use distilled water simply for the convenience of adding more as needed. Having the water chamber stay crystal clear, without dumping the unused water out at all -- for months and months at a time.

kopoloff wrote:I asked myself why, and could come up with only one reason, and that is to keep our humidifier tanks looking clean.

And that's why I use distilled water...for the appearance of the tank. It's the only reason I use distilled instead of our local hard tap water.

kopoloff wrote:Water vapour is a gas containing only water molecules. It cannot contain anything else. Water vapour is really just molecules of distilled water in a gaseous form.

Ahh, yes, but water vapor is not the only think being pushed through that hose. The germs and other particles can be picked up in the air that is also pushed through as it passes over the water. Hence, the purer the water, the less chance of picking up particles of undesirables in the air.

Look back at my post about the solar powered still that I made. The water i started with had a lot of salt in, and had food die also. The distillate was clean, no salt, and colourless, no die. And these are dissolved materials, whereas sewerage is primarily made up of solids in suspension.

Yes, but your system was passive, with no forced air flow over the undistilled water. You push air over contaminated water, you will get contaminants in the air. Any matter can and does contain microscopic particles that can be picked up carried by wind or forced air across that matter. Where do you think odor particles come from? If you can smell mold, you are breathing mold. And, we are using a direct delivery system to our lungs.

The bigger problem is all the undesirables (muggers, rapists, children?) in the air that comes from the atmosphere

kopoloff wrote:The bigger problem is all the undesirables (muggers, rapists, children?) in the air that comes from the atmosphere

Now, I have never heard of atmosphere causing muggers or rapists, but I have definitly heard of atmosphere causing children.....

Now we're straying into definitely dangerous territory - distilled water is much safer

Debjax wrote:

kopoloff wrote:Water vapour is a gas containing only water molecules. It cannot contain anything else. Water vapour is really just molecules of distilled water in a gaseous form.

Ahh, yes, but water vapor is not the only think being pushed through that hose. The germs and other particles can be picked up in the air that is also pushed through as it passes over the water. Hence, the purer the water, the less chance of picking up particles of undesirables in the air.

Look back at my post about the solar powered still that I made. The water i started with had a lot of salt in, and had food die also. The distillate was clean, no salt, and colourless, no die. And these are dissolved materials, whereas sewerage is primarily made up of solids in suspension.

Yes, but your system was passive, with no forced air flow over the undistilled water. You push air over contaminated water, you will get contaminants in the air. Any matter can and does contain microscopic particles that can be picked up carried by wind or forced air across that matter. Where do you think odor particles come from? If you can smell mold, you are breathing mold. And, we are using a direct delivery system to our lungs.

FWIIW, When I was traveling last week I used tap water from the hotel room. To avoid active biological contaminants, I boiled the water in the hotel teapot. I realize this will not clear scale, but it will kill the little buggers.

Boiled potable water is pretty close to harmless


--G

I only use distilled water in my humidor.
I love my cigars too much to be mean to them
The idea for distilled with cigars comes from the very real fact of mold spores. They, the cigars, are a cantankerous bunch and demand good quality of life from we arsonists that flame them regularly. We comply...they like us and burn perfectly
So! Keeerap! Why would I treat my newly breathing-at-night-lungs with any less care than my cigars!

For the lovers of Foxfire ... http://www.thefrugallife.com/distilled_water.html

Hose on me buckkies~!
Virt

I bought a water distiller in TX 11 years ago because the water in the area was so hard. Now that I live in the Seattle area, the water is just fine to drink. I use the same distiller for the CPAP now.
I bought it from Sears for about $100.

Linus

Hi
The original post from Dilligat was:-
Where do peole get it? Do you buy it or have a machine to make it like this one? http://www.smartstill.com/
Here in the UK distilled water is expensive to buy.

I'm also in London UK. The only place to buy distilled water in most areas is a pharmacy and they never have it in stock, so each time its 2 visits, once to place the order and again to collect it. You can get de-ionised or de-mineralised water from garages and some hardware shops, but that is probably less pure than tap water and is not intended for drinking. I personally would not breath vapourised water that I would not be happy drinking.

Like I said, I have used Volvic bottled water for the last 5 years, its available in every supermarket at £3.50 for 9 litres, and had no problems from limescale, infections etc. However you do need a regular cleaning routine for humidifier, mask and tubing, otherwise bacteria or moulds could form.

I rinse my mask and humidifier daily in the bathroom sink in tap water with washing-up liquid added, then rinse again in tap water, before leaving to dry.

Once a week I dismantle mask and humidifier and wash thoroughly as above, using a wide artists paintbrush to clean each part, getting into all the crevices etc.

I've never needed to use vinegar myself, unless I let the humidifier run dry, when I soak just the metal plate in neat vinegar until the limescale is gone.

On occasions when I have forgotten to do the weekly cleaning, and when condensation in the tube happens in winter for example. That can lead to mould in the tube. You can see it if you hold the tube against a light. I clean that out with a small piece of sponge tied to one end of a string, and a small weight on the other end. I drop the weight and string through the tube, then pull the sponge through with the string. I do that maybe once or twice a year. I've bought a new tube maybe every 2 years.

I recently bought a new APAP machine, Resmed S8 Spirit II, with H3i humidifier. The new humidifier is harder to clean, but if you remove the metal plate once a month, clean the inside of the tank with cotton wool or a small cloth, using a finger through the hole to move the cloth around, its not that difficult.

Try this site for the distiller: http://www.doctorshealthsupply.com/juic ... tiller.htm
It is overpriced, but you may be able to find one elsewhere. The maker is Ecowater.

FWIW, I got this one: http://www.amazon.com/Nutriteam-Counter ... B000ANW7HQ

But, its mainly because I subscribe to Amazon Prime, and it was the only one that was Amazon Prime eligible.

The Dreamer.

I was in the UK recently visiting my father-in-law, and he said that he finally learned that distilled water is called "deionised" water in the UK, and is sold in litre bottles in the laundry aisle (for ironing, as someone mentioned). Hope that helps!

But TBH I found that I didn't need my humidifier at all in Europe ... I turned it on a few nights, but didn't notice any difference in feel, and a 1-L bottle lasted me a full two weeks.

Enjoyed reading this topic! I have thought for several years that if I used anything but distilled water the CPAP Police would come looking for me! LOL I have no trouble buying it since Wal-Mart sells it for somewhere around 68-78 cents per gal. However, I have traveled & forgot this distilled water. I would go to the trouble of finding a super market, etc. to go buy some. Will NOT do that in the future!

card gal, I would say it depends where you are--non-distilled water can cause deposits to build up in your humidifier, and more importantly, in your mask/hose. So it depends what minerals are in your local water and in what amounts.

I'd never put UK tap water in my humidifier, it's incredibly hard. I'd use tap water somewhere with soft water, though, especially if only for a few days. I've used tap water here in NM (which is almost as hard as the UK, but I have a water-softener tank) and I need to thoroughly scrub out the humidifier every day if I do so. On the other hand, if I use tap water in California or on the East Coast, I can go three days or so before needing to scrub it out. (My mother lives in New Jersey and has OSA, and her sleep doctor told her not to worry about distilled water--to use it if she has it, but not to stress if she doesn't.)

Using non distilled water will definitely NOT, ever, under any circumstances, result in mineral deposits in the hose.