Plastic Smell From CPAP Last Night !

Last night was Horrible for me, Shortly after putting on my Mask I began to smell this Yucky sweet like Plastic Smell from the Cpap. This Continued all night long and caused me to have a Restless night. I first thought it might have been my Nasal passages but I got up and used the Simply Saline but as soon as I put the mask back on the Smell returned. The smell was so Bad that it was almost sickening. It was like a sweet pungent odor and I have been up forthree hrs and I still can smell the odor in my Nose. I guess I will do a Nasal Irrigation and see if I can rid myself of the odor. I changed both the Grey and white Filters in the Machine this Morning and washed the HH Tank with vinegar and I guess I will see tonight if the smell is still there. My machine was functioning perfectly except for the smell. I did have a Dream thanks to the Melatonin even with the Horrible smell so I guess the Night wasn't a total Loss. Has anyone ever had anything like this ever happen to them before ? I am at a loss as to what might have caused this. I have been on CPAP for almost three years and never had this Happen before. I am wondering if it might be an Infection re-occuring in my Sinuses again.

Do you have someone else who could smell the air coming out of your CPAP hose and see if they detect the odor? That could help you determine where the smell is coming from.

I had that happen to me when I forgot to fill the humidifier tank. An empty tank with the heater on, along with a heated hose produced an unpleasant plastic smell.
I have since made sure the water did not run out and have not had this trouble again.

One thing about it........you KNOW you got a brand new machine.
The smell should dissipate over a few nights. Or, if it's really that offensive, you could let it run during the day when you're around.

Personally, I kinda like the smell.


Den

shooter wrote:I had that happen to me when I forgot to fill the humidifier tank. An empty tank with the heater on, along with a heated hose produced an unpleasant plastic smell.
I have since made sure the water did not run out and have not had this trouble again.

I agree with the water in the humidifier. Maybe a new water source?

If this is a brand-new machine, you might consider letting it run for hours during the day, to flush any plastic off gassing fumes. You should temporarily disable any leak alarms or auto-shutoff features you have enabled.

b][/b] My Machine is Not New ( Three Years Old ) and original Hose too so that eliminates the New Thing as the problem ans I am still using the same Brand of Distilled Water as before and have the HH set on 2 and still have Minimal water in HH when I wake up so that is not the problem either. I will see tonight since I changed the filters and washed the HH this Morning. The smell is finally going away in my Nose now after being up for four Hours so I guess I will see tonight.

Just another thought---I haven't washed my Hose in Many Months. Could the odor possibly be coming from something growing inside the Hose ? I am still using the original Hose from three yrs ago .

You sure no one farted?

I just started using a Cpap machine and when I take my mask off in the morning, I smell a strong pungent Oder, kind of like a burnt smell. My machine seems to be ok, it is new and seems to function well. I cannot figure out if it is the distilled water, plastic being heated in the humidifier or what. I don't smell it when the mask is on. It seems to fill my room, and when I turn the machine, it goes away. anyone have this happen?? any insight is appreciated.

If you think there was some kind of failure/electrical short or something, you should just call the DME and ask about having it serviced. Impossible to diagnose like this. Unless perhaps your allergies have gotten better and sense of smell improved. Maybe there is some kind of mold or mildew growing in the machine or humidifier and that's the odor you are detecting. A change afrter 3 years without new parts like hoses or masks sounds suspicious.

Leave the machine out in the sunlight? Heat it up?

DannyP wrote:Just another thought---I haven't washed my Hose in Many Months. Could the odor possibly be coming from something growing inside the Hose ? I am still using the original Hose from three yrs ago .

Um yeah -- and that's gross. Throw it out!

Instruction manual states how often to wash. Mine says wash the mask and hose daily. So I wash the mask, humidifier and hose daily. It takes 5 minutes.

Would you wear a pair of socks for months before washing?

You may just need to wash out humitifier chamber. Sometimes if you just add water to it every night and don't clean it the water will start to smell from exhaust air that does not escape through the exhaust ports on the mask. I normally clean my tank once a week, but I smell it every night before I refill it.

I've had my Apex machine for several years as a backup to my ResMed S9. The plastic odor was very bad when new and is still bad after several years. Complained to the company to no avail. I will only use this machine if my ResMed S9, which is a fine machine, fails.

Hyperlexis - the majority of us never clean the hoses (except on the outside) as there is actually no need to do so unless you've exposed it to something unusual. Filtered room air (you breathe unfiltered all day) is sent into the machine and then through the hose, after which it leaves either through your mouth, nose or CO2 vent. Nothing goes backward through the hose and nothing collects in it - any slight amount of moisture from the humidifier will dry naturally during the day, but if you're using distilled water in the tank, won't generate any residue to worry about.