CPAPtalk.com

if you grasp the top of tank with your right hand and then slide your thumb on your right hand on to the catch and just "squeeze" on the tab , lift and remove--- ----FA

I notice loulew has not responded.

I'll bet he was trying to open it at the hinges, instead of sticking his finger in the hole on the top and pushing the latch. It's a little tricky to see where it is at first, but once you see it, it's obvious.

As for using tap water, fill up a clean glass with tap water, sit it out somewhere until it evaporates. You will probably not be happy with the visual appearance with the results. Then keep filling it up with water. Or if you've ever operated a room humidifier (not ultrasonic), you're familiar with the ugly stuff that ends up in the tank.

That said, I'm not that concerned with health effects of using tap water as long as you empty the tank and clean it often. The tank will look nastier with tap water. Distilled water is worth it to me because it's less work on my part and it's easy for me to buy and store. Some people may be blessed with tap water that's good in the humidifier. Some aren't.

lars4life wrote:I have to wonder why warm tap water is a not advised? I have municipal water, it is treated with chlorine, and it is tested routinely and
reported to us, it is bacteria free, bug free, no creepy crawleys. What's the beef with tap water? Of course, it might contain other
stuff like hard water, minerals, lead, or what ever. But, no live bugs. You live on a ranch with well water that is not treated?
I use tap water to rinse my humidifier tank, let it dry, it's all cool. What's the beef?

Tap water is "safe" right out of the tap. Take it out of the tap, expose it to air where the chlorine can evaporate, it can absorb oxygen, bacteria from the surrounding air can fall in, etc., and let it sit for a few days, and it may be a different story. It's also not necessary free from bacteria, just that the concentration is low. For some bugs, drinking 200 of them in your glass of water isn't dangerous. Drinking 20,000 of them in one glass is a problem.

I wouldn't be shy about using fresh tap water in the humidifier or for cleaning it. I wouldn't let it sit for a long time wet from tap water.

I've put tap water in a clean reusable sealed drinking bottle and left it sitting out somewhere for long periods of time and found algae growing in it, so it's not necessarily "safe" long term.