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Nap_ster, do you think this mask can be routed overhead, without pulling on the pillows? I'm not getting too much sleep these days and I thought I may try this out of pocket.
Thanks for your awsome reviews.

portiemom wrote:Nap_ster, do you think this mask can be routed overhead, without pulling on the pillows? I'm not getting too much sleep these days and I thought I may try this out of pocket.
Thanks for your awsome reviews.

Portiemom, you have my everlasting respect and admiration for doing everything you're doing under the circumstances. I hope you get some restorative sleep soon -- you deserve it.

As far as the overhead routing, here's what I think: There are two problems with this mask and overhead routing. 1.) The tube that comes with it is way too short to route overhead, and 2.) There is no headgear strap at the top of the head.

If you wear a chinstrap, the second problem is solved. You can use the chinstrap to anchor the tubing with something like the velcro strap that comes with the Aloha. If you don't wear a chinstrap, you could still anchor the hose to the Pilairo strap, but it will probably be all the way at the base of your neck.

As far as the too-short hose, I am using the featherweight tube that came with my Elan as an extension. Cpap.com sells just that part for around $15 I think, but I have an extra in stock. If you do get the Pilairo and want to try routing it over you head, drop me a PM. I'll send you the featherweight extension tube for free.

the_nap_ster wrote:I think there might be a few of us who find this mask life-changing.

Another beautiful night. This mask has made all the difference in every way. I can't recommend Pilairo enough. My problems are over.

Another beautiful night. This mask has changed my life in every way. I can't recommend Pilairo enough. My problems are over.

Well I slept with mine for two nights and had the worse leak rate since I started cpap. I had 38LM the first night and 42LM the second night,I just couldn't get a good seal. So it's true, not all faces are the same and I'm happy for those that it worked out for. I'm glad I bought the return insurance and it's now on it's way back.

I have my eye on the Pilairo OR Sleepweaver Elan IF I continue with a pillows mask. Sorry if there is already a comparison thread but wanted to know the pros/cons of a side by side comparison of each if possible?

Thank you for your kind words and offer to send me the short hose. I am all about the pillows, and less is more as well. I am going to call my insurance company as the DME they have made me use has now converted to a warehouse supply of old Resmed and Respironics Masks, send them out periodically to users, going by what your last mask was. Creepy to think they tell you Cpap is life threatening, which it is but hey they don't care how the equipment is working for us.
Thanks again, and I will keep you posted on my trying the Pilario.
Ellen

lazer wrote:I have my eye on the Pilairo OR Sleepweaver Elan IF I continue with a pillows mask. Sorry if there is already a comparison thread but wanted to know the pros/cons of a side by side comparison of each if possible?

Hi lazer,

Here are my impressions of the two. What counts as a "pro" and "con" differ from person to person, so I'm just going to list my observations and let you interpret them however suits you best.

Elan:
-- All fabric, so no possibility of pressure points anywhere.
-- All fabric=no silicone breakdown. I think the fabric holds up better/longer than silicone pillows
-- Whisper-quiet
-- Nasal mask (NOT nasal pillows), so more of your face is covered. Even with the smaller size, the top of my upper lip to the bridge of my nose is covered by this mask.
-- Easy to route over head with included accessories
-- Comes in fun colors (okay, this might only be awesome for a dork like me, but whatever, I'm listing it!)
-- Full headgear. A decent amount of the back of your head is covered, with one strap over the top of your head and one at the base of your neck (this is a con for me).
-- Leakage is pretty much inevitable. Particularly at the top, near my eyes. I have to wear a sleep mask with this. For me, this is the dealbreaker.
-- Harder than a silicone mask to wash. No just giving it a periodic wipe-down with a cpap wipe and washing it well periodically. The wipes don't do much good here.
-- Comfortable/easy to squish face into pillow.
-- Headgear is not elastic, so it left strap marks on me.
-- Cheap/easy to buy replacement fabric parts as needed.

Pilairo:
-- The inside of the mask is silicone, but it is VERY thin/drapey/fabric-like silicone. So it is very comfortable, hard to feel any pressure points. Feels a lot like the Elan.
-- Nasal PILLOWS, not nasal mask. So no air is blowing anywhere other than your nostrils. This means no eye leaks.
-- Covers less of your face than the Elan, only the tip of your nose, because it is a nasal pillow mask.
-- NOT quiet. Can hear audible whooshing when you breathe in and out.
-- Hard to route over your head with included equipment.
-- Doesn't come in fun colors (it's grey and white, for those interested).
-- Leakage, for me, is almost ZERO. Great seal.
-- NOT full headgear. Only one tiny strap magically holds it in place. You feel like you have almost nothing on your face. BIG PRO for me.
-- Super-easy to wash
-- Comfortable/easy to roll around in bed and squish face into pillows.
-- Headgear (what there is of it) is elastic. No strap marks!
-- As of right now, we have no idea how much replacement pillows will cost, or how long they last. They're not on the market yet here.
-- No worrying about size. This one mask will fit most people.

So in summation: if you like absolutely NO silicone or hard edges/a quiet mask, and if you don't mind some leaks and full headgear, go with the Elan. If you want minimal headgear/as little as possible on your face and don't mind a little noisiness, go with the Pilairo. The other factor is that Elan has a free 30 day return policy, so you could always start there and see what you think, and return it for the Pilairo if it doesn't work for you.

Hope that helps!

the_nap_ster wrote:

lazer wrote:I have my eye on the Pilairo OR Sleepweaver Elan IF I continue with a pillows mask. Sorry if there is already a comparison thread but wanted to know the pros/cons of a side by side comparison of each if possible?

Hi lazer,

Here are my impressions of the two. What counts as a "pro" and "con" differ from person to person, so I'm just going to list my observations and let you interpret them however suits you best.

Elan:
-- All fabric, so no possibility of pressure points anywhere.
-- All fabric=no silicone breakdown. I think the fabric holds up better/longer than silicone pillows
-- Whisper-quiet
-- Nasal mask (NOT nasal pillows), so more of your face is covered. Even with the smaller size, the top of my upper lip to the bridge of my nose is covered by this mask.
-- Easy to route over head with included accessories
-- Comes in fun colors (okay, this might only be awesome for a dork like me, but whatever, I'm listing it!)
-- Full headgear. A decent amount of the back of your head is covered, with one strap over the top of your head and one at the base of your neck (this is a con for me).
-- Leakage is pretty much inevitable. Particularly at the top, near my eyes. I have to wear a sleep mask with this. For me, this is the dealbreaker.
-- Harder than a silicone mask to wash. No just giving it a periodic wipe-down with a cpap wipe and washing it well periodically. The wipes don't do much good here.
-- Comfortable/easy to squish face into pillow.
-- Headgear is not elastic, so it left strap marks on me.
-- Cheap/easy to buy replacement fabric parts as needed.

Pilairo:
-- The inside of the mask is silicone, but it is VERY thin/drapey/fabric-like silicone. So it is very comfortable, hard to feel any pressure points. Feels a lot like the Elan.
-- Nasal PILLOWS, not nasal mask. So no air is blowing anywhere other than your nostrils. This means no eye leaks.
-- Covers less of your face than the Elan, only the tip of your nose, because it is a nasal pillow mask.
-- NOT quiet. Can hear audible whooshing when you breathe in and out.
-- Hard to route over your head with included equipment.
-- Doesn't come in fun colors (it's grey and white, for those interested).
-- Leakage, for me, is almost ZERO. Great seal.
-- NOT full headgear. Only one tiny strap magically holds it in place. You feel like you have almost nothing on your face. BIG PRO for me.
-- Super-easy to wash
-- Comfortable/easy to roll around in bed and squish face into pillows.
-- Headgear (what there is of it) is elastic. No strap marks!
-- As of right now, we have no idea how much replacement pillows will cost, or how long they last. They're not on the market yet here.
-- No worrying about size. This one mask will fit most people.

So in summation: if you like absolutely NO silicone or hard edges/a quiet mask, and if you don't mind some leaks and full headgear, go with the Elan. If you want minimal headgear/as little as possible on your face and don't mind a little noisiness, go with the Pilairo. The other factor is that Elan has a free 30 day return policy, so you could always start there and see what you think, and return it for the Pilairo if it doesn't work for you.

Hope that helps!

Excellent post! Gives me something to think about. Thanks

Tried the Pilairo for the first time last night.
Great seal, I could turn to my sides to sleep easily without the leakage. My Swift FX would tend to leak if I slept on my side and pressed on my cheeks.
One thing I found hard was the strap felt too tight. And it's not adjustable / can't be loosen.

Any tips on this?
read some people put the strap at the bottom of the neck??

tigerruud wrote:Tried the Pilairo for the first time last night.
Great seal, I could turn to my sides to sleep easily without the leakage. My Swift FX would tend to leak if I slept on my side and pressed on my cheeks.
One thing I found hard was the strap felt too tight. And it's not adjustable / can't be loosen.

Any tips on this?
read some people put the strap at the bottom of the neck??

Two tips.

1.) I do wear the strap way low, on the bottom of my neck. I think this keeps the whole thing looser and allows for a better seal.
2.) Because the strap is made of essentially t-shirt material, it would be VERY easy to cut it and sew a quick extender on. If you sewed on a piece of elastic (a 5-min job, max), you'd get maximum flexibility in a larger size.

But I'd start with trying it lower and seeing how that feels for you. If you wear a chin strap, stick it on over the strap. If you don't, run the elastic over your ears like a pair of glasses, and then run the strap down to the base of your neck. The curve of your head will keep it in place. Let us know if you're still having trouble.

tigerruud wrote:Tried the Pilairo for the first time last night.
Great seal, I could turn to my sides to sleep easily without the leakage. My Swift FX would tend to leak if I slept on my side and pressed on my cheeks.
....

Exactly my problem lately with the Swift FX. I really do have my eye on the Pilairo. If anyone see's a "sale" pop up on it or a good buy on a slightly used, please drop me a PM. thanks

I'm buying another spare one today. I absolutely can't live without the Pilairo now. If it was a man, I'd marry it.

the_nap_ster wrote: Oh, this makes me so happy. I think there might be a few of us who find this mask life-changing. Keep updating us on how it goes with time, okay?

Suz: how did your night go?

Saturday night went really well. My husband said he heard me leaking and it was reflected in my chart but I remained blissfully ignorant. Last night didn't go to well. I remember waking up thinking it must be nearing the time to get up so removed all the gear. It appears, however, I had only had it on for 2-1/2 hrs! I recall feeling a bit overwhelmed with stuff on my face and needing to get away from it. Know what I mean? Looking back now, it probably had more to do with the warmth of the bedroom and the chinstrap and tape on my lips. I've finally gotten the pressure back down where the doc recommended I have the low pressure, 7.6 with the high at 12, and EPR set at 2. There isn't quite enough pressure to keep my nose from bumping into the front of the mask where the air hose attaches to it but can wiggle the whole thing down far enough I don't feel like my nose is blocking the inflow of air. Getting the head strap down the back of my head has the strap pressing on the crease at the top of my ears and that results in really sore ears in the morning. I'm going to continue to wear it nightly for a couple of weeks and hope I can either eliminate my few problems with it or at least grow accustomed to them. I like that it is a lot less leaky than the Aloha and that the headgear is so much smaller. I would so love to make this work!!

Suz

Suzjohnson wrote:Well, the mask arrived. I re-watched the fitting video then gave it a try and found I had absolutely no leaking if I started out with the mask fit feature, i.e. mask under pressure, spreading the wings and seating the pillows before pulling the headgear over my head. Until my breathing settled down, exhaling was a bit noisey but that passed. I'm really impressed and eager to try it out tonight. I have to assume that putting it under the chinstrap will keep the headgear from moving. Gosh I wish I didn't have to use a chinstrap. I just hate that blankety-blank thing!!

Suz

Suz, I feel the same way about a chinstrap and wore one for about 18 months. Every few weeks, I'd sleep without it and try to keep my trap shut - but to no avail. Then a few weeks ago (almost 2 years into CPAP) decided enough was ENOUGH with summer being so darn hot. The first few nights I had a handful of 'desert-mouth' issues, but after about 4 days I could sleep the entire night without waking to this horrid feeling.

I think since the first week after giving up the chinstrap, I've had one or two cases where my mouth opened some time during the night. IMHO it was worth the effort to ditch the chinstrap, however it did keep my mask in place better.

Cheers,
xena