Rain is Back

I had several nice people give me suggestions on how to fix my rainout problem. They worked for a while but now it's back. I have turned my humidifier to 2 and still have a problem. I even took a two hour nap today and used a different mask to see if that was the problem....no go!

I live in Washington and it is not dry here. I rarely use the central heat in my home and have not since the last time we had a bit of a cold spell over a month ago. The hoses are covered and under my blankets. No humidity makes me dry and my ear hurt more...

I even tried singing "rain, rain, go away"........

Any suggestions or do I just need to live with it until my compliance time (2 more months) is over and I can get a machine with a heated hose?

Thank you.

jaye8898 wrote: I had several nice people give me suggestions on how to fix my rainout problem. They worked for a while but now it's back. I have turned my humidifier to 2 and still have a problem. I even took a two hour nap today and used a different mask to see if that was the problem....no go!

I live in Washington and it is not dry here. I rarely use the central heat in my home and have not since the last time we had a bit of a cold spell over a month ago. The hoses are covered and under my blankets. No humidity makes me dry and my ear hurt more...

I even tried singing "rain, rain, go away"........

Any suggestions or do I just need to live with it until my compliance time (2 more months) is over and I can get a machine with a heated hose?

Thank you.

Well I know that if you alternate a reflective surface (e.g. aluminum foil, space blanket) with a "non convective" surface (e.g. any cloth, news paper, bubble wrap, certian "sponge cloth" items) you can create a very efficient thermal block using only a few layers - which - if applied over the length of your tubing would likely keep the condensation away.

Where is the condensation occurring? Is it in the hose or is it in the nasal pillows?
You made hose cozies for the hoses...short and long??

Hi Pugsy,

It's in the shorter hose and the actual nose pillows. The long hose now has a Respironics blankie my friend gave me for it. It's pretty thick and warm. The short hose now has flannel and a sock. I don't get why this has started again. Our weather has not changed except that it's not raining much today but it's still humid.

It's hard to insulate the nasal pillows themselves.
Inside the nasal pillows not only is there moisture from the incoming humidified air but also when we exhale our breath contains moisture and condensation often occurs in the barrel of the nasal pillows.

PadaCheek makes a barrel cozy...I need to see if the one I have for the Swift FX will fit the AirFit pillows. Will get back with you in a bit..gotta go find my old barrel cozy.
It's a little extra insulation to help keep the air in the pillow itself from cooling and releasing the moisture.
Back before heated hoses...this was the best money I ever spent on a comfort item.
http://www.padacheek.com/PACSwiftII_Barrel_cozy.html
I have one I bought in Feb 2011...looks like the devil but still works.
http://www.padacheek.com/PACSwiftII_Barrel_cozy.html
Not only does it work it feels like silk against the nostrils.

Let me get back with you after I find mine and see if it fits the AirFit nasal pillows.

Sometimes I pull the covers over my head. The machine is blowing "outside the cocoon" air to me. You might retain enough heat to stop the condensation.

It will fit but have to be really careful to keep it off of the vent holes. I had to alter where the velcro closures normally attach.
I may have an unused one...gotta find it. Mine is 3 years old and stretched out of shape...so I need to see if brand new stretches enough.
Let me see if I can find it and if it will work I can send it to you with the mask I was planning to send you.
Will let you know.

I have a Mirage Liberty FF mask. Rain out has been a problem for me as well. I got a hose cover, which helped, but on colder nights I would still get rainout in my nasal pillows. I ended up taking some foam rubber and cutting it to make two "donut" pieces that fit around the nasal pillows of my mask. I put a slit in so I could easily get the pieces on and off. I also used a little duo film glue to cover them to keep the pieces from wearing out so fast. It's a pain to make them, but they have helped with most of the rainout. They also add extra support to keep my nasal pillows in place.

Was gone watching the season finale of "Walking Dead" which I found disappointing. Love the show.....the zombies remind me of me without CPap!

Thank you all! I didn't know you could wrap the barrel......thought the vents would make that impossible. Mlsa, I love sleeping with my head under the covers but stopped because I thought I would breathe in the exhale from the vents and suffocate myself.

Wow, PDX guy! I would not have thought of that....pretty handy....glad it's working for you!

I had to alter the opening for the nasal pillow just a little and pull on the new barrel cozy a little to stretch it so it would close outside the vent holes. It isn't perfect fit but it will work I believe for short term use. I will attach it to the pillow so you can see what I mean.
Once the weather warms up rain out in the nasal pillow will be less likely to happen.
BTW...rain out in the nasal pillow from the moisture in our own exhaled breath can happen even with a heated hose if the bedroom is cold enough...but it isn't as much as without the heated hose.

Regarding covering your head with the bed covers....you are breathing in air via the machine and it is outside the covers.
You can't rebreathe the air under the covers unless you are mouth breathing and inhale that way.
You can cover your head and let the exhaled through the vent air accumulate under the covers without a worry because your source of air is via the mask and the long hose and the machine whose air intake is out in the open.

Thanks, Pugsy! I had not thought the under the covers thing through. Makes total sense. That will be great for the winter when it is how I keep warm since I don't like central heat! Looking forward to trying the cozy. Thanks, again.