Hi,

My uncle has been using the CPAP machine for a couple of months and I help out by cleaning the nose mask every day and the washable parts of the machine every week.  This week I noticed pink stuff inside the water holder in the corners.  

Uncle uses distilled water to fill the holder and I use tap water to clean it once a week.  I'm guessing the pink stuff is some kind of mold.  The directions say not to use bleach or place parts in direct sunlight, so how do we kill off this pink stuff?  

Also, I tried to register but I can't log in. I tried to re-register but I can't do that either because my user name and password are in there from the first time I registered.  How do I get this fixed, too?

Thanks,
Nug

i sounds like pink mold to me. pink mold is one the more dangerous mold for the lungs.

what are you using for cleaning. my directions for my CPAP say to wash with the hottest tap water available, use natural based soap like netureaga (sp*), then to rinse with hot tap water and then soak 30-45 minutes in equal parts of white vineager and hot water. rinse and allow to air dry. i have found out that to air dry it you have to turn everything over (flip-flop) to get everything dry prior to bedtime.make sure the tubing -hoses are completely dry too,otherwise you end up with a wet mask. i would call your supplier also. janey

janey wrote:

i sounds like pink mold to me. pink mold is one the more dangerous mold for the lungs.

what are you using for cleaning. my directions for my CPAP say to wash with the hottest tap water available, use natural based soap like netureaga (sp*), then to rinse with hot tap water and then soak 30-45 minutes in equal parts of white vineager and hot water. rinse and allow to air dry. i have found out that to air dry it you have to turn everything over (flip-flop) to get everything dry prior to bedtime.make sure the tubing -hoses are completely dry too,otherwise you end up with a wet mask. i would call your supplier also. janey

Gee, your directions aren't like the one that came with this CPAP.  Use warm water, soap without antibiotic properties added, no clorox, no sunshine.  He's been using Johnson and Johnson's hypoallergenic baby bath.  

I've been soaking the parts in a plastic dish pan used only for this purpose, washing, rinsing the parts and placing them on a white table cloth (one use only and then back into a clorox wash), washing the drying the pan, lining it with another clean cloth and setting the parts in here to dry with another single layer of clean cloth on top. (I have a Sheltie and it is a trial to keep the hair off everything ) and leave it to dry for the day.  The tubing gets the same as the rest then I hang it on a hook so it should gravity drain and dry.  I'm a nurse so I have fussy and more or less fixed ideas about clean, dirty, and sterile.

Called the supplier and left message. Supplier called back and left message.  Figured I better start asking around since we probably will be playing phone tag for a few more days after this weekend is over.

Is  netureaga (sp*) a hand soap? bar soap? Can you describe it, please.

Thanks,
Nug

it a glycerin based soap for the face, body. it comes in bar and liquid form and you can find it in beauty section of the drug store. it's a clear light brown liquid and clear light brown bar too. sorry about my spelling i'm dyslexic. i also hang my tubing up to dry it but it takes several days for it to dry completely. i wash everything in my bathroom sink that is spotlessly clean before i start. to dry everything i lay them out on clean white dish towels on air drying rack. the vineager is used to help keep any deposits off. but my supplier also said that it is to keep any mold and funguses at bay. best thing is to make sure that you are distilled water in the humidfier at all times and empty whatever is left in it in the AM. also you could check to see if the producer of the CPAP is online with web site. most of the them have cleaning instructions some where online. you could also use a new baby toothbrush to clean the pink stuff with the baby wash. big thing is to rinse rinse and rinse some more to get any residue off. janey

janey wrote:

it a glycerin based soap for the face, body. it comes in bar and liquid form and you can find it in beauty section of the drug store. it's a clear light brown liquid and clear light brown bar too. sorry about my spelling i'm dyslexic. i also hang my tubing up to dry it but it takes several days for it to dry completely. i wash everything in my bathroom sink that is spotlessly clean before i start. to dry everything i lay them out on clean white dish towels on air drying rack. the vineager is used to help keep any deposits off. but my supplier also said that it is to keep any mold and funguses at bay. best thing is to make sure that you are distilled water in the humidfier at all times and empty whatever is left in it in the AM. also you could check to see if the producer of the CPAP is online with web site. most of the them have cleaning instructions some where online. you could also use a new baby toothbrush to clean the pink stuff with the baby wash. big thing is to rinse rinse and rinse some more to get any residue off. janey

Okay, thank you!  Do you have 2 sets of tubing? I can see that this might be reasonable if it takes a week to dry.  AFAIK Uncle uses distilled water all the time.  It's just tap water that is used for cleaning, I check on it being emptied every morning.  The pink stuff was jammed into tiny corners that I couldn't get to with anything but dainty stiff paint brushes.  Maybe I'd better get a couple more of those.

I appreciate your help and time!

Nug

Hi Guest,

Definitely use the vinegar.  I wouldn't be using any Neutrogena or other soap that could leave any kind of residue.  Not good for breathing!  You don't need two sets of hoses.  If you rinse it out and hang it over a shower curtain rod, or something similar, it will drain and be fine to use in no time.

Vicki


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That which does not kill you makes you stronger-Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich must of had apnea.

You might want to check with the manufacturer also... I know on my Respironics, it says I can put it in the dishwasher on the top shelf (HUMIDIFIER TANK ONLY!!)  So that might be another option...

Anonymous wrote:

janey wrote:

it a glycerin based soap for the face, body. it comes in bar and liquid form and you can find it in beauty section of the drug store. it's a clear light brown liquid and clear light brown bar too. sorry about my spelling i'm dyslexic. i also hang my tubing up to dry it but it takes several days for it to dry completely. i wash everything in my bathroom sink that is spotlessly clean before i start. to dry everything i lay them out on clean white dish towels on air drying rack. the vineager is used to help keep any deposits off. but my supplier also said that it is to keep any mold and funguses at bay. best thing is to make sure that you are distilled water in the humidfier at all times and empty whatever is left in it in the AM. also you could check to see if the producer of the CPAP is online with web site. most of the them have cleaning instructions some where online. you could also use a new baby toothbrush to clean the pink stuff with the baby wash. big thing is to rinse rinse and rinse some more to get any residue off. janey

Okay, thank you!  Do you have 2 sets of tubing? I can see that this might be reasonable if it takes a week to dry.  AFAIK Uncle uses distilled water all the time.  It's just tap water that is used for cleaning, I check on it being emptied every morning.  The pink stuff was jammed into tiny corners that I couldn't get to with anything but dainty stiff paint brushes.  Maybe I'd better get a couple more of those.

I appreciate your help and time!

Nug

i do i have more then one set of tubing on medicare you can get a new set of tubing every month. at least on my form of medicare that is.

Quote:

  
Hi Guest,

Definitely use the vinegar. I wouldn't be using any Neutrogena or other soap that could leave any kind of residue. Not good for breathing! You don't need two sets of hoses. If you rinse it out and hang it over a shower curtain rod, or something similar, it will drain and be fine to use in no time.

Vicki

vineger also removes almost all of the soap residue. because of my allergies i use in my wash during the rinse cycle to remove almost all of the soap residue from laundry soap. as far the neutrogena goes this what manufacture for my mask recommends and i think that i'll stick to their directions janey

Well, it makes sense that different makers might well use different forms of plastic and we'd have different directions for cleaning.  It also makes sense to clean tese things however your manifacturer says.  Nothing in the manual says anything about pink stuff.

My uncle's directions for use and cleaning come in three booklets:

ResMed HumidAire 2i
ResMed S7 Lightweight
ResMed Mirage Vista Mask

The pink stuff was in the HumidAire - the cleaning directions did include putting this part in the dishwasher but to avoid heavy duty or high temp cycles (greater than 158degrees F) Do not use strongly alkaline detergents and rinse aids.    Also, no bleach, chlorine, alcohol, or ammonia based solutions, moisturizing, antibacterial, or glycerine based soaps.  (The washable part seems to be ordinary clear hard plastic.)

I don't know how I could tell if my automatic dishwashing detergent was strongly alkaline or not.  I hesitate to do this since Uncle buys automatic dishwashing detergent by what is on sale.

I'll start playing phone tag with "Lincare" again tomorrow.

Thanks for your help, I'm going to ask about the vinegar for sure!

Nug

Thanks, Folks,

My name is Jois, "NUG" is the family code name for "Not Uncle George" in a family full of Uncle Georges.  We also use LUG for "Little Uncle George" and BUG for "Big Uncle George"  it helps since we have more than our fair share of them!

I used NUG when trying to sign in with a name Uncle (yep, George) would remember.  The administrater helped me out with a change in sign in and password so I can post unti Uncle is ready to take over.

Jois

To get the water out of my hose I hook the hose to the machine and turn on the warmup for the humidifier.  The small amount of air blowing through the hose dries the hose in 10 minutes.


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Good idea, Haku, sounds both easy and safe.

Jois