Getting hotel smells out of CPAP

[PaulaO2]

A while back, I was here complaining that a very moldy hotel had my CPAP stinking. That smell went away easily enough.

Now the problem is hotel cleaning products.

I went to New Jersey and spent about 5 nights in a hotel there. Then, just a few days after getting home, I went to Dallas and spent 5 more nights in a hotel. I've been back for about ten days and the perfumey smell is just now not noticeable.

I changed the filter after the first trip. Changed it as soon as I got back from Dallas. I even used a vinegar soak on the hose and mask and humidifier tub. As soon as I put the mask on at night, I could smell it still.

Anyone have any idea on how to prevent this from happening again?

The only idea I have is to have a backup mask that I take traveling then use the un-stinkified one when I get back.

[RonWessels]

Are you sure that it's the mask that is holding the smell? If it's not, using a backup mask won't work.

You might try disabling the auto-off, then running your machine's blower for an hour or two to try to blow the smell out of the system. I find that this works for me getting the soap smell off my equipment after I do the cleaning soak. [ Yes, I use unscented soap. But I can still smell it. ]

[PaulaO2]

I tried that, too. Let it blow for an hour, everything out of it, while I soaked all the pieces parts.

With the stinky smell from last year, changing the filters and letting it air out was enough. But this was like I had a dryer sheet as a filter. In both hotels, I had it up on a shelf, not on a chair or on the floor. Although in Dallas, it was on the bottom shelf just a few inches off the floor. Wondering if that's why the perfume smell was so bad?

I know there are some odor fighters for cars but I'm afraid it would be even worse.

[Paptillian]

If I'm only staying for a night or two, I usually forgo room service. I find that it's enough to leave the do-not-disturb sign on the door after heading out in the morning.

Maybe for longer stays it's a good idea to pack up the machine in the travel case after waking up. Pain in the ***, this CPAP.

[PaulaO2]

I usually do, too. But I was rooming with someone else so tidiness was more of an issue than usual. Other wise I just have them clean like every 3 days or so. The Sleep Inn (ironic, eh?) in NJ wasn't that fancy but the Doubletree Hilton in Dallas was.

[martinsr00]

If perfume residues are on machine internal surfaces, those residues may stay until normal degradation kills the smell. Air filters are much to coarse to do anything about the smell.

It's a fact that humans can detect tastes and odors in the parts per billion range. That's why in some municipalities horrible tasting water can still be 100% healthful. (I'm in the municipal water business).

Something to consider: an ozonator. I just bought one marketed under the brand name SoClean. Maybe there are other similar items for sale under different brand names. I know others on the forum panned the SoClean and branded it as useless, but it works for me and I gladly paid my own money to buy one (I have no relationship with SoClean other than customer). Ozone kills off any odors (leaves an odor of its own -- kind of like the air after a rainstorm). Anything organic (spores, bacteria, perfume residues) gets reacted. That's why they use ozone in water treatment. Gets rid of tastes, odors, and organics in the water. Wait a couple of hours after treatment, and the ozone (O3) becomes regular oxygen (O2). The thing cleans out mask and machine in one fell swoop.

Yeah, ozonators can be pricey. But as you can see, when you visit a hotel, things from the hotel remain in your machine. If they're organic things, you may want them gone. Just a thought.

[RonWessels]

Interestingly enough, the following is an excerpt from the SoClean manual:

It’s recommended that before the first use of your SoClean, that you wash your mask, hose, and reservoir using the neutralizing pre-wash. This is done only before your first use, or when you introduce new equipment to you CPAP system. The purpose of this is to neutralize any pre-existing odors caused by detergents or manufacturing residue. Such odors can be heightened by the sanitizing process.

I would also have expected the oxidization of the ozone to neutralize most odours, but there it is.

[duckstacker]

I purchased a product from Amazon called clean-night complete cpap spray and it removed all odors from my equipment, Just spray it in the mask and on the filter in the back of the machine. Hope this helps.

[archangle]

Dishwashing the dishwashable parts is one idea.

Non-heated hoses are cheap. Get several and let the smelly one air out.

I know some people have suggested putting silicone parts into some boiling water mixed with baking soda. That's iffy with hoses. I've done that with hard plastic and the rubbery silicone mask parts, but it's at your own risk, of course.

[diamaunt]

Dishwashing the dishwashable parts is one idea.

Non-heated hoses are cheap. Get several and let the smelly one air out.

I know some people have suggested putting silicone parts into some boiling water mixed with baking soda. That's iffy with hoses. I've done that with hard plastic and the rubbery silicone mask parts, but it's at your own risk, of course.

I ran the silicone innerds of an S9 through the dishwasher a few times, though it was the soaking in oxyclean that got the nicotine and tar discoloration off of 'em, they still stunk... the dishwasher made quite a difference.