Hygeine

[lincolnr]

I don't clean my stuff enough. However, I've found that mineral buildup in the humidifier tank is quickly removed by putting in some white vinegar and waiting a few minutes.

Anyone got a good trick for cleaning the inside of the hose? I just fill it partway up with water and a bit of detergent and vineger, and slosh.

[Tez62]

Kmar92, I use a liquid soap that my CPAP supplier sells in Australia, it's basically what we call liquid soap with no perfume, you could probably buy something cheaper at Coles or Woolworths. I just put a squirt in my bathroom sink, chuck all my equipment in the sink twice a week and leave it to soak while I have my shower. Then let it dry on a towel during the day and wipe it and put it together at night. I haven't had to change anything since I got it 2.5 years ago.

[Sleepster]

I use antibacterial hand soap, any kind that does not have a moisturizer, to clean hose, mask, and tank. Mask straps get washed in the clothes washer after a soak in vinegar.

I use a hose brush to clean my hose.

And occasionally I use vinegar to get the crud out of my tank, although I get very little crud because I have a water softener.

How often do I clean? Well, let's just say it's probably not often enough. I hate the odor I get from a dirty hose, so that motivates me to wash it at least once a week. Usually.

[archangle]

For a quick clean, I hook the hose up to the kitchen faucet and run hot water through it for a while.

For that deep down germophobe clean, I actually wash the hose in the dishwasher with my mask, but it's a little hard to describe how to do it right. You want water to flow through the inside of the hose. I lay the hose out flat on the bottom of one of the racks, looping it back and forth to get it to lay flat. Then you have to point one end up in the air. My dishwasher has some little prongs on the side where I can hang the end of the hose on. Water flows in one end, and then fills up the hose until it flows out the other end. I can tell it works because the hose is full of water when I open the dishwasher.

I rinse on the sink before and after.

I have two hoses. I take the just washed one, dry it on an old CPAP machine, and let it sit clean and dry for a week to kill off the germs.

If you use unheated hoses, there's a guy on ebay who sells authentic Respironics hoses 2 for $10 with shipping. Cheap enough to replace them whenever you feel the need, and to have several to rotate through for clean/dry/germ proofing.

[me50]

I use antibacterial hand soap, any kind that does not have a moisturizer, to clean hose, mask, and tank. Mask straps get washed in the clothes washer after a soak in vinegar.

I use a hose brush to clean my hose.

And occasionally I use vinegar to get the crud out of my tank, although I get very little crud because I have a water softener.

How often do I clean? Well, let's just say it's probably not often enough. I hate the odor I get from a dirty hose, so that motivates me to wash it at least once a week. Usually.

I don't get crud in my tank b/c I use distilled water in it and clean it with vinegar and dawn. I am going to look for a hose brush....great suggestion

[PaulaO2]

A good rinse is all the hose really needs, as long as you are doing it regularly. But a quick go through with the scrub brush wouldn't hurt.

Just don't get all germ phobic about it. Unless you like that state of mind (I know people who do), use your common sense.

[lincolnr]

I use antibacterial hand soap, any kind that does not have a moisturizer, to clean hose, mask, and tank. Mask straps get washed in the clothes washer after a soak in vinegar.

Antibacterial hand soap may not be such a good idea. Apparently bacteria that develop resistance to the magic ingredient also become resistant to some antibiotics:
link to article in deleted because I'm not allowed to post it.
Consumer Antibacterial Soaps: Effective or Just Risky?
Oxford Journals
Medicine
Clinical Infectious Diseases
Volume 45, Issue Supplement 2
Pp. S137-S147.

Also, it appears to be no more effective than regular hand soap.

Of course, hoses aren't hands.

Vinegar may be an alternative. I've used it that way, but I'm not nearsighted enough to see the dead bacteria. ;-)

More than you'd ever want to know about vinegar:
link to article deleted because I'm not allowed to post it
Medscape General Medicine > Clinical Nutrition & Obesity
Vinegar: Medicinal Uses and Antiglycemic Effect
Carol S. Johnston, PhD, RD, Cindy A. Gaas, BS
Medscape General Medicine. 2006;8(2):61

[DocWils]

No hand soaps of any kind, please. They leave films on the materials that dish soaps don't. If you must use a soap, then only dish soap.

[Sleepster]

No hand soaps of any kind, please. They leave films on the materials that dish soaps don't. If you must use a soap, then only dish soap.

Antibacterial hand soaps without moisturizers do not leave films.

Dish soaps with moisturizers leave films and should be avoided.

There's no difference between a dish soap and a hand soap other than the ingredients.

That's the way they market the stuff here in the US, things may be different in Switzerland.

[Peter_C]

I use anti-bacterial Softsoap; but only wash my equipment once a week.

Interesting. I used to do the same, but was told many times (and read a few times) *not* to use anti-bacterial soap, so have switched to a cheap/mild dish soap for the last year or so.

Sadly, I am very bad at *cleaning* and while I believe weekly is a good time frame, my reality is more like every 2-4 weeks...