SoClean & other CPAP cleaning machines

[JimInPT]

Are you just cleaning your mask & hose with the SoClean, or are you piping the ozone through the airpath of your cpap machine, too? The way that I understand the warranty it's piping ozone through your machine that they don't want you to do.

Cathy, I believe you're probably correct in your supposition, but nope, I've always run the ozone throughout the whole system, end to end, since the first day.  It goes into the water tank, through the machine, then the hose and finally the mask, which is inside the SoClean chamber.

I saw that notification from Resmed when it was issued, so am aware of that, but it's long after the warranty expired on my machine anyway and the machine continues to perform as always; it's not like I'm running the engine 200 miles after the "check engine" light came on, out of ignorance.  It could be that Resmed saw what happened with the Philips machines' degradation and their lawyers and beancounters insisted on creating an ozone escape clause for them, just in case - I dunno.

And as stated above, I'm reporting my personal experience as a very regular and daily user of SoClean with my CPAP machine for over 3-1/2 years.  Maybe I just got lucky, but there's nothing special about my setup, except perhaps that I don't use Resmed hose and masks, but Philips instead and those have always worked fine with it since the beginning.  I also use my hoses, masks and nosepieces far longer than my DME would prefer for the benefit of their revenue targets - I always have plenty of spares for everything except the machine itself and I do replace things when they either wear out or start to look cloudy or otherwise sketchy.  I have never found any residual gunk in anything (except for those 10 weeks when I was without the SoClean and they gunked up in just a few days - dramatically illustrating that the SoClean was in fact doing something), and I look for gunk, nor do I suffer from any respiratory problems other than the apnea that my machine conquers quite well, getting me down to an average AHI of 2.76 over the last year, after an initial diagnosis of 47 back in 2018 - that's why I'm pretty religious about using it every night with 100% distilled water the whole time.

It's funny; the only complaint I have about my CPAP system is that I feel zero beneficial results from using it since the beginning - I'm not more alert, energetic, rested or anything compared to pre-CPAP, except that I never ever wake up with the complete nasal congestion that used to be routine.  That's wonderful, and I'd use the machine for just that alone, but OSCAR gives me data that reassures me it's working very well to knock down the apnea, even though I can't feel any difference, and I took to it like a duck to water on the first night so it's no trouble at all to continue down this road.

Sorry I rambled on, but sadly I usually do.  As always YMMV, but apparently it works for me and I'm sure for some others out there too.  I'm a recovering engineer and for me it's hard to argue with a setup that works for me.

[Kafka82]

has anyone used or come across this type of CPAP cleaner - It's basically pumping ozone - seems convenient - but it is also effective?

https://waltsonstec.com/products/cpap-cl...lbEALw_wcB

[Gideon]

it is a cause, not the only one, that resulted in initially 2 class 1 recalls of essentially every CPAP device they have made since 2015.

ResMed says use of ozone cleaners voids the warranty on their devices.

Is it effective? Only, according to SoClean, if your first clean it according to the manufacturer's directions.

[Kafka82]

it is a cause, not the only one, that resulted in initially 2 class 1 recalls of essentially every CPAP device they have made since 2015.  

ResMed says use of ozone cleaners voids the warranty on their devices.

Is it effective?  Only, according to SoClean, if your first clean it according to the manufacturer's directions.

right I have serious problem because I am a carrier of MRSA in my nose and I am try to de-colonise - but cpap is a weak spot now - I can clean tubing and mask daily but what about the inside of the machine?

[Crimson Nape]

Air only enters your CPAP from the environment and does not come into contact with your breath. Please describe what your concerns are in this area.

[Melman]

What do you mean when you say your trying to decolonise?

[Kafka82]

What do you mean when you say your trying to decolonise?

attached

[Kafka82]

Air only enters your CPAP from the environment and does not come into contact with your breath.   Please describe what your concerns are in this area.

air travels trhough surfaces of tube and masks which they are possibly contaminated - so I need to clean thoroughly every day (mask and pipe ) - not just a quick wipe but proper sterlisation. It takes too long so am wondering what quick ways I can do. Mask I can maybe use steam bag in microwave? The hose is too big ...

[Crimson Nape]

The masks are made with low-temp plastic in order to bond to the silicon seal.  If you use the microwave or try to steam clean the mask, you have a sanitized blob of plastic.  If you have that contaminated of an evironment, then you have a bigger problem than your CPAP.

[Melman]

MRSA will not grow on the plastic and silicone surfaces of the mask or tubing. It requires nutrients that are not found in those materials or in any water condensate from humidification. If your concerned about MRSA colonies growing on those surfaces it's not possible. This is based 30 years experience as a microbiologist. If you are shedding MRSA into your CPAP mask you are shedding unto many other surfaces in your environment. There is no way you can sterilize all of them. Fortunately the organism will not grow on those surfaces either and will die out.