What water do you use to fill the humidifier tank?

[zonk]

Does it matter or is not an issue
Do you dump the water after each use - even if you don,t use it all in one night.

[JumpStart]

I am new to the game, starting with xPAP on 3/7. I used an old bottle of distilled water for a couple of days to begin with, and now am using RO (reverse osmosis) water, which I can fill in my kitchen. With four filters and a membrane, the RO filter should remove anything! Since I intend on getting the humidifier tub that opens for cleaning when I replace it in about 6 months (or so my DME said), I will check to see what damage, if any, was done without continuous use of distilled.

[mckevin32]

We use distilled. I used to use filtered tap water until I kept noticing how much more "gunk" there was in my tank than my wife's (she stuck with distilled).
Sunday is clean everything and change the water day.

Jumpstart, I strongly suspect that you will be just fine with R/O water, it is very near to distilled and much more refined than tap water, and many people use that with no ill effects.

[PaulaO2]

What kind of water to use is a constant source of debate here and at probably all the other sleep apnea forums.

"Distilled water is water that has many of its impurities removed through distillation. Distillation involves boiling the water and then condensing the steam into a clean container." (source) Basically this means it is free of minerals. It does not necessarily mean it is sterile unless the jug was sterile and the lid was very sealed.

"Tap water (running water, city water, municipal water, etc.) is potable water supplied to a tap (valve) inside the household or workplace." (source) Tap water can be from any source such as well, spring, or municipal water treatment facility. If you turn on a faucet and water comes out, that water is tap water.

"Reverse osmosis (RO) is a membrane-technology filtration method that removes many types of large molecules and ions from solutions by applying pressure to the solution when it is on one side of a selective membrane.....Reverse osmosis is most commonly known for its use in drinking water purification from seawater, removing the salt and other substances from the water molecules." (source) I've never been sure exactly how this works but I know it is quite popular with aquarium hobbyists.

The main difference between tap water and distilled is the amount of minerals. Sterility is also a difference but unless the humidifier tank is also sterile, sterility is not a point for or against. That white crud in the bottom of the humidifier tank is the minerals left behind after the water evaporated. You can see this by boiling water until it is gone. Use a dark pan to see it clearly.

Some feel the mineral deposits do nothing harmful to the user or the tank. It is cleaned off using a vinegar and water solution.

Some say the deposits promote rust. And they don't like the smell of the vinegar.

Some say the rust does not harm the user. And let the tank air out and you won't smell the vinegar.

Some say distilled water is cleaner and therefore lacking of bacteria and other bad stuff.

Some say it doesn't matter since nothing can travel on the water molecules to your nose.

The argument/discussion goes on and on for quite some time, never ending.

My opinion: if you want to follow the guidelines and keep a clean looking humidifier tank, use distilled. If you don't care about the white crud (and you replace the tank every 3-6months), use tap water.

Me? I have a spring as my water source. It is not considered "hard" water but it does have plenty of minerals. I get a white crud on the bottom of my humidifier tank that I clean off if/when it gets bad enough.

[Dreamcatcher]

I use the wet kind, as our water here is as pure as bottled water, I take my neat, although I have tried different kinds of whiskey and vodka in my tank not to mention different kinds of aromatherapy in water and behind vent.

Why bother with all this nonesence of boiling water or using bottled water? If you drink it then it can go in your tank.

[The Happy Dreamer]

I have used filtered tap water for about 11 years, and I'm still alive! I do dump the water every day.

[PollCat]

I use bottled, distilled water at home and when traveling if staying in one hotel for a week or more. If changing hotels every few days, I'll use either bottled drinking water or tap water, depending on taste, smell,

[PaulaO2]

Me too. Since I use a spring, I am not used to the smell and taste of chlorinated water. Some hotels' tap water is like pool water. If the smell is too much, I'll use bottled water.

[oldteddybear]

I use distilled ozonated water right now and dump it about once a week

[zonk]

Here is two responses from ResMed of the same question asked and answered differently in two different locations:

If I run out of distilled water, is it OK to use tap water once in a while?

Using distilled water will maximize the life of the water tub and reduce mineral deposits. However, it is ok to occasionally use tap water to clean your humidifier.
http://www.resmed.com/us/patients_and_fa...c=patients

If I run out of distilled water, is it OK to use tap water to fill my water tub once in a while?

If you have a standard humidifier tub, it is recommended that you use distilled or deionized water. If you have a cleanable tub, tap water is fine for everyday use.
http://www.resmed.com/au/service_and_sup...c=patients