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Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
#1
Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
California currently has the worst air quality in the world, so I'd love it if my APAP filter could remove the tiny and hazardous 2.5 micron particles from the air I breathe at night. I'm pretty sure the un-rated "hypo allergenic" filters in my A10 don't filter out anything that small.

Has anyone cobbled together a true HEPA filter for their PAP machine? I'm assuming that I'd need to use a large filter funneled down to the machine's intake to get sufficient surface area to keep the flow resistance down. Or, alternately, the PAP machine could be put in a sealed box with a big HEPA filter on one side a sealed holed for the hose and power cord - which I'm less inclined towards because I don't want the machine to overheat and I wouldn't be able to easily access the machine controls.
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#2
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
What your suggesting would work fine since it allows for the greater resistance to air flow. But why do you want to do this? At the pressures you are running the concentration of airborne particulates is only increased by about 1% over that of the room air you are breathing when not using you CPAP.
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#3
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
Apparently there are some off-the-shelf products that can be used with the A10. The A10's clinical manual says:

Quote:Antibacterial filters:

Antibacterial filters increase resistance in the air circuit and may affect accuracy of displayed and delivered pressure, particularly at high flows. Resmed recommends using an antibacterial filter with a low impedance (e.g., 2 cm H2O at 60 L/min), such as PALL (BB50T), Air Safety Filter without Luer Port (4222/702), or Air Safety Filter with Side Port 24966 (4222/701). If using the Air Safety Filter with Side Port, an Oxygen Connector Port is required.

There's a setting in the A10's menus to enable "AB Filter" once you have the thing installed. Presumably that increases the blower pressure to compensate for the resistance.
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#4
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
(11-17-2018, 07:38 PM)Melman Wrote: What your suggesting would work fine since it allows for the greater resistance to air flow. But why do you want to do this? At the pressures you are running the concentration of airborne particulates is only increased by about 1% over that of the room air you are breathing when not using you CPAP.

The AQI in my area has gotten up to almost 300, and has been in the "Very Unhealthy 201 to 300 Health alert: everyone may experience more serious health effects" range for a number of days. Now it's down to a mere "Unhealthy". 2.5 microns.

I do not have central air or stand alone HEPA filters in my home, and I have more square footage than stand alone units can handle unless I put one in every room and run them constantly. A HEPA filter on the PAP machine it the most direct and efficient way to filter the air I breathe when sleeping, and it could be fairly cheap.
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#5
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
Another possibility, not on the Resmed approved list but apparently used by a lot of folks, is the Hudson 1605 (search for that or H1605), a small and simple in-line gizmo. Caveats mentioned in product descriptions: Not recommended for use with humidification, or with heated hose, or with APAP, or with pressures below 7 cmw.
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#6
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
(11-17-2018, 07:59 PM)Fats Drywaller Wrote: Apparently there are some off-the-shelf products that can be used with the A10.  The A10's clinical manual says:

Quote:Antibacterial filters:

Antibacterial filters increase resistance in the air circuit and may affect accuracy of displayed and delivered pressure, particularly at high flows.  Resmed recommends using an antibacterial filter with a low impedance (e.g., 2 cm H2O at 60 L/min), such as PALL (BB50T), Air Safety Filter without Luer Port (4222/702), or Air Safety Filter with Side Port 24966 (4222/701).  If using the Air Safety Filter with Side Port, an Oxygen Connector Port is  required.

There's a setting in the A10's menus to enable "AB Filter" once you have the thing installed.  Presumably that increases the blower pressure to compensate for the resistance.

Thanks. When Kaiser did the titration study they sent us home with A10s with Antibacterial filters and *without* humidifier tanks. AB filters go between the machine output and the hose. Unfortunately they cannot be used with the climate-line tubing, or a humidifier. Water clogs the extremely fine filters up and makes them unusable.
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#7
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
(11-17-2018, 08:12 PM)Stom Wrote: AB filters go between the machine output and the hose. Unfortunately they cannot be used with the climate-line tubing, or a humidifier. Water clogs the extremely fine filters up and makes them unusable.

So you're saying that an antibacterial filter is finer than the HEPA pores, and with a HEPA filter you can use humidification?
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#8
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
OK, never mind; I finally figured it out, based on the definition of "true HEPA". I was wrong, and for CPAP machines there ain't no such animal; the available products are all lumped together as both AB filters and supposed HEPA filters.

Why not just put the air intake of your CPAP machine next to the air outflow of a standalone true-HEPA filtering machine next to your bed, and call that George?

Or move out of California, which is doomed anyway.
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#9
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
(11-17-2018, 08:30 PM)Fats Drywaller Wrote: Why not just put the air intake of your CPAP machine next to the air outflow of a standalone true-HEPA filtering machine next to your bed, and call that George?

That could work, but stand alone HEPA machines are all sold out around here, but just the filters are frequently still available. So I'm seeing about the practicality of doing some jerry rigging.
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#10
RE: Adding a true HEPA filter to APAP for california wild fire smoke
Haven't we both been overlooking something obvious?

Just cut a piece from an N95 mask and use that in place of the usual CPAP intake filter. Humidification not affected, heated hose not affected, etc.

And if that's not good enough, then neither is walking around in the crud wearing an N95 mask.
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