[CPAP] ResMed A10 small particles in distilled water in humidifier tank

[HaL R]

I'm using the same machine, GuitarRebel, and haven't noticed anything like flakes.  About the flakes- do they look like metal, plastic or anything else? I'd switch to a new tub and see what happens.  I clean everything with Dawn dish detergent, and scrub the tub interior. with a used filter screen because it's small and slightly abrasive. I've noticed a slight film appears on the tub interior.

One thing to be aware of is that distilled water is corrosive.  A quick Google search returned this:

Despite its benefits, distilled water is particularly corrosive. With no minerals to give the water pH balance, distilled water acts like a magnet, absorbing chemicals (phthalates and bisphenols) from plastics, nickel from stainless steel, aluminum from aluminum containers, and carbon dioxide from the air.   

So the flakes could be coming from many places, local air, cleaning sprays, dust. 

Try using tap water once or twice. 

Hal, another guitarist (of sorts)

[goku]

This is why im not sure if I should use a CPAP or just get jaw surgery. Almost seems easier to go through the recovery of bimax than maintaining a CPAP with an humidifier free of any nasty particles.

[DannyU]

I have an AirSense 11 and experience the same issues. I use distilled water at home and bottled water run through a Britta filter at work (I work two weeks on, two weeks off.).  I have the same issue with small, fine floaties. I wash my humidifier and mask daily using baby shampoo, wipe down with a towel then allow to air dry until nighttime. My hose is washed weekly. 

It’s a bit disconcerting knowing this stuff could be inhaled or ingested. At this point I can’t sleep well without my mask. Has anyone contacted ResMed?

[OpalRose]

When was the last time you changed the filter?

[StratCat48]

DannyU......

"I wash my humidifier and mask daily using baby shampoo, wipe down with a towel then allow to air dry until nighttime. My hose is washed weekly. "

Try just letting humidifier air dry or don't worry about residual water (you fill it with water anyhow). Towels and paper towels can shed lint particles that you might be seeing. I don't wash daily, maybe every 3-4 weeks (Dawn dish liquid, hot water, and rinse) or so and just top off the water as needed daily. No issues with particles in a DreamStation 2

A Brita water filter is good, but if not prepped properly when out of the package can throw specs of stuff (carbon) into the water as it goes through it.
https://purewaterblog.com/how-long-do-i-...-using-it/

[DannyU]

When was the last time you changed the filter?

I change the filter every 2-4 weeks.

[staceyburke]

I will just put this out there… I have been on Cpap for about 40 years now. For the first about 15 years I cleaned everything every other day and used the humidifier every night.  For at least 20 years I only clean my mask and hose weekly, and never use the humidifier. I find no difference in how I feel or any health difference.

[Lack of Sleep]

I have the Philips Respironics DreamStation 2 which was sent to me as a replacement for my recalled CPAP.  I get white fibers floating in the tank.  Contacted Philips Respironics and they sent me another DreamStation 2.  It's doing the exact same thing.  I have it narrowed down to what I believe are the white fibers breaking off of the filters.  Replaced the filters that came with the machine with new filters but didn't make a difference.  I looked up the filters for your ResMed Airsense 10 and they look similar to the Respironics filters.  On my old machine, I had a black foam filter and a white filter that was sealed and I never had this problem.  Two new machines for me doing the exact same thing cannot be coincidental and your problem sounds similar.  I looked at my filters under a magnifying glass and the fibers look identical to what is in my humidifier tank.  I'm really surprised more people aren't complaining about this unless they don't look at their water closely after using the CPAP.  Breathing these fibers in can’t be good for the lungs.  I have lots of video and pictures.  One picture is attached.  The question is what can be done about it.

[StratCat48]

Lack of Sleep...... are you washing the humidifier tank and then drying it with a paper or cotton  towel? Toweling it dry could leave fibers from what you are drying it with. Both my DS1 and DS2 have never had a problem with 'fibers' in the tank and I've used both Respironics branded filters as well as off brands.

[Lack of Sleep]

StratCat48…..  thanks for your response.  Yes, I am aware of potential fibers from drying with a paper towel or other material.  I have been on CPAP for 17 years and never had this problem with the various machines.  I had been using the Philips System One since 2015.  Great machine until it was part of the recall for health risks from the breakdown of the PE-PUR foam.  I never saw any particles but there was also a risk of invisible chemicals.  You are probably aware of that.  Did you get your DS2 as a replacement in the recall?
 
Anyway, I have been conducting numerous tests on my DS2 to try and determine the source of the fibers that are being discharged now.  The distilled water is crystal clear and clean when starting off, no debris.  I let the machine run inside the house and outside the house to eliminate the possibility of there being something inside the house that is causing it.  I started off with a clean tank and clean water on each test.    I ran tests with and without tubing & mask connected, different lengths of time, and different pressures.  There did seem to be a relationship between length of run time and pressure.  The longer the run time and/or the greater the pressure resulted in a greater amount of fibers.  The longest run time was just under three hours.  I have now tested again by using it the last two nights with run times of 6 hours and 5 hours (although I am concerned about potentially breathing in these fibers.) There was a greater amount of fibers on both nights compared to the earlier tests of lesser run times and just letting the machine blow freely.
 
Higher pressure seems to be one of the factors.  I start off at 14.5 but pressure has varied up to 17 depending on number of hypopneas.  I have taken close up pictures of the filters and the fibers are identical to what I see in the tank.  At this point, I don’t know what else it could be.  Attached are some zoomed in pictures of the filters.