[Equipment] Why is the use of a humidifier (with heated hose) so important?

[bonum.noctem]

Before I had a CPAP machine the humidity was fine, now I can't cope without a humidifier, even if out camping I need one, but that brings its own problems! Does that answer your question?

Pretty much, thanks.

Those pillows jetted out air through holes that are smaller than my nostrils, thus increasing the velocity of the air at that point, and drying out my nose faster than normal breathing.

That was the missing piece in my consideration, so the air speed is indeed higher in the area of the nose pillows, didn't think about that.

Thanks for all the feedback, which is highly appreciated. I'm a total newbie to all of this and I try to inform myself as comprehensive as possible beforehand.

[Stom]

That was the missing piece in my consideration, so the air speed is indeed higher in the area of the nose pillows, didn't think about that.

Thanks for all the feedback, which is highly appreciated. I'm a total newbie to all of this and I try to inform myself as comprehensive as possible beforehand.

There is another piece to consider with nose pillows, which is that the PAP masks are constantly venting through small holes that provide CO2 washout - the masks don't use valves to separate inhalation and exhalation paths the way a painting respirator mask does. With PAP here is more air circulating around your nose than you actually inhale.

[OMyMyOHellYes]

They were primarily designed to provide more sales and profit for manufacturers of the equipment and distilled water.

They have been very successful convincing people they NEED them.

[bonum.noctem]

They were primarily designed to provide more sales and profit for manufacturers of the equipment and distilled water. They have been very successful convincing people they NEED them.

Really?

So I assume you can do without one? What's your experience with nasal mask and no added humidity?

BTW Does it have to be distilled water?

[Coffee Man]

You do not need distilled water.

[Stom]

There are whole threads on what kind of water to use.

If you don't want hard water scale to build up in your humidifier chamber then using distilled or de-mineralized water will prevent that. Different municipal water supplies vary as to how much build up they will cause.

Some people just use tap water. Some use tap water and clean their water chambers often and/or use vinegar or some such to remove scale.

In a sense, the humidifier is a distiller, so the same contaminants that would be left behind in the process of distilling water will be left behind in your humidification water container. So it's less a mater of safety than it is a matter of keeping the machine pristine. But you do need to use water that is safe to drink.

One aspect I don't know about though, is that for nasal rinsing you are supposed to use distilled water or similar because of some very rare ameoba infections you can get even from tap water. If it's rare with actually pouring tap water in your sinuses, I would think it would be vanishingly rare from a CPAP humidifier using tap water.

[CPOP]

Any amoeba that could survive municipal water treatment and then crawl up the tube to attack you was going to find a way to kill you somehow anyway. It's the John Wick of protozoa.

[OMyMyOHellYes]

They were primarily designed to provide more sales and profit for manufacturers of the equipment and distilled water. They have been very successful convincing people they NEED them.

Really?

So I assume you can do without one? What's your experience with nasal mask and no added humidity?

BTW Does it have to be distilled water?

I do quite well without.  My travel machine is an older S8 Autoset II.  No humogrifier.  Spent six months on it last year with no ill effects.  Zero.  Zip.  Nada.  In Phoenix.  Well, not really Phoenix.  In Scottsdale.  Which is really Phoenix.  I don't know, but I was told air was dry there...

Mfg recommends distilled water...  I think all it really does is eliminate mineral buildup in the tank. With my original CPAP, an S8 Elite, I would run the humidifier in the winter just because.  I used tap water and it build up crud on the bottom of the tank.  My current setup includes the tank (primaty benefit?  I run USB phone charging cable up across the table top between the flow generator and the tank and it holds the cord in place nicely.)  But because it is there anyway, I will fill the tank with distilled water every few nights and I've suffered no crud build up in the last few years.  Throw the tank in the dishwasher every year or so.....

[SarcasticDave94]

Since the machine obviously is not changing air humidity, what makes pretty much everybody use a humidifier?

I mean, if you are fine breathing room air (whatever its humidity is), why does it change when breathing slightly pressurized air through a mask? Does airflow increase that much that it makes your nose dry out (considering the use of a nasal pillow mask)?

Can anybody tell about a direct comparison of use with and without humidifier?

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I assume the heated hose is only to prevent condensation and rainout when using a humidifier, or is there any use of a heated hose without humidifier?

I mean, why would anybody want to inhale air warmer than room temperature (it was mentioned somewhere for the Dreamstation, that you can connect the heated hose directly to the main unit, when not using the humidifier add-on)?

Strictly speaking for myself, I use the combo of humidified air and the heated hose because of 2 things, probably all of which are already mentioned. I suffer from a dried out nose and mouth (FFM used) if the humidity level is set too low. Then the heated hose helps reduce rainout in the hose due to my high humidity setting. It's purely a comfort setting group, so whatever you choose that best suits your needs is just that; whatever is best for you.

[SarcasticDave94]

Thought so that it's for comfort and not as much a necessity, but it still keeps irritating me, because IMHO there should not be a real difference between normal breathing without machine and breathing through a mask at slightly higher pressure.

About the mouth and/or nose getting dry, it would make more sense if the airflow was increased by the procedure, so when you would breath at a higher frequency, but breathing itself stays the same, only the pressure at inhaling and exhaling is increased.

I'm a nose breather and I am comfortable with the bedroom air temperature and humidity (though I never have measured the two), which makes me wonder if I would want a machine with humidifier or not.

I don't know yet if my health insurance will pay for the humidifier option, because unless someone else cancels his/her appointment and they fit me in earlier, my sleep clinic examination will not be before October, so at this point I'm just doing research.

Most CPAPs I'm aware of come with a humidifier nowadays. There are optional machine endcaps or some such bypass method to run the machine with no humidifier. I know for certain ResMed 10 series is this way, most likely Philips Respironics as well, I can't vouch for other brands as these other two have been used by me. If a humidifier is included in some way, insurance should cover it as a unit, but billed typically as 2 parts. Silly relations with DME and insurance...