Help! The RT is pushing another CPAP machine. What do???

[Ailu]

Whoa! Just did a reverse phone number search for the Respiratory Therapist who initially called me, and it was from the local Hospital DME - and NOT the sleep center! You guys had it right!!!

Have another call in, hopefully someone will get back to me today...

[Adoniscmj]

They have a battery for the resmed unit that is portable, however if portability and needing to run on battery there is a better option check out the Z1. If I were to travel or camp this would be my choice.

Consensus is that the Z1s are sub-optimal for many folks. A lot of folks find them noisy and uncomfortable. I used one for a short while and never felt as good about them as the Respironics or Resmed machines I had used.

And battery? Please, not the power pack that HDM is peddling. Many folks that actually have them and used them report that they do not run nearly as long as HDM represents (I have not). And for primitive camping, you would need to take a bunch of them to give you air for the duration of the trip if there is no source of power to efficiently charge them each day, like access to AC power. And they cost a LOT.

You can still use a more capable and much more affordable deep cycle battery with the Z1 just like virtually any unit except the Resmeds.

The Resmed units are kludgy when it come to running from batteries compared to just about everyone else. They really pooed the scrooch with their design. Everybody else, you can pretty much hook up to a bigger deep cycle battery and just go. (I advise foregoing the heated humidification when operating from battery.) No need for CPAP specific battery or DC DC converter like the Resmed requires.

OMMOHY

I have hooked my Air Sense 10 Auto Set up to a 400 watt power inverter that is connected to a small 12 volt battery and it works fine. If you use a group 31 agm battery and a 1200 watt power inverter you can run the humidifier as well. As with any of these machines you will have to take a battery of some kind and an inverter. Hooking one directly to a battery can kill the electronics. The group 31 battery will cost about $130 and a power inverter $200. This set up will probably run a CPAP for at least 3 day's.

[OMyMyOHellYes]

You don't ever want to run a CPAP with an inverter. Not if there is any way on Earth to do it another way.

It is WAY inefficient. Makes no sense. It is like going to the grocery store three miles away, but going a route through the other side of town that takes 20 miles to get there. And then 20 more to get back.

I am interested to know how hooking a battery up to a machine kills the electronics. Please elaborate. It is far preferable to using an inverter taking sweet DC current out of the battery, burning up a bunch of electricity to take that pure DC power, chop it up and rebox it as 110 V AC, and then having to run that AC through a converter that will turn it back into the nice DC current (burning some more power to do so) to run the blower and the electronics.

Done right, it is perfectly simple and safe. And if somebody is using batteries, it is likely because they don't have a ready supply of grid power and may not know when they will get it back. Conservation seems to be the prudent operating mode.

OMMOHY

[Mark Douglas]

...... and a cpap machine burns maybe 100 watts worst case so using a big inverter idling along is really inefficient and if it is (probably) square wave output tends to make the power brick run hot.

[Ailu]

You don't ever want to run a CPAP with an inverter. Not if there is any way on Earth to do it another way.

It is WAY inefficient. Makes no sense. It is like going to the grocery store three miles away, but going a route through the other side of town that takes 20 miles to get there. And then 20 more to get back.

....

Done right, it is perfectly simple and safe. And if somebody is using batteries, it is likely because they don't have a ready supply of grid power and may not know when they will get it back. Conversation seems to be the prudent operating mode.

OMMOHY

Great info! Please let me know your recommended battery setup. What I mean is, exactly what to purchase to get the job done simple & safe. Thanks!

[Mark Douglas]

It would really help if you would use SleepyHead and it will tell you exactly what machine you have and fill out your profile, How can anyone help you power your machine otherwise? If you are concerned about privacy delete the serial number.

[Ailu]

It would really help if you would use SleepyHead and it will tell you exactly what machine you have and fill out your profile, How can anyone help you power your machine otherwise? If you are concerned about privacy delete the serial number.

Thanks Mark but that's because I don't actually have my machine or mask yet. But I've been posting all of the board about trying to get a PR System One Auto DS560 from my DME. I promise I'll fill out the profile once I actually have the machine.

[Mark Douglas]

My bad I did read that.
If you get a PR machine as far as I know they all run directly on 12VDC.
Later today I'll powe mine up and measure the amps w/o the humidifier and we will both know what they draw. I will be using mine on my next sailboat so I need to know also.
The portable power threads here are all over the place. Your question tends to indicate you are not a techie so I would advise you buy the factory 12vdc connection kit and not try to invent one. See the supplier lists. Around $50 if I remember correctly and I would think will not mess up any warranties by using approved equipment.
To make it simple with commonly available batteries you need about 2 x your daily amp/hour usage x the number of days you want to run. You will want a battery that doesn't spill or outgas.
After I determine the current usage of my machine which I believe will be similar to the one you want I'll give you a concise recommendation - which of course is worth exactly what you pay for it but there will be no BS attacted,
OK?

[parkerdt]

So did you get the machine type all sorted out with the DME, Ailu?

[OMyMyOHellYes]

Great info! Please let me know your recommended battery setup. What I mean is, exactly what to purchase to get the job done simple & safe. Thanks!

Remind me again what your expected battery use is intended: emergency power outage or out in the boonies primitive camping. That will make all the difference. Also the expected time for having to run it off battery, and what recharging resources may be available.

OMMOHY