02-22-2025, 09:34 PM
Spring Suspended Hose Hanger
For some, it is super important to be able to have freedom of movement during sleep without feeling tethered or fighting with a hose attachment at night. This includes freedom of sleep position (back, side, and front). Turning, rotating, and changing position (within reason, of course) in all three axes (to some extent) without fighting a hose or really even feeling tension from a hose, is really helpful. This requires two major things:
1. The hose attachment point to the mask/headgear is a swivel-type attachment, and is at the top of the head.
2. The hose is suspended from above. There is a fair amount of hose length between its far-end attachment point and the near-end mask/headgear attachment point. The length of hose between the two points is spring loaded such that the spring force pulling it up is nearly equal to the gravitational force pulling it down, and this is true over a significant range of position deviating from its static, at-rest position.
For #1, fortunately such masks exist.
For #2, I admit that I have not tried commercially-available hose hangers, and I haven't researched extensively, but I have not liked the looks of what I've seen. It appears that the hose hangers do not suspend the hose over significant range of motion, having a relatively rigid hose attachment point and no significant, suitable hose support between the attachment point and the mask/headgear attachment point.
A solution...most automotive windshield wiper blades have a spring steel piece that is of suitable dimensions and provides a suitable spring constant. I took a windshield wiper blade apart, extracted the strip of steel, covered it with electrical tape to ensure it can't damage the hose, and taped it to the hose at a handful of points and in a suitable position on the hose. I keep the machine on the floor under the bed, which has added benefits of it being out of the way, out of sight, and isolating machine noise. Turning on the SmartStart feature is helpful for not having to access the machine as much. Initially, I wedged the hose between the wall and the headboard with pieces of foam, letting the hose come up over the top of the headboard and dangle down near the pillow for attachment to the mask. My wife decided on a new bed, with a headboard that was too high for this approach, so now a hose cover is strapped to the headboard and the hose is routed between the top of the mattress and the headboard, through the hose cover to a suitable height. A Velcro strap ensures the hose (with spring steel strip attached) is held fairly rigidly in the hose cover. My hose cover is actually a 2 in. x 24 in. tie down webbing protector sleeve purchased for cheap at a big box home improvement store. Getting the hose in and out of it is a little bit annoying, but not too bad.
Anyway, just wanted to share, and I hope this is helpful to someone.
IDEAS EXPRESSED HERE ARE PERSIONAL OPINTIONS, NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT, AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERD MEDICAL ADVISE. SEEK THE ADVISE OF A QUALIFIED MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL FOR TREATMENT OF MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
1. The hose attachment point to the mask/headgear is a swivel-type attachment, and is at the top of the head.
2. The hose is suspended from above. There is a fair amount of hose length between its far-end attachment point and the near-end mask/headgear attachment point. The length of hose between the two points is spring loaded such that the spring force pulling it up is nearly equal to the gravitational force pulling it down, and this is true over a significant range of position deviating from its static, at-rest position.
For #1, fortunately such masks exist.
For #2, I admit that I have not tried commercially-available hose hangers, and I haven't researched extensively, but I have not liked the looks of what I've seen. It appears that the hose hangers do not suspend the hose over significant range of motion, having a relatively rigid hose attachment point and no significant, suitable hose support between the attachment point and the mask/headgear attachment point.
A solution...most automotive windshield wiper blades have a spring steel piece that is of suitable dimensions and provides a suitable spring constant. I took a windshield wiper blade apart, extracted the strip of steel, covered it with electrical tape to ensure it can't damage the hose, and taped it to the hose at a handful of points and in a suitable position on the hose. I keep the machine on the floor under the bed, which has added benefits of it being out of the way, out of sight, and isolating machine noise. Turning on the SmartStart feature is helpful for not having to access the machine as much. Initially, I wedged the hose between the wall and the headboard with pieces of foam, letting the hose come up over the top of the headboard and dangle down near the pillow for attachment to the mask. My wife decided on a new bed, with a headboard that was too high for this approach, so now a hose cover is strapped to the headboard and the hose is routed between the top of the mattress and the headboard, through the hose cover to a suitable height. A Velcro strap ensures the hose (with spring steel strip attached) is held fairly rigidly in the hose cover. My hose cover is actually a 2 in. x 24 in. tie down webbing protector sleeve purchased for cheap at a big box home improvement store. Getting the hose in and out of it is a little bit annoying, but not too bad.
Anyway, just wanted to share, and I hope this is helpful to someone.
IDEAS EXPRESSED HERE ARE PERSIONAL OPINTIONS, NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT, AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERD MEDICAL ADVISE. SEEK THE ADVISE OF A QUALIFIED MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL FOR TREATMENT OF MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
