We want to share ten tips today for heated humidification during CPAP therapy so that you can get all of the benefits of heated humidity without any of the problems.
Common CPAP Heated Humidity Issues
Heated humidity offers a lot of benefits to CPAP therapy, but it may present challenges.
Condensation (rainout) can be a roadblock. It happens when the air cools down along the way to you.
Some people report that their water reservoir runs empty before they wake up. And so they breathe hot dry air, which is even more uncomfortable than if they’d not tried to use the humidifier at all.
Related complications can include a dry mouth, nose, or throat.
Some people complain that the CPAP causes them to sneeze or gives them a stuffy nose. Others feel like CPAP causes their nose to run or even to burn. Some people even get nosebleeds.
The good news is that you can learn and do numerous things to eliminate or minimize these types of concerns.
10 Heated CPAP Humidity Tips
Tip #1. Use a Well-Fitting Mask
The most important thing you can do for successful CPAP therapy with or without a humidifier is to use a mask that fits well. A good fit is so important for success because large leaks force the CPAP machine to drive up the amount of flow it must generate to reach the CPAP settings.
As a result of the higher rate of airflow, the humidifier has less time to warm and moisturize the gas, so it works less efficiently and less effectively. Also, the water in the reservoir gets used up more quickly, potentially causing the heater to run dry before you wake up.
Here is a great resource we’ve put together to help you find the perfect mask fit.
Tip #2. Use Heated Tubing
Heated tubing contains a coiled wire that keeps the air warm after it has left the humidifier. Since the temperature drops less between the heater and you, there’s simply less opportunity for a rainout.
Although heated tubing costs a little bit more, it’s worth the upgrade. Here are two examples of heated tubing – one for Resmed machines and one for Philips units:
Tip #3. Use a CPAP with Climate Control
Many modern CPAP machines have the option to use a heated wire circuit in tandem with climate control settings.
Climate control systems use a feedback loop between the heater, the Machine, and a temp probe on the circuit. The equipment automatically adjusts the temperature and humidity based on the room temperature.
Climate controls reduce rainout even more than heated tubing by itself, and some systems are even able to make adjustments based on the water level.
Here are two great examples of such machines. These happen to be bestsellers – Resvent iBreeze and ResMed AirSense 11:
Tip #4. Get a Circuit Wrap
Circuit wraps insulate the CPAP tubing. They ward off the cool-down effect as air travels past the humidifier to the mask. Circuit wraps can help reduce rainout with heated humidification and with cool air humidification.
Tip #5. Reduce Temperature Setting
Simply turn down the temperature setting on the heater. If the temperature on the heater is too high relative to the room temperature, the odds are greater that the gas will cool and trigger condensation before it reaches you.
Turn the temperature down to reduce the temperature gradient and reduce the rainout.
Tip #6. Adjust Your Room Temperature
Just like with the last tip, this suggestion is all about controlling the temperature gradient. If the room is cold, the circuit will be cold, too, and you will experience more rainout as a result.
Warm the room up a bit to keep the system a little warmer.
Tip #7. Clean the Humidifier
This tip has nothing to do with rainouts and everything to do with your health. Any time you add water to anything, you create an environment for germs and mold to grow.
Add heat, and you can make it even more enticing for germs and mold. Follow the directions on your humidifier and clean it daily. Clean your circuit daily, too, and even if you don’t use a humidifier, heat, and moisture from exhaled breath lead to an inviting environment for mold and germs in your circuit and mask.
Take care of yourself and clean your equipment every day. For more CPAP cleaning tips, please refer to this article.
Tip #8. Avoid Overfilling and Underfilling
Find the fill line on the reservoir and mark it with a sharpie on the outside if that line is hard to see.
Fill the humidifier to the line every night. Humidifiers spurt jets of water into the circuit when they’re overfilled, and you could run out of water in the tank before morning if you underfill it.
Tip #9. Level the Humidifier with Your Bed
Although this might seem kind of trivial, it really makes a difference. Where the humidifier sits affects how the circuit is positioned.
If the heater is too low, the circuit will have a big dip in it that invites condensation together in a pool. This pool of rainout restricts flow through the CPAP machine which drives the device to use higher flow rates.
When the flow rate is higher, the humidifier is less effective. Also, if the rainout collects all in one spot in the circuit, it might just travel all up into your face when you roll over in bed.
And if the heater is too high, condensation will drip downhill into the mask in your face.
Tip #10. Check Your Sleeping Space for Drafts
If air from a window, fan, or air vent is blowing directly onto your CPAP circuit, that draft is going to cool the circuit off.
If you’re using a heated circuit or a climate control system, a fan blowing on the thermistor probe can throw off the feedback. Sometimes just changing the angle of the fan or the position of the equipment relative to a vent or a window can make a significant difference.
Well, this does it for us. If you need assistance selecting a well-fitting mask, we have written this guide for that purpose.
And if you need a great mask, a circuit wrap, a heated circuit, or any other equipment to optimize your sleep therapy, our customer service staff at Respshop are happy to lend support.
And whatever you do, sleep tight!