Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCausesSigns of WaterHow to Get Rid of WaterHow to Avoid Water in the Tube
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Causes
Signs of Water
How to Get Rid of Water
How to Avoid Water in the Tube
Brandon Peters, M.D.
The build-up of moisture in a CPAP machine is most often due to the use of aheated humidifier. This built-in feature is often recommended because non-humidified air from a CPAP machine can cause sneezing, throat irritation, dry mouth, and cracked nasal passages.
However, problems can occur when heated moisture is delivered through an unheated tube. This moisture can start to condense and create tiny beads of water that run from the tube to the mask and eventually splash on your face. This is described as rainout.
The risk of rainout increases if you sleep in a cold room, causing icy air outside of the tube to meet warm air inside of the tube. Similarly, if the humidity setting on the machine is high, moisture build-up is likely.
Is CPAP Rainout Dangerous?Keeping the mask, hose, and the standing water reservoir in your CPAP machine clean is essential. It’s important to make sure that the air circulating through the machine is as clean as possible. If you ignore regular CPAP cleaning, bacteria, mold, and germs can build up inside the device, which increases your risk of developing respiratory infections and other issues.
Is CPAP Rainout Dangerous?
Keeping the mask, hose, and the standing water reservoir in your CPAP machine clean is essential. It’s important to make sure that the air circulating through the machine is as clean as possible. If you ignore regular CPAP cleaning, bacteria, mold, and germs can build up inside the device, which increases your risk of developing respiratory infections and other issues.
Signs of Water in CPAP Hose
For a CPAP machine to work at its best, you need heat and humidity in the mask and tubes to match the heat and humidity outside of the mask and tubes. Rainout can occur if you don’t.
You can tell you have rainout when:
If moisture condensation has occurred, you need to get it out of the tubing so that it is completely dry and ready for the next night’s use. If not, the pooled water can become a hotbed for fungus or bacteria.
There are two ways to remove water from a CPAP tube:
You also need to give the mask, tube, and water chamber a good washing at least once weekly per the manufacturer’s instructions. If you are sick, washing should be done daily.
How Long Should I Soak My CPAP Hose When Cleaning?Soak your CPAP hose in warm, soapy water for 30–60 minutes. After soaking, rinse the hose thoroughly and allow it to air dry.
How Long Should I Soak My CPAP Hose When Cleaning?
Soak your CPAP hose in warm, soapy water for 30–60 minutes. After soaking, rinse the hose thoroughly and allow it to air dry.
Prevention
Rainout is common among CPAP users, but there are a few simple ways to avoid this issue and make CPAP therapy more effective.
How Do I Stop My CPAP Hose From Gurgling?
Use Heated Tubing
Using a heated tube (also known as aclimate line) is the best way to avoid condensation. A climate line delivers warm, moist air from the heated humidifier to theCPAP mask. This balances the internal and external temperature so that moisture does not condense.
Most newer CPAP units offer a climate line as a standard feature. Some models have heated wires that run the length of the tube to keep the temperature between 78 and 82 degrees F.
Older CPAP machines can be fitted with a special heated tube attachment, allowing you to keep your current machine. Hybernite Rainout Control System is among the best-known brands.
Adjust the Humidifier Setting
A simpler option is to turn down the temperature of the humidifier. Start at a lower temperature and gradually increase until you receive the highest humidity without rainout.
Though CPAP machines vary, many have humidity settings ranging from 1 to 6. Start with 3 and see how you feel, increasing or decreasing as needed.
Change the Ambient Temperature
It can take trial and error to get the humidifier temperature aligned with the ambient temperature of the room.
A good place to start is to find the ambient temperature that is most comfortable for you to sleep in. You can then increase or decrease the temperature of your humidifier until you achieve the right balance.
Adjustments may be needed during hot summer months and cold winter months.
Adjust the Position of the Machine
Another useful tip is to put the CPAP machine on the floor. By doing so, the moisture that collects in the tube does not run back to your face.
While this tip may be useful in preventing splashback, it may not stop the spitting or sputtering sounds.
Wrap the Hose
You can also put the CPAP tubing under the bed covers. This will help warm the tube so that moisture is less likely to condense.
There are also special fabric covers you can buy online that slip over the tubes to help keep them warm. SnuggleHose is one of the more well-known brands. You can also make CPAP fabric covers on your own.
Summary
There are several ways to deal with this. This includes buying a machine with heated tubes, adjusting the temperature of the humidifier and/or bedroom, insulating the CPAP tube, or placing the CPAP unit on the floor.
7 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Sleep Apnea Association.CPAP humidification.
Harvard Health Publishing - Harvard Medical School.Can your CPAP make you sick?
O’Brien DT, Knowles S, Candelario DM, Robinson MR, Chowdhuri S.How to make your patient with sleep apnea a super user of positive airway pressure therapy.Fed Pract.2016 Mar;33(3):14–22.
National Council on Aging.How to clean a CPAP machine.
WeillCornell.org.CPAP Equipment Cleaning and Disinfecting Instructions.
Nilius G, Domanski U, Schroeder M, Woehrle H, Graml A, Franke KJ.Mask humidity during CPAP: influence of ambient temperature, heated humidification and heated tubing.Nat Sci Sleep.2018;10:135-42. doi:10.2147/NSS.S158856
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