Traveling Overseas Question

[kclemente]

Hi CPAP fam!

I am planning a work trip overseas, I live in NYC and have never traveled overseas with my cpap. I am worried that I use an outlet converter and somehow blow my cpap machine. Any tips? How do I travel with it? I can't afford a small travel-size machine. Any tips ?

[Jlfinkels]

Which CPAP machine do you have? If it has an adapting power supply (110v or 220v), then you are fine using just a plug adapter. If still worried you can get a power converter from 220v to 110v, which typically has multiple plug types in them so no external adapter needed.

I’ve taken mine to 20+ countries with no issues. Other than one time tripping the breaker for an entire floor in a hotel. Twice.

[booksfan]

Hubby and I have traveled all over the world with our machines (he travels with his home machine, an AirSense 10 AutoSet; I take my AirMini) and we have had no problems. We each have a multi-country adapter I purchased from Amazon. Mine lives in the soft sided lunchbox that serves as my travel case.

[zonker]

Hi CPAP fam!

I am planning a work trip overseas, I live in NYC and have never traveled overseas with my cpap. I am worried that I use an outlet converter and somehow blow my cpap machine. Any tips? How do I travel with it? I can't afford a small travel-size machine. Any tips ?

when taking cpap on an airplane, make sure you carry it on board and don't trust baggage handlers. you'd hate to be overseas and have your cpap somewhere else! be sure to have it tagged as "medical equipment". most airlines are familiar with it.

make sure you talk to your airlines. check to see what their rules and regulations are. the fda says it's medical equipment. but that may not be the case on a carrier that's going overseas.

good luck!

[D.H.]

A CPAP machine is medical equipment on all flights that originate or terminate in the US; including connecting flights. If you booked an overseas flight separately, it's potentially an issue.

Most (all?) CPAPs can handle any voltage between 100 and 240 volts, and 50 hz or 60 hz. That covers every country on the planet; at least every one that has electricity. You will, however, need an adapter for the country(ies) that you're visiting, as your US plug won't fit into a foreign socket. You still need to make sure that your CPAP can handle foreign voltage (I'd be very surprised if it can't).

Also, you should have a permanent packing list for your CPAP that you keep in the CPAP bag. You would not want to forget a component and be unable to use your machine.

Caution #1: If you're going on a cruise, notify the cruise ship company ahead of time. They don't like extension cords, but will make an exception if needed.

Caution #2: Electricity on some aircraft is 115 volts - 400 hz. I don't know if most airlines will let you use the onboard power, but if they do, make sure you're machine can handle 400 hz. Household power is either 50 hz or 60 hz everywhere in the world.

[bayareacpap]

If you are traveling to a country with unreliable power, you might want to purchase an automatic voltage regulator when you arrive. Most of them are pretty inexpensive and keep voltage spikes from getting to your CPAP.

[D.H.]

If your CPAP is dual-voltage, please do not use a converter. It is one more thing to go wrong and it's totally unneeded. You simply need an adapter (i.e. a "shape changer"), not a converter (i.e. a voltage changer).

However, if the power supply is unreliable, you should use a surge suppress built for your destination country(ies). Don't try to use one from your home country if the voltage is different. I'm not sure if the frequency (50 hz vs 60 hz) matters.

[kclemente]

If your CPAP is dual-voltage, please do not use a converter. It is one more thing to go wrong and it's totally unneeded. You simply need an adapter (i.e. a "shape changer"), not a converter (i.e. a voltage changer).

However, if the power supply is unreliable, you should use a surge suppress built for your destination country(ies). Don't try to use one from your home country if the voltage is different. I'm not sure if the frequency (50 hz vs 60 hz) matters.

oh my goodness! Thank you and I hardly understood most of that, I am from NYC, traveling to London, Italy and Amsterdam. How do I know my CPAP is dual voltage? I have a REsmed airsense 10. What is an adapter/shape changer? Help!

[mpeg2]

My wife has the same machine (so I could look at the details). The power "brick" that goes between the cord that plugs into the wall and the cord that plugs into the CPAP has markings on one side that explains what it can utilize for input power. In this particular case it is marked something like: Input Voltage - 120-240 VAC, 50/60 Hz. The US uses 120V, 60 Hz power - the countries you'll be visiting in Europe use 240V, 50 Hz. This means that your power supply will work fine in any of them.

There is one issue - the wall plugs in different countries use different shapes - you can't simply plug in a power cord from the US into an outlet in England, Italy or the Netherlands. Look at: https://www.worldstandards.eu/electrici ... d-sockets/ . For London, you'll need an adapter for Type G (US socket - British Plug). Italy and Amsterdam use the same shape plugs: Type C or F.

You can get adapters for these plugs on Amazon or other places (best to get them before traveling).

Most modern power supplies (phone chargers, PC power bricks & so on) will work in Europe as well as the US - but always look for the markings on the power brick that say what input can be used.

[booksfan]

If your CPAP is dual-voltage, please do not use a converter. It is one more thing to go wrong and it's totally unneeded. You simply need an adapter (i.e. a "shape changer"), not a converter (i.e. a voltage changer).

However, if the power supply is unreliable, you should use a surge suppress built for your destination country(ies). Don't try to use one from your home country if the voltage is different. I'm not sure if the frequency (50 hz vs 60 hz) matters.

oh my goodness! Thank you and I hardly understood most of that, I am from NYC, traveling to London, Italy and Amsterdam. How do I know my CPAP is dual voltage? I have a REsmed airsense 10. What is an adapter/shape changer? Help!

mpeg2 answered the question about your CPAP. Hubby and I have used our (same) machines in all three places with this adapter https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07 ... UTF8&psc=1 (we each have one), but any similar one will work. I actually keep mine IN my CPAP bag.