Pinholes in Resmed ClimateLine Heated Tube?

[jsmit86]

I started CPAP in June of 2018.
Around October, I had my tube start leaking air. It appeared to be a pinhole in the side. I replaced it, and had the same thing happen within a couple of days.
Again, the hole appeared to be a pinhole puncture, not a tear.

We have a cat, and while I have not caught him in the act, I suspected that perhaps he somehow got a hold of the tube and either clawed it or bit it.
My wife promptly scolded me for blaming the cat, and assured me that I was crazy.

It happened again in January, so I replaced the hose with a spare, and I started putting it away inside a cubby in my head board.

Fast forward to last night, I have another leak, and sure enough, it's a pinhole. I may have left the hose out for a bit a couple of days ago.

My question for the forum is, do any of you without critters at home get pinholes in these hoses? If so, how often are you replacing them for leaks.
It seems that I should get more than 3 months out of these things. I would think that wear would show up as a tear, rather than a pin hole.

[Pugsy]

I know your wife doesn't want to hear it but the first suspect would be kitty. Some cats just want to kill that snake. It's in their nature.
And yes...wear and tear hose failure is more likely to be a split or real tear and usually happens around the rubber coupling...most often from human hands being a little rough. I had a heated hose with over 10,000 hours on it and it didn't have any holes in it and it never tore either....but then I didn't mess with it much and while I do have more than one cat...they have never been interested in my cpap hose...now electrical power cords is another story and I have had to encase all my power cords in a protective sleeve.
That heated hose got retired just because I got a new machine and it wouldn't work on my new machine.

You can do a temporary repair of any tears and/or pin holes with duct tape or vet wrap tape.
If kitty likes a special section and is always attacking one spot on the hose you might do some preemptive vet wrap in an effort to ward off punctures. A hose cozy might help if it is dense enough but that adds a lot of weight to things which might bring other problems.

And of course try to be more diligent about putting the snake awake from the kitty so kitty's nature to kill snakes doesn't result in a damaged hose.

[Pugsy]

If you don't know what vet wrap is
https://www.amazon.com/Prairie-Horse-Su ... B00MKAHMFO
think of it as thicker and more sturdy than regular tape and it might be enough to prevent claw damage.
Now teeth damage....I don't know it would be thick enough...I think a lot would depend on the strength of the bite.

[Okie bipap]

I recommend you try a hose cover. Karen at padacheek sells very nice ones. Also try sending a PM to metsfan 302. He used to make very nice, heavy hose covers that would probably protect the hose from further cat attacks.

[jsmit86]

If you don't know what vet wrap is
https://www.amazon.com/Prairie-Horse-Su ... B00MKAHMFO
think of it as thicker and more sturdy than regular tape and it might be enough to prevent claw damage.
Now teeth damage....I don't know it would be thick enough...I think a lot would depend on the strength of the bite.

I just ordered a couple of rolls of this stuff. I'll probably just put some tape on the the hose tonight, and then try the vet wrap.
I guess if it seals the leaks, I can keep using the hose for a bit. I also saw the post about the cover. I may give that a shot as well.

[jsmit86]

I recommend you try a hose cover. Karen at padacheek sells very nice ones. Also try sending a PM to metsfan 302. He used to make very nice, heavy hose covers that would probably protect the hose from further cat attacks.

I was just looking at hose covers at Amazon. One of the suppliers said that it's not for heated hoses, that you could start a fire.
The hose is not that hot. Does anyone have any more info on this?

[ClayL]

Auto supply stores have different sizes of corrugated flexible tube wiring loom with a slit down one side. I have used it to protect oxygen tubes, electrical wires, computer cables and etc from cats and puppies. It's lightweight and flexible. For pinholes I would use a UV activated liquid. It's not cheap but a little goes a long way and it has many uses. For pinhole you would put a drop of the thick liquid on the hose and shine the included UV light on it for a minute.
https://www.amazon.com/RapidFix-Liquid- ... way&sr=8-4
This is a 3/4 inch diameter but many sizes are available.
https://www.amazon.com/Flexible-Polyeth ... ive&sr=1-5

[Goofproof]

I started CPAP in June of 2018.
Around October, I had my tube start leaking air. It appeared to be a pinhole in the side. I replaced it, and had the same thing happen within a couple of days.
Again, the hole appeared to be a pinhole puncture, not a tear.

We have a cat, and while I have not caught him in the act, I suspected that perhaps he somehow got a hold of the tube and either clawed it or bit it.
My wife promptly scolded me for blaming the cat, and assured me that I was crazy.

It happened again in January, so I replaced the hose with a spare, and I started putting it away inside a cubby in my head board.

Fast forward to last night, I have another leak, and sure enough, it's a pinhole. I may have left the hose out for a bit a couple of days ago.

My question for the forum is, do any of you without critters at home get pinholes in these hoses? If so, how often are you replacing them for leaks.
It seems that I should get more than 3 months out of these things. I would think that wear would show up as a tear, rather than a pin hole.

If she won't let you blame the cat, the logical choice, it has to be your wife biting the hose, restrain her but watch out for the claws! Jim

[Okie bipap]

I use a cover from padacheek on my climateline hose and have not had any problems with the hose. I have also used one of the covers made by metsfan 302 without any problems. The only reason I changed to the padacheek hose cover was to make it match my strap pads. When my wife was first diagnosed with sleep apnea, I ordered matching hose cover and strap pads from padacheek for her. Once she got her machine and started using it, she suggested it would be nice if my hose cover and strap pads matched. After over fifty years of marriage, I have learned how suggestions work.

[chunkyfrog]

Just a note in support of the kitty:
NEVER, under any circumstances, consider declawing a cat!
It maims the cat, and causes lifelong pain, sensitivity, and behavioral issues.
It is outlawed in more civilized places, and responsible vets will refuse to perform the procedure.

[jsmit86]

I tried a quick temporary repair with some clear shipping tape. No dice. The hole is down in the spiral section, and the tape is riding the top of those spirals. Even pressing it down into the spirals only stops the air leak for a few seconds.

I ordered some of the vet tape, I'll give that a shot tomorrow. I have a spare slimline non-heated hose. I'll use that tonight.

[zonker]

I tried a quick temporary repair with some clear shipping tape. No dice. The hole is down in the spiral section, and the tape is riding the top of those spirals. Even pressing it down into the spirals only stops the air leak for a few seconds.

I ordered some of the vet tape, I'll give that a shot tomorrow. I have a spare slimline non-heated hose. I'll use that tonight.

perhaps a few spare bread ties to push the tape into the "valley"? or maybe rubber bands?

[zoocrewphoto]

I agree with the others. Most likely the cat. I have several, but thankfully, they have no interest in the hose. Only a few rare times when I happened to adjust it, and it landed on top of a cat. I pretty much invited them to consider it a kicker toy. I am on my second hose (in 7 years) with my primary machine, and first hose with travel machine.

Since it seems like the cat is interested in it, I would do some type of cover. The hose cozies are intended to insulate non-heated hoses, so they would be a little thicker. you might do fine with a tube sock (toe cut open), or a cover made with thinner material. The main idea is make it too boring to play with.

I keep my machine in an end table. The machine sits in the second drawer which leaves it at a good height for me. In the morning, I unhook the mask and put it in the top drawer. I coil the hose into the second drawer with the machine and close it. The cats do have access at night when it is in use, but so far, my only issue has been that Quinn steps on the power button occasionally, shutting it off. Maybe twice a year. Not a biggie.

[jsmit86]

I have a spare ClimateLine, and another one is coming tomorrow. I'm using a standard hose tonight, since the repair did not work.
I figured I could try a repair, but doing some research, this is not really recommended for long term on a heated hose. I'll try the vet tape to see if it works, and I will bring that with me when I travel, using a regular hose.

I think I will order a cover, but I'd feel better knowing that other's are doing this with no problem for a heated hose.

[Pugsy]

There's no problem using a hose cozy on the heated hose.
The worst thing that could happen is you use less electricity to keep the air in the hose at the temperature selected because the cozy helps insulate things. Not a bad thing at all.

I have even used the Padacheek hose cozy which is a lot thicker and denser than some of those others on Amazon and various places and never had a problem with it overheating the heated hose.

Lots of people use hose cozies on heated hoses just because they don't want to feel the plastic against their skin.