Cleaning w/vinegar & lemon juice?

[sleepy_knitter]

Hi all - my dad is a longtime CPAP user. I'm new & he told me I should clean my hose with vinegar then lemon juice. CPAP.com said that was a terrible idea. Anyone have any thoughts?

[ehusen]

Well I was told to rinse my stuff in a 1 part vinegar/2 parts water solution for a half hour. (I soak the mask but then just run the solution through the hose a few times and rinse everthing off and air dry).

I've seen many places recommend the vinegar/water solution with many different ratios too.

But the lemon juice sounds just crazy to me. I would think that would be way too acidic.

[sthnreb]

I purchased a long wire handled brush from another site for cleaning hoses. It is 5 foot long and will clean any hose up to 10 foot, 5 foot from each end ($12). Also I use Citrus II mask cleaner and Simple Step mask cleaner (disinfectant) cleaner (about $6 per 8oz spray bottle) on both my mask and hoses. Probably warm soapy water will do fine also in a tub of water. I always soak mine in warm soapy water anyway first. These cleaners also give the mask a clean citrus "smell" after cleaning. Cpap doesn't sell these items that I know of, but other suppliers do. Hope this helps some.

[rock and roll]

Vinegar is a standard cleaner and does very well. I bet the lemon juice is for scent purposes as a lot of people don't like the smell of vinegar. If you rinse thouroughly it probably won't hurt anything but it is an acid.

[dsm]

I have taken to using Listerine mouthwash mixed with water to clean my tubes. This way it doesn't feel funny if any ends up in my mouth.

Not as nice a drink as whisky but much better than vinegar

Cheers

DSM

[rock and roll]

Listerine is full of alcohol and will dry oout the rubber. I would not use it IMHO

[sthnreb]

Finally, warm soapy water works as well as anything. Rinse well and dry.

[dsm]

Listerine is full of alcohol and will dry oout the rubber. I would not use it IMHO

R&R, I was working on the theory that the first rinse with listerine & water would de-germ, that a subsequent rinse with hot water would ensure the listerine went.

I guess that even exposue to diluted alcohol could affect the tube.


Cheers

DSM

[rock and roll]

I can't imagine it's good for it and why take a chance....vinegar does work and it's cheap and easy. Good thought though.

[christinequilts]

The vinegar & water solution is used for a lot of home medical equipment for cleaning- not just xPAP stuff....the 2 most common ratios I've seen recomended in writing by manufactures are 1:3 & 1:4- vinegar:water. I know the Citrus II cleaner some sites sell is corn based- they use corn in Frebreeze too. More and more people are developing allergies/sensativities to corn...I'm one of the unlucky ones...I find the whole idea of the Frebreeze Allergy reducing spray kind of ironic. I imagine that the chances of someone being allergic to vinegar is pretty low; and since it does work well & is readily available, it is the safest bet for manufactures to recomend...if they could come up with something they could charge us for easily don't you think they would have? I do admitt I use Control III to disinfect my equipement every once in a while...probably wouldn't do it for just xPAP stuff but I have other medical stuff I use daily. For routine cleaning of my mask, I use a castile soap-based clenser that I use for my face...I get it at the health food stores though I have seen it recently in more main stream stores too.

[oberfeldwebel]

I'm likely the new guy on the block with a new CAPA REMstar by Respironics, quite a nice unit. Been on it couple weeks. Was advised that many people have used vinegar, but it is not good for the new type materials used in the units. I was told the best is simply the use of Baby Shampoo in warm water and rinsing after cleaning. It seems to work fine. Have yet to get a true understanding of a routine schedule, was advised to clean the humidifier once a week, and not necessarily clean the tube. However, the instruction book says clean the tube every day, which seems a bit much. As the new guy on the block maybe some one can give me some good advice from personal experience.
OFW

[Oberfeldwebel]

Going on couple months now with my CPAP basically same machine as the one you describe, except mine is full face. I was doing the once a week with baby shampoo on mask, hose,filter, and the humidifier daily. Was in to see my therapist last week and discussed the posting here on the various opinions. He says plain soap and water is just fine. Vinegar is not a necessity, but some people still use it. The newer machines components are a bit different in materials than ones of past. Was tempted to use the sprays and such as mentioned by others on this posting, instead used non alcoholic baby wipes on the mask daily if not washed. It is not that inconvenient to wash the whole unit weekly or twice weekly, but the humidifier is best washed daily. Manufacturer's instructions are not to let the equipment soak for a prolonged time, few minutes seem to be the standard at most. Personally, you need to decided how clean you want the air going into your lungs as you sleep. This will set some basic tone and commitment to your equipment cleaning process. Would definitely follow the manufacturer suggestions for solutions " soap and water" as demonstrated on the Disc that comes with the machine. German engineering and technology is some of the best if not best in the world. Tend to go with their suggestions for their equipment. The one thing that seems everyone agrees on is no need to disassemble the mask into individual parts for washing.

[ycartf]

I keep a large container of Lysol Sanitizing Wipes (80count - Citrus Scent) in with my CPAP stuff (always on the road so it's usually always in a large plastic bin) and use them to clean my stuff with. I take one and run it all inside and outside my mask, into each layer of the two seals (Mirage FFM), you name it. I then secure the (bunched up and then folded in half) wipe into the sliding lasso end of a 7-foot length of 30lb-test fishing line with about a 2oz weight on the other end and hold it up (6'2" here) to let the weight drop the line through. I can then hold the hose around my shoulders with an end in each hand (like when you're about to dry your back with a towel) and pull the Lysol Wipe through (slowly for better cleaning if I have not done it in a few days / quicker for touchup cleaning). I have been using this method for the last two years and am still on my original mask and tubing with no visible growth of anything in/on them ever. The Lysol Wipes are the perfect size for this as they are large enough (once gathered together and folded in half - then fed through lasso) to sufficiently contact the whole inside of the tubing, yet small enough to not have to fight hard to pull them through. I am a Fireman/Paramedic and, as a Haz-Mat Technician, have participated in several mold remediations of buildings/rooms that have had bad - even carcinogenic - mold infestations - and the cleaning agent that we almost exclusively use is Lysol solution - it's the very best thing for the job without the damaging effects of bleach - and we don't worry about going back and drying a surface free of it since it will not foster growth of anything harmful (so a residue of it on your stuff and in your tubing is fine - even fresher/cleaner smelling when you run it).

[cpl]

You know, the websites are all over the place with suggestions. I personally hate the ones who try to sell you a product to clean. It is so confusing...soak long, soak short; soap with scents, soaps without...ugh.

Both vinegar and lemon juice are acid and natural cleansing products.

We have been sold a shelf full of cleaning products for years and years by companies who want to make a profit.

Your grandparents and great grandparents did well with cleaning effectively with everyday items in your pantry. Not to mention for the cost of mere pennies and a saving of space below your kitchen sink!

I like vinegar or lemon juice. I don't soak the parts in full strength and I rinse. I have had less side effects on my allegies since I started using them. For me the ultra filter seemed to help the most. At one point my allergies were so bad I was taking a chemical to combat them and it didn't work well at all. I really think the allegies had more to do with the force of air that was blowing them into my nose with force. Finally I quite washing the hoses so frequently and I am still doing so much better than the obsessive-compulsive rituals I used the first year. My guess is the companies are covering themselves incase we get any reaction they could be held responsible for and thus sued.

Don't go crazy. See what works for your peace of mind with the lowest costs. If you read enough of the responses you can tell there is no ONE WAY to do the cleaning.

Best wishes to you all!

[Ternes4202]

Hi All,

Just curious as I am a new cpap user. Everyone mentions vinegar to clean but no one ever mentions using a small amout of bleach. Is it safe or unsafe?

I have been cleaning mine by soaking in hot water with some dish detergent, then rinsing in hot water with 1 capful of bleach.

Any thoughts would be grateful!

Cindy