Air leaks

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
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raneyday
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Nov 22, 2004 4:00 pm
Location: North Carolina

Air leaks

Post by raneyday » Tue Mar 15, 2005 8:50 am

I'm having a heck of a lot of trouble with my Ultra Mirage full face mask. Lately, I just can't keep the thing from leaking. And it tends to leak right into my eyes! I've thought about getting an eye mask just to keep the air off. Anybody have any other ideas?

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Mask: Mirage Quattro™ Full Face CPAP Mask with Headgear
Additional Comments: Pressure 13

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wading thru the muck!
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Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 11:42 am

Post by wading thru the muck! » Tue Mar 15, 2005 9:03 am

How old is the cushion? You may need to replace it.
Sincerely,
wading thru the muck of the sleep study/DME/Insurance money pit!

Mikesus
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Joined: Wed Feb 09, 2005 6:50 pm

Post by Mikesus » Tue Mar 15, 2005 6:37 pm

Might need to adjust the angle of the forehead support...

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WindFlyer
Posts: 262
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2004 12:35 pm
Location: Michigan, USA

Post by WindFlyer » Wed Mar 16, 2005 11:57 am

I've had that same problem with my ultra-mirage FF mask. What I've found is that it takes a bit of experimentation with the forehead support, and also moving the mask around on the face. Try moving it up and down so the top of the face cushion rests higher or lower on the bridge of the nose. Also try side to side movement of the forehead pads to adjust the top of the mask left and right on the bridge of the nose. Eventually it will stop leaking. It may take two or three times doing this as the night goes on- I've woken up in the middle of the night with wind in my eyes, but after nudging the top of the mask left or right the problem goes away.

One other thing that I've found, surprisingly, is that my older mask doesn't have this problem as often as my new one that I just got 1 week ago does. Does anyone know if the face cushion on these requires some sort of break-in period or does it become more flexible over time?

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meister
Posts: 399
Joined: Fri Jan 21, 2005 11:15 am

Try some tissue paper

Post by meister » Wed Mar 16, 2005 3:07 pm

put it between the mask and your skin. You might dampen it a smudge
to hold it in place while you put your mask on. Otherwise, doubleside
"double-stick" scotch tape will hold the tissue to your skin and hold the
tissue paper in place. I use a very small bandaide on my nose, and
then a piece of Kleenex to keep the leaks out of my eyes. You are
correct in that you can stay awake all night adjusting the mask while
you roll around in bed. However, if you are going to do that, you might as
not even wear the mask. I feel fortunate that when my mask leaks I
wake up with "wet eyes", not the horrid "dry eye sockets" folks have
warned sternly about. Moleskin or bandaides at other spots on your
face may also help some.

Mikesus
Posts: 1211
Joined: Wed Feb 09, 2005 6:50 pm

Post by Mikesus » Wed Mar 16, 2005 6:36 pm

Dumb question, are you washing the seal as instructed? I use Dial (unscented) soap and wash the seal daily. I find that if I don't, it leaks quite a bit more...