Changed mask and now I have a higher leak rate

I had a full face for the first month. When I was sleeping, my mouth would drop open and cause a leak. I would spend upto an hour trying to remedy the issue. So I decided to try a nasal pillow. The seal (in my opinion) is much better. I’m not woken up from leakage at all. However, my CPAP shows that I have a higher level of leakage than my other mask. Could a higher reading be due to the airflow of the nasal pillow or an I bat sh!t crazy?

Most likely the higher leak numbers are because you are opening your mouth while asleep and air is leaking out the open mouth. With a nasal mask the mouth is uncovered and when open the air can leak out or you can breathe it out as well.
Either will elevate the leak rate numbers when it is being done.

Use available software (OSCAR) and see just how bad the leak is.
If not horribly bad and you are sleeping well and through it all.......probably can ignore it.

Sometimes I mouth breathe with my nasal mask but it doesn't happen often nor is it prolonged and doesn't wake me so I shrug my shoulders and move on.

Pugsy wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 04, 2025 6:37 pm

Most likely the higher leak numbers are because you are opening your mouth while asleep and air is leaking out the open mouth. With a nasal mask the mouth is uncovered and when open the air can leak out or you can breathe it out as well.
Either will elevate the leak rate numbers when it is being done.

Use available software (OSCAR) and see just how bad the leak is.
If not horribly bad and you are sleeping well and through it all.......probably can ignore it.

Sometimes I mouth breathe with my nasal mask but it doesn't happen often nor is it prolonged and doesn't wake me so I shrug my shoulders and move on.

Thanks Pugsy, that sounds pretty likely.

I struggled for years with different types of masks, finally settling on a Resmed N-30 that is quite minimal and just covers the bottom of my nostrils with a single pillow. I never did find a Full Face mask that would stay sealed when I slept in spite of trying man. My Ah-Hah moment was finding out that I needed to sleep with a chin strap to keep my mouth from falling open when I entered REM sleep and was effectively paralyzed. I tried many and the one I like best and find most comfortable is the Ruby chinstrap that CPAP.com sells. They do stretch out over time, although washing them by hand in as warm a water as you can stand, tends to shrink them back a bit. They do ultimately wear out and need replacing when they no longer do the job of keeping your mouth closed.