Use Any Mask with your AirMini

I have a special need for a small ultra packable travel machine primarily for my extensive motorcycle touring trips where space is extremely limited. I started several years ago with a Transcend which frankly worked just fine, however, I got intrigued with the HDM Z1 and began to use it instead because it was somewhat smaller and a better packing shape than the Transcend. On a recent trip I managed to kill my Z1 (through my own negligence) so when I went to replace my busted Z1 I decided to give the AirMini a try instead.
The AirMini is a great little machine although all these ultra-small travel size machines do suffer from the high turbine speed Darth Vadar annoying breathing noise to varying degrees........I would rate the AirMini as suffering the effect the least, the Transcend almost tied with the AirMini maybe just slightly noisier, and the Z1 a very, very distant third (the Z1 is by far the noisiest of the three). I was really rather pleasantly surprised with the AirMini both in how smoothly it breathed, and how low it scored on my own personal breathing noise test/scale.

One major concern with the AirMini is ResMed's decision to attempt to make the AirMini proprietary in terms of the mask that can be used with the machine (huge, huge marketing mistake on ResMed's part!!!). However, where there is a will, there is a way -- I ordered the machine with the F20 full face mask option/bundle and tried the F20 which was acceptable, but not my personal first pick in full face masks in terms of comfort (personally I much prefer the F&P Simplus mask -- much more comfortable for me personally). With the F20 bundle you don't get the HME humidifier option (I personally don't need it for a travel machine anyway) but that leaves the door wide open to simply modify the F20 supplied hose so that you can then use any CPAP mask that you want. This also gives you the ability to use a third party HME cartridge if you feel the need such as the HDM HME cartridge, or a third party one that I think cpap.com carries if you search for it. But again, I really don't personally have a need for the not so effective HME option.

So the mask end of the F20 AirMini hose has a small swivel connector on it -- I have several hoses from other machines and one short hose piece that I think came with an F&P add-on external humidifier, but at any rate all you need is a short hose piece or coupler with the rubber/silicone attachment flange on the end. The silicone flange fits right over the swivel connector on the AirMini F20 hose end nice and snug, and then just use a liberal amount of clear silicone seal to glue and seal the connection. The connection is nice and snug and will not come loose as you toss and turn at night, I have used my modified hose successfully several nights with no problem whatsoever.........pictures below:

My modification adds a little more than an additional foot the ResMed hose with the short addition I used, but you may be able to find a coupler that is shorter than this one.......I will look when I get a chance and see if I can find a shorter option, but this short F&P hose splice works just fine with the pliable silicone end flanges.

Edit: I found a page on cpap.com with short hose coupler options that would work, just pick one with the rubber ends that can fit over the AirMini swivel coupler: https://www.cpap.com/cpap-hose/cpap-hose-short.php

When I read the title I half expected a hatchet job with copious amounts of duct tape. Looks good!

Nice to see a fellow rider on a non-rider forum. What bike(s) do you ride?

This proprietary hose issue is the very reason I haven't purchased the AirMini. Even though it costs more than the Z1 and Transcend Auto that I'm looking at buying, I would much rather buy the AirMini. Cost really isn't a concern since I'm paying for the device from a company matched HSA account.

Are you at all concerned that these machines are designed for the smaller 15mm tubing? From the look of your pictures, the hose attached to your mask is the larger diameter hose.

No, the the very short hose attachment, which is the standard CPAP hose diameter, does not apreaciably change the delivered therapy pressure. I have a manometer (pressure testing kit) and the readings are no different with my setup verses stock slim-line ResMed AirMini hose. If you check the link in my original post I believe that some of the short hose sections on CPAP.com are even a few inches shorter than the section I used, which I think came with a F&P external CPAP humidifier.

If you go this route just be sure that the end connections are the simple rubber/silicone type so that the connection can stretch a bit to fit over the AirMini hose swivel connection on the mask end of the F20 hose kit. It fits nice and tight and with a little added silicone seal it results in a strong, no leak connection that is actually much stronger than the standard hose to mask connection that you'd find on any standard hose.

Also I would almost guarantee that some CPAP accessory company will eventually come out with a simple adapter/connector piece that will allow any mask to be connected to the AirMini hose........my setup is just an inexpensive stop-gap measure until some commercially available fix comes to market. It's my personal opinion that ResMed really messed up by trying to make the mask proprietary on their new AirMini machine; there are many customers that will not consider the AirMini for just this reason alone. They should fire the marketing genius that came up with that idea.

Thanks for the reply.

I'd like to do what you did, but I don't need or want the mask. I prefer to stick with my Philips Respironics DreamWear mask which is absolutely love. So CPAP.com sells the AirMini with the option: AirFit F20 Mask Setup Pack (No Mask Included, Must Already Own a F20 Mask). I assume this is really just the hose and not the hose and mask. So I'm guessing it's exactly what you have, less the mask. I would then use the small hose extension and connect my mask normally. Does that sound about right?

Yes, absolutely correct, the F20 hose is needed because it is also a proprietary connection at the machine end of the hose. What you will also get is the plastic elbow attachment at the mask end because it is a special mask elbow that is not the same as a standard F20 elbow attachment. That little elbow attachment will detach with a twist from the AirMini hose leaving the hose end that has a swivel (360 hose swivel) hard plastic piece and that is what you slide your short hose attachment over and silicone seal to make the splice. So you are actually pushing the silicone rubber end of the added short standard diameter hose right over the top of the hard plastic AirMini hose end which is a swivel.

I don't have a chance right now to insert a picture of the swivel hose end, but I will be able to do that later this evening when I am at home where I have an additional AirMini hose that I can do a picture of before and after the hose splice goes on.

I pulled the trigger with the AirMini and the F20 hose last night. I also purchased that 18" extension. Thanks for the help. Hopefully, it all goes as planned. I can't wait to see an aftermarket hose connector to quickly solve this workaround.

Thanks, great idea. I'm not sure the cord configuration you got with the F20, but I'm pretty sure that I basically have the same cord with my nasal mask, and I was able to also do the same gerry rigging of a smaller hose that I had. Great idea!

I haven't used the silicone seal yet- which brand did you use?

Also, did you find that swapping out the noisy ResMed humidifer component made it less noisy?

GE Silicone II clear premium silicone glue -- after its cured it does not give off any fumes, you can get it at any hardware store or probably even Walgreens or supermarket.

The F20 AirMini hose does not have the humidifier apparatus to begin with, so no change in noise level or what I refer to as the Darth Vader breathing noise. Most people think the noise is caused by humidifier but it's really the result of the small high speed turbines that all these small machines use.......of the three brands, AirMini, Transcend, and Z1 -- I personally rate them

1. AirMini

2. Transcend

3. Z1

As best to worst in the breathing noise issue........AirMini best to Z1 as by far the loudest, most annoying.

Thanks that's great.

It's been less discussed here, but Philip's portable unit - which is very slightly larger but still quite portable - got some good reviews and as far as I can tell is less noisy. Would love to hear from someone who has tried both AirMini and Philips what they think. (Agree w/ you that the Z1 is way worse.)

At least with my AirMini mask there was a slight whistling sound in addition to the darth vader sound. I found the whistling was more annoying than the darth vader. I was trying to figure out if it was due to the humidifer or to the slightly different design of the air vents.

Soooo.... I did indeed get the GE Clear Silicone II and jerry rigged the set up with the extra hose extender. I then attached my regular ResMed nasal pillow mask and the HME in line humidity thing from the Z1. Overall, I qualitatively have found it to be much quieter and more comfortable, amazingly. Unfortunately, I cannot do an a/b test versus the mask that comes with the airmini because my hose is now modified, so I would need to get a second, unmodified hose to do that. (Which I probably will, just because I'm a geek.)

Anyway, it's nice knowing I'm no longer locked into ResMed's mask or their humidifier! Woo hoo!!

robo2084 wrote:so I would need to get a second, unmodified hose to do that. (Which I probably will, just because I'm a geek.)

spare hoses are dirt cheap on amazon... and most online places.

you should have spares of *EVERYTHING*

In this case the hose that's needed has a special plug that goes I to the airmini

robo2084 wrote:In this case the hose that's needed has a special plug that goes I to the airmini

sorry, I misread, and thought you'd modified a regular hose, and didn't have another to compare with, my bad.

I actually used the inlet tube from an old ResMed Mirage Liberty. It had rubber connectors and connects perfectly and is air tight. I happily use my Simplus mask with the AirMini. Kind of ironic that the workaround for the AirMini comes from ResMed itself!