Full Review of Resmed Airfit F30 Full Face Mask

Just got the F30, and have tried it on, and will be doing a full review. Have a cold, so it's fitting (pun intended) that I get it this week.

1. First comment: the medium mask may be too small for me, and others. I'm still playing with it, but it appears that the medium may still press against the bottom part of my nose too much. I don't have a particularly wide nose, so this may mean that for a significant part of the population the mask may require a Large variant to be workable.

2. Adjusting the mask straps is simple and the magnetic clips on the bottom straps are helpful.

3. First use, the mask appears to have some weird dynamics with breathing. If you breathe through your mouth, you get a mouth inflation feeling which is weird, and uncomfortable. I'll try to explain this more when I have played with it a bit more.

4. The quick release tube coupler is nice for when you want to leave the mask on, but release from your cpap hose (going to the bathroom for example.) Press on two tabs, and you are free.

5. The mask is quiet quiet quiet!

First impression, mixed. I'll also be comparing it with my Mirage Quattro, which is the only other full face mask I have.

What about the headgear, is it fairly generous since it only comes in one size?

And I wonder if maybe it's too small and that's what is causing the cushion to press up too hard against the bottom of your nose? I've had this problem with top straps being too tight before.

Okay, so here is the full review:

I have had the mask for about 2 1/2 weeks and have slept with it several times.



First of all, I have put up many pictures here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tf4k7whbz1ji ... 4m_9a?dl=0

1. First comment: the medium mask may be too small for me, and others. I'm still playing with it, but it appears that the medium may still press against the bottom part of my nose too much. I don't have a particularly wide nose, so this may mean that for a significant part of the population the mask may require a Large variant to be workable, which currently does not exist. I have posted the sizing gauge with a ruler next to it but be aware that I suspect the maximum width of your nose can only be 4.3 mm not the 4.7 the mask gauge would suggest. I don't think this is a function of how the straps are adjusted but rather a function of the top part having a fairly rigid substructure. It also may be unique to my nose, although my nose is pretty typical and not particularly large. LOL

2. Adjusting the mask straps is simple and the magnetic clips on the bottom straps are helpful. The magnets are strong however the plastic tabs that the magnets attached to could potentially be a point of failure since there is a flexible tab.

3. First use, the mask appears to have some weird dynamics with breathing. If you breathe through your mouth, you get a mouth inflation feeling which is weird, and uncomfortable. I'll try to explain this more when I have played with it a bit more. This continued to be an issue for me but only if my mouth opened during the night.

4. The quick release tube coupler is nice for when you want to leave the mask on, but release it from your cpap hose (going to the bathroom for example.) Press on two tabs, and you are free. The vent is built into this coupler and it is a very quiet vent indeed. There's no vent in the main mask. There's also a valve inside the tube for safety.

5. The mask is quiet quiet quiet! And it does not blow much air.

So what did I think after using it several times? Short answer, I am returning it using my mask insurance. Thank you CPAP.com.

If you like using a full face mask and the bottom of your nose is small enough to fit this, you might like this mask. I compared it with my older Mirage Quattro, which I actually found more comfortable to wear. The Mirage has softer silicone and fits about halfway up the bridge of the nose rather than pressing up against the bottom of the nose. For me, I didn't really enjoy all the headgear compared to my air fit P 10, and even though part of the time I was congested I still found that the P 10 allowed me to breathe adequately, especially if I used a little nasal decongestant spray.

The headgear was as comfortable as I could imagine a full face headgear could be. Because the mask sits below the nose it does not block any vision for reading with the mask on. The quick release piece on the front of the mask is very well designed and would make it very easy to quickly release it, go to the bathroom, come back to the bedroom, click it back in and resume your evening with CPAP.

If anyone has any questions I am happy to answer them. By the way, I paid $135 by taking advantage of the initial sale on the mask.

remstarcpap wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 08, 2018 3:25 pm

Okay, so here is the full review:

I have had the mask for about 2 1/2 weeks and have slept with it several times.



First of all, I have put up many pictures here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tf4k7whbz1ji ... 4m_9a?dl=0

1. First comment: the medium mask may be too small for me, and others. I'm still playing with it, but it appears that the medium may still press against the bottom part of my nose too much. I don't have a particularly wide nose, so this may mean that for a significant part of the population the mask may require a Large variant to be workable, which currently does not exist. I have posted the sizing gauge with a ruler next to it but be aware that I suspect the maximum width of your nose can only be 4.3 mm not the 4.7 the mask gauge would suggest. I don't think this is a function of how the straps are adjusted but rather a function of the top part having a fairly rigid substructure. It also may be unique to my nose, although my nose is pretty typical and not particularly large. LOL

There may be several variables at work there, depending on the contours of your face. My nose is 37 mm wide at its widest point, so it was slightly more than a millimeter into the medium range on both sides of the fitting template. However, the small AirFit F30 cushion turned out to be the best fit for me. I compared the cushion with my N20 nasal mask, and the fit is almost identical. If you wear a small in the N20, you should try a small in the F30. Despite my small nose, I actually have a wide mouth, but the F30 is more than able to accomodate that as well.

When I tried the medium AirFit F30 cushion, I couldn't get a good seal without considerable upwards pressure on my nose, and even then a small bump in the night could throw everything off and cause a leak. (I only wore the medium cushion for one night.) In contrast, the small cushion was very comfortable for me once I got the headgear figured out.

These are the three observations I had regarding fitting:

1) The crown strap will feel very tight no matter what, due to physics and its position relative to the other straps. However, when I loosened it that took care of the excess upwards pressure on my nose.

2) The upper straps need to be snug in order to keep the mask from pulling away from the face with hose movement, but they should not be overtightened. I have found that it works best to keep them loose while I am putting on the mask, and then tighten them after the mask is in position so that they are snug but I can still slip one finger under each of them. This means undoing and redoing the velcro every night, but this new type of velcro looks like it can be adjusted repeatedly without causing excessive wear.

3) The lower straps should be pretty loose. They are mainly there just to keep the mask from flying off the face. Faces vary, of course, but I get a better seal around the lower lip with this mask than I do with the DreamWear FFM. The AirFit F30 allows for a much greater range of jaw motion for me than the DreamWear FFM or the Amara View.

All in all, I'm happy with my small F30. I've worn it for 8 nights now, and I'm unlikely to go back to the DreamWear FFM. Perhaps the most amazing feature of the F30 is its quiet exhaust. The venting feels no different than that of the P10 nasal pillows. The air coming out is so quiet and diffused that I can barely feel it unless I wave my hand really close to the vent. The F20, although quiet, still blew air onto my arms and shoulders. The elbow on the F30 is definitely more advanced.

weroberts75 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 09, 2018 9:35 am

The crown strap will feel very tight no matter what, due to physics and its position relative to the other straps. However, when I loosened it that took care of the excess upwards pressure on my nose.

So this is three weeks later.

I wound up loosening the crown strap another quarter of an inch, pulling the headgear down a little further in the back, and then tightening the other straps accordingly.
This seems to have solved my problem with bumping the mask in the middle of the night and having to get up and realign it.

Thanks for this. Is it easy to get off if you awake with that suffocation feeling? That is the main thing I like about the dreamware. Those little magnatic things are great. I hate the leaks tho.

The magnetic clips are easy to disconnect. If you have a suffocating feeling, it is easy to disconnect the elbow on the front of the mask. This creates an opening that is around an inch across allowing easy breathing. It sounds counter productive, but I have found the mask seals better around the nose if I pull it down slightly.

Sorry it took me so long to respond. I was out of town for the weekend and just saw this. Thank you for the info.

Cynmatthes wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 30, 2018 9:23 am

Thanks for this. Is it easy to get off if you awake with that suffocation feeling? That is the main thing I like about the dreamware. Those little magnatic things are great. I hate the leaks tho.

Yes I would say it's easy to pull off rapidly. The magnetic lower straps pop right off. I suppose if you pulled hard enough they would pop off even without locating them. I never felt suffocated, especially given that this is a full face mask.