ResMed F30 needs a large cushion

I wanted to post some quick thoughts on the ResMed AirFit F30. I ordered one with the 30 day guarantee from thecpapshop.com. Love the design, very well done, good headgear, very comfortable.

Unfortunately, the DME-friendly "two sizes fits most" approach is not patient-friendly. The medium cushion was not really wide enough for my nose, and the cushion has stiff sidewalls, which pinched the sides of my nostrils. This had two negative effects - pinching my nose a little made it harder to breath through my nose if the cushion wasn't sitting just right, and because it was not sitting well on my nose, I had impossible to solve leaks at the corners where the nostril meets the upper lip at any pressure over 10.

I hope ResMed reconsiders their approach here and does the right thing for their patients by making a large/wide cushion. For now, I'll be sending the mask back and looking into the DreamWear FFM or Amara View.

I have tried all three masks and have gone back to the Dreamwear FFM. I really liked how the F30 felt, but I could not get it adjusted sell enough. It would seal great for two or three nights, then leak like crazy. I would adjust it again, it would seal for two or three nights, then start leaking again. I thought sure this mask would be the one for me, but finally gave up just before my 30 trial period was over. I found the Dreamwear easier to get adjusted so it doesn't leak than the Amara View was.

Do you think because it is too small? Would it maybe work better for a woman ? Did your wife try it ?

Cynmatthes wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 11, 2018 1:43 pm

Do youthink because it is too small? Would it maybe work better for a woman ?

The Medium definitely seems to have a "nostril area" that isn't wide enough to comfortably fit my nostrils. The problem is that they have those stiffer sidewalls that go up around your nose - masks like the Dreamwear FFM just have a slit that your nose rests on, and not much of a sidewall that envelopes your nose. I wear a medium in the Dreamwear nasal cushion mask and that works great. Without that sidewall, having big nostrils isn't as much of a problem because they don't get pinched, hence why I think the Dreamwear/Amara FFM may work better for me if ResMed doesn't want to make a large/medium cushion for the F30.

ResMed makes a Medium and a Small for the F30, so I think most women should be fine with those options.

I have a new in package Amara view Medium for sale

I wear a medium cushion and a small headgear in the dreamwear, I have no idea what size I would wear in the Amara View or anything else. ( Other than the simplus small that they used on me for the sleep study that I hated). Is there any place where we can go to look at and try on masks ?

My wife did not try the F30. She tried the DreamWear FFM for two or three weeks but went back to her F20. She said she wasn't interested in trying the F30.

Bummer. I don't want to try the f-20 because it goes over the nose. I wear glasses and am slightly claustrophobic.

I had the same problem with my F30, and returned it. They do need a large, or at least to soften the sidewalls.

remstarcpap wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 16, 2018 2:51 am

I had the same problem with my F30, and returned it. They do need a large, or at least to soften the sidewalls.

Thanks for confirming I'm not crazy! The kind folks at The Cpap Shop said they would pass along my feedback to ResMed, so hopefully there's a chance they'll do something about it.

juaquin wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 11, 2018 12:50 pm

The medium cushion was not really wide enough for my nose, and the cushion has stiff sidewalls, which pinched the sides of my nostrils. This had two negative effects - pinching my nose a little made it harder to breath through my nose if the cushion wasn't sitting just right, and because it was not sitting well on my nose, I had impossible to solve leaks at the corners where the nostril meets the upper lip at any pressure over 10.

I hope ResMed reconsiders their approach here and does the right thing for their patients by making a large/wide cushion. For now, I'll be sending the mask back and looking into the DreamWear FFM or Amara View.

This is my experience with the F30 as well. My nose isn't what I consider especially wide since it doesn't fit the medium wide Dreamwear cushion, but the tall sides of the F30 nose cushion pinch my nose from the side just enough to reduce flow, and my nose is already a bit constricted. So I'm now a bit suspicious of the "fits 93% of people" claim (or whatever the exact number is that that they tout). And it is not a cheap mask, either. I think the two sizes strategy is a false economy.

I've been looking at an alternative to my Dreamwear FFM medium-wide, but I had tried the Airfit F30 medium, it's not wide enough for me. I'm also hoping Resmed would cater to an obviously available clientele for large/wide.

I love my Dreamwear FFM, however, I do find the plastic tubing stretches over time. So, I keep tightening the velcro band, and this only helps out so much. This in turn actually pulls on the tubing more. It's a no-win situation.

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The Medium definitely seems to have a "nostril area" that isn't wide enough to comfortably fit my nostrils. The problem is that they have those stiffer sidewalls that go up around your nose - masks like the Dreamwear FFM just have a slit that your nose rests on, and not much of a sidewall that envelopes your nose. I wear a medium in the Dreamwear nasal cushion mask and that works great. Without that sidewall, having big nostrils isn't as much of a problem because they don't get pinched, hence why I think the Dreamwear/Amara FFM may work better for me if ResMed doesn't want to make a large/medium cushion for the F30.

ResMed makes a Medium and a Small for the F30, so I think most women should be fine with those options.
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I tried both of these, (and f20 before those) and they're both decent but the View is definitely finicky to get to seal well.

Being that you already have the dreamwear nasal, it's just a short hop for you to get the full mask and straps to try out, you'll probably like it. I just recently kinda accidentally re-aquired one myself.

However I love my F30, and am still considering trying the F30i, but no real reason to, especially now that i have a Dreamwear again.

I used a Amara View for probably about a year and really thought it was The One, that was my 2nd mask, 1st one away from the F20 that didnt go over the nose bridge and that was a major deal for me.