Dangers Of Using Tap Water In Cpap
It is important to make cleaning your mask tubing and water chamber a regular habit to avoid any bacteria or fungi buildup.
Dangers of using tap water in cpap. Unfortunately standard tap water is not ideal for your humidifier. It is therefore very important that you try to use distilled or purified water every time you fill up your humidifier water chamber. There is the slight chance for contamination of tap water. Using tap water in your cpap machine rather than distilled or sterile water can also introduce outside bacteria.
Tap water spring water and drinking water all minerals in it that are safe to drink however they for cpap use they bring some problems. The cpap unit comprises several parts such as the main device the humidifier and the humidifier water chamber mask and the tubing system. However very few people use distilled water. It s easier to fill the bottle or pot with tap water.
What happens if you don t clean your cpap machine respiratory infections and issues. You can use a neti pot or a spray bottle sinus rinse. The manufacturers recommend distilled water for a reason. The minerals in tap water which consists of calcium magnesium iron and others can leave a white residue behind that contaminates the water chamber.
The water will still remain hard meaning it contains minerals such as calcium iron magnesium and more. Either way the directions tell you to use distilled water. Lets take a look at why you shouldn t use tap water in your cpap device. Tap water is both harmful to your device and it can be harmful to you if used consistently.
It is important to keep in mind that all the cpap parts that come in contact with water will actually be at risk of developing dangerous mold breeding viruses and bacteria. While manufacturers recommend distilled water for use in your continuous positive airway pressure cpap device many people still use tap water as their hydration of choice. On top of this you should soak all of the parts in vinegar and water using one part vinegar to three parts water. The dangers tap water in your cpap humidifier when it comes to filling your humidifier chamber remember that even if you boil tap water you can t fully remove minerals or chemical contaminants even though it will kill microbes.