using a CPAP when your camping

[seventyss]

I bought a DC sine wave converter and have to either get a battery to power my CPAP or run it off the FJR battery. Don't want a good nights sleep and be stranded because I ran the battery down. What do other CPAP users do?

 

[dcarver]

What is CPAP?

 

[FJRBluesman]

C'mon Don... It's like your E-I-E-I-O

Sleep Apnea ma-cheen.

Bust would use this when... you know... with animals

Back on topic, I would not hook this up to the FeeJ battree.

 

[dustyrains]

What is CPAP?

Continuous Positive Air Pressure. It is used to treat sleep apnea.

I have severe sleep apnea so I need my CPAP to get a decent nights sleep when on the road. I also like to camp. The answer turned out to be this unit. Clicky.

I put the lithium ion battery in the bottom of my tankbag and recharge it during the day while riding. The battery lasts all night, no problem, though I do not use the humidifier. My setting is at 17 inches of water, so if yours is less than that, you should have no problem. PM me if you have questions about it.

 

[RaYzerman19]

You need the power specs of the unit, and can calculate how long to drain a battery down.... or, just try it at home while you have a charger available. Chances are it will be too much.

 

[Patriot]

 

[bikesniffer]

I have a Respironics MSeries machine and was able to order an auxiliary connector for it (cig lighter plug) that would plug right into the Feejer outlet...don't know though how many Watts the machine is rated.

Alfredo

 

[Wee Willy]

I wouldn't run this off the FJR battery either. DC to AC converters (the cheap ones anyway) are quite inefficient. Don't know what the draw on your CPAP is (amps), but if you go through the simple math to get to amp-hrs out of the battery through the lossy DC-AC convertor, you'll quickly come to the conclusion you will want another solution.

One solution you might consider is to acquire a pretty good capacity small Odyssey battery and use that just to power the device. Next, invest in an efficient ($$) DC-AC converter - less power loss.

Cheers,

W2

 

[fljab]

I bought a DC sine wave converter and have to either get a battery to power my CPAP or run it off the FJR battery. Don't want a good nights sleep and be stranded because I ran the battery down. What do other CPAP users do?

Don't use the FJR battery; too big a chance of running it down and creating a bigger problem. You could use another battery like was mentioned elsewhere, but at some point you'll need to recharge that as well, so would need to connect it to the FJR charging system or have another setup.

My thought is unless you are "primitive" camping, many spots offer electrical hookups, yes? maybe not, I don't camp that much and when I do, I don't have that need so don't look, but it's worth investigating as it would solve the power issue IMO.

 

[SacramentoMike]

Carry an extension cord. Maybe somebody in a camper would let you plug in. Or at least park on top of a good-sized hill if you try to run it off your bike battery, just in case. I only use a CPAP so my snoring won't keep everybody else awake. For me, it's a treat to get away from the damn thing when I'm traveling.

 

[rockmurf]

This is a good question because I have had the same thoughts but was too much of a wuss to post up. I use a bipad machine and don't know if I could even sleep without it anymore. But on topic I asked my vendor about it and they said the thing about a battery and a converter but it may run into a couple hundred dollars not to mention the space and weight issues of a battery with converter plus the machine. The dredges of getting old.

 

[Panman]

This is a good question because I have had the same thoughts but was too much of a wuss to post up. I use a bipad machine and don't know if I could even sleep without it anymore. But on topic I asked my vendor about it and they said the thing about a battery and a converter but it may run into a couple hundred dollars not to mention the space and weight issues of a battery with converter plus the machine. The dredges of getting old.

Same here, I just ran back to Montana for a reuion and ran with out it. And a couple of times I just had to find a place to take a twenty minute nap as I was having dificullty staying awake.

I thinking I may bring with mine next week to WFO. You can't tell the group you need a nap right in the middle of carving up a canyon.

Most likly would be afraid to fall asleep around this bunch anyhow, just sayin........... :lol:

 

[maddad]

Not sure of the brand but the CPAP I have, break into two components, the main blower and the humidifier. Humdifier draws alot more power than the blower does, so I only travel with the blower. Have a used a marine type standby power device to keep it going during power outages. FJR battery is not going to run one for long.

 

[JamesK]

I bought a DC sine wave converter and have to either get a battery to power my CPAP or run it off the FJR battery. Don't want a good nights sleep and be stranded because I ran the battery down. What do other CPAP users do?

Don't use the FJR battery; too big a chance of running it down and creating a bigger problem. You could use another battery like was mentioned elsewhere, but at some point you'll need to recharge that as well, so would need to connect it to the FJR charging system or have another setup.

You can simply buy a reasonably hefty size diode though which you connect the second battery to the FJR charging system, this way the second battery is always being charged when the bike is running but you never need to worry about draining the FJR battery.

 

[olsonm3915]

You can simply buy a reasonably hefty size diode though which you connect the second battery to the FJR charging system, this way the second battery is always being charged when the bike is running but you never need to worry about draining the FJR battery.

The problem with doing this is the aux battery will never be fully charged, it will be one diode drop lower than the main battery.

Best idea would be to find a CPAP machine that is designed to be low power and run off its own rechargable battery, which charges from a 12V cigarette lighter outlet. Charge the thing while you're riding, and unless you're camping where there's no electrical outlets, run it off 120V AC whenever possible.

The Everest machine previously linked to looks exactly like what the OP needs.

I've emailed the manufacturer to ask how much current the adapter draws & will post the answer here.

Their answer:

12VDC supply current drain with Mobile Power Adapter (assuming 90% efficiency):
0.63Amps @ 4cmH2O.

1.43Amps @ 12cmH2O.

2.34Amps @20cmH2O.

Note: Normally, the AEIOMed battery is charged via the car battery and Mobile Power Adapter during the day and the CPAP is powered by the AEIOMed battery at night. In that case, the drain on the car battery is in the 8 to 10 AmpHr range per day.

I then asked what the current drain would be when charging the battery, rather than running the unit off the cigarette lighter adapter, and I told them that the bike's 12V outlet was limited to 3A:

The continuous current would be 2.7 amps however there is an initial surge of 6 amps which in your case would present a challenge.

 

[DaSpyda]

Not sure if y'all are aware of this, but there is an alternative to CPAP usage for some people: https://sleepwellflorida.com

 

[dustyrains]

You can simply buy a reasonably hefty size diode though which you connect the second battery to the FJR charging system, this way the second battery is always being charged when the bike is running but you never need to worry about draining the FJR battery.

The problem with doing this is the aux battery will never be fully charged, it will be one diode drop lower than the main battery.

Best idea would be to find a CPAP machine that is designed to be low power and run off its own rechargable battery, which charges from a 12V cigarette lighter outlet. Charge the thing while you're riding, and unless you're camping where there's no electrical outlets, run it off 120V AC whenever possible.

The Everest machine previously linked to looks exactly like what the OP needs.

I've emailed the manufacturer to ask how much current the adapter draws & will post the answer here.

Their answer:

12VDC supply current drain with Mobile Power Adapter (assuming 90% efficiency):
0.63Amps @ 4cmH2O.

1.43Amps @ 12cmH2O.

2.34Amps @20cmH2O.

Note: Normally, the AEIOMed battery is charged via the car battery and Mobile Power Adapter during the day and the CPAP is powered by the AEIOMed battery at night. In that case, the drain on the car battery is in the 8 to 10 AmpHr range per day.

I then asked what the current drain would be when charging the battery, rather than running the unit off the cigarette lighter adapter, and I told them that the bike's 12V outlet was limited to 3A:

The continuous current would be 2.7 amps however there is an initial surge of 6 amps which in your case would present a challenge.

+1. Don't mess around trying to get an inverter and extra battery to power a regular AC powered CPAP machine. The Everest machine is specifically intended for use in camping type situations. I have used it on the road, recharging it's lithium ion battery through the FJR's glove box outlet with no problem. It also runs on 120 voltage when using at home. The battery is flat and compact and will fit into most tank bags, and will run the blower for 8 - 10 hours in your tent. Plus, I used it to blow up my air mattress!

 

[weekend rider]

Look at buying a solar panel and use it

let the sun do the work

Or buy one of those enviromentally correct ones the Patriot showed you..

 

[JamesK]

The problem with doing this is the aux battery will never be fully charged, it will be one diode drop lower than the main battery.
Best idea would be to find a CPAP machine that is designed to be low power and run off its own rechargeable battery, which charges from a 12V cigarette lighter outlet. Charge the thing while you're riding, and unless you're camping where there's no electrical outlets, run it off 120V AC whenever possible.

The Everest machine previously linked to looks exactly like what the OP needs.

While it is true that a diode drops typically around 0.6 Volts, a properly functioning charging system generates around 13.9-14.1 volts. Thus there should still be sufficient voltage "coming through" to properly/sufficiently charge the aux battery. Also, this aux battery does not need to crank the starter motor so it is far less "sensitive" given it's intended usage. And if there were some issue with the aux battery not being able to charge completely because of a diode, it would be quite a straight forward job to install a small switch which bypasses the diode during daytime charging cycle. Heck if you wanted to get a little fancier you could even wire the diode in via a light activated switch...

The idea is though that you're then free to choose any CPAP that does the job not be locked into a specific, likely more expensive unit.