C-PAP machine and a TC?
Wife recently got a C-PAP machine. We are going away for three weeks and was wondering how the C-PAP is going to operate if we do not have shore power? Any suggestions on what to do? Thanx
Forum Discussion
I am new to the CPAP world, just got mine three days ago. I have a camping trip (dry camping) next week, for three days and two nights. I ran my CPAP machine connected to a cheap 100 watt Blacker & Decker inverter that plugs into a cigarette lighter, to see what I needed to run it.
My CPAP is a 120 volt unit, that operates at 24 volts as I recall. It does not run off 12-volt. This is what I have:
RESMED Airsense 10 Autoset. It has a built in humidifier. I need 18 PSI with the humidity set at 4.
I have a Trimetric in my TC. Among other things, I can see at a glance the AHs (amp hours)/amps I am using. I connected my CPAP machine to my inverter, and did a couple of quick test. The following are the results:
1 At 18 psi, Humidity set at 4. My amps varied from 1.6 to 2.02.
2 At 18 psi, Humidity set at 6. My amps varied from 3.25 to 3.75.
It was obvious there was a substantial jump in amp requirements simply be raising the humidity from 4 to 6. You could see the amps raise and lower as you listened to the humidity cycle on and off. I have more testing to do, but the indications for my (number 1) use is 1.6 to 2.02 amps. That translates into 1.6 to 2.02 AH. So, if I sleep (run CPAP) machine for eight hours, I can expect to use 12.8 to 16.16 AH.
Typically, I rarely use 20 or more AH per day. This is for TV, laptop, and all L.E.D.s for lighting. I have one 100 AH AGM (50 AH usable). That total, with the CPAP should be less than 35 AH. My 120 watts of solar has replace 35 AH on more than one occasion. Even without the solar, my 55 amp Iota charger will replace most of the 35 AH pretty quickly.
What the reader should get from this post is that with the same CPAP as mine, on the settings I posted above, is the AH they will need. The loss in AH due to the efficiency of the Blacker & Decker inverter is not really that great in my opinion. I would not change my CPAP simply to get a 12-volt unit.
I will do a bit more data collecting. Being I have a TC, it is seldom I do not dry camp.
Wayne
My CPAP is a 120 volt unit, that operates at 24 volts as I recall. It does not run off 12-volt. This is what I have:
RESMED Airsense 10 Autoset. It has a built in humidifier. I need 18 PSI with the humidity set at 4.
I have a Trimetric in my TC. Among other things, I can see at a glance the AHs (amp hours)/amps I am using. I connected my CPAP machine to my inverter, and did a couple of quick test. The following are the results:
1 At 18 psi, Humidity set at 4. My amps varied from 1.6 to 2.02.
2 At 18 psi, Humidity set at 6. My amps varied from 3.25 to 3.75.
It was obvious there was a substantial jump in amp requirements simply be raising the humidity from 4 to 6. You could see the amps raise and lower as you listened to the humidity cycle on and off. I have more testing to do, but the indications for my (number 1) use is 1.6 to 2.02 amps. That translates into 1.6 to 2.02 AH. So, if I sleep (run CPAP) machine for eight hours, I can expect to use 12.8 to 16.16 AH.
Typically, I rarely use 20 or more AH per day. This is for TV, laptop, and all L.E.D.s for lighting. I have one 100 AH AGM (50 AH usable). That total, with the CPAP should be less than 35 AH. My 120 watts of solar has replace 35 AH on more than one occasion. Even without the solar, my 55 amp Iota charger will replace most of the 35 AH pretty quickly.
What the reader should get from this post is that with the same CPAP as mine, on the settings I posted above, is the AH they will need. The loss in AH due to the efficiency of the Blacker & Decker inverter is not really that great in my opinion. I would not change my CPAP simply to get a 12-volt unit.
I will do a bit more data collecting. Being I have a TC, it is seldom I do not dry camp.
Wayne
