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How to use a vaporizer safely when you have BE and MAC

Posted by bernadene24 @bernadene24, 4 days ago

A couple of months back I shared my dilemma about needing to use a humidifier for my eye condition. Scoop kindly informed me that the safest choice is a warm steam vaporizer that boils water and so kills bacteria. I bought one, but haven't used it yet because I have been trying to avoid breathing in anything aerosolized or adding to my daily cleaning processes. Instead, I have avoided turning on my heat and have added another layer of clothing. This has worked well so far, however, now that the temps are starting to fall, I notice that the humidity in my house is lowering and my eyes are starting to complain.
Time to bite the bullet and pull out the vaporizer. My understanding from what I have read (don't remember where now) is that it is important to clean out the vaporizer with bleach after every use. My question is: What do I do if I use the vaporizer not just while sleeping at night, but all during the day? Do I have to clean it each time I add water, or can I add water regularly during the day and clean it once a day? I'm trying to keep things simple, but I want to do it safely. Many thanks,

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bernadene24 | @bernadene24 | 4 hours ago
In reply to @becleartoday "Dr. Joseph Falkinham from Virginia Tech is an NTM specialist with his own laboratory and regularly..." + (show)
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Dr. Joseph Falkinham from Virginia Tech is an NTM specialist with his own laboratory and regularly advises the NTM community, He strongly dislikes ultrasonic humidifiers and recommends that if a humidifier is truly needed, it should be an evaporative type. Some evaporative models blow air across a filter, and others boil water on a plate. This is what he said regarding boiling and aerosolization:

“We have boiled water that was inoculated with lots of NTM and did not detect any NTM in the steam. I did that to assure folks that boiling tap water (that likely carries NTM) would not generate NTM-laden aerosols (an aerosol is droplets of water in the air, easily seen as mist).”

On that basis, he suspects (but has not tested) that a warm mist evaporator humidifier or any instrument that boils water to generate steam is unlikely to add NTM to the air.

He emphasizes that no one should use any humidifier labelled as ultrasonic. Those devices can transfer NTM from water to air in the same way that showers can aerosolize bacteria.

He also recommended that the humidifier be cleaned regularly with Dawn detergent and a diluted bleach solution.

Personally, I live in 900 square feet so it is relatively easy for me to add moisture to the air. I use an Amazon tea kettle in both the bedroom and living room, and leave the top open, and within about eight minutes all of the water has been turned into steam.

It shuts off automatically, although I hesitate to recommend any electrical device because safety can vary. I am simply sharing what I do in my own home.

Happy Saturday,
Linda Esposito

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@becleartoday Thank you for this helpful information, Linda. Did Dr. F. say how regularly to clean the vaporizer with dawn and bleach? After each use? Once a day? Once a week?
Also I like your idea of using the electric coffee pot, but how often do you have to reuse it? Seems like eight minutes of steam would not last very long to keep up the humidity. And how often do you have to clean it? (I’m with Lilianna. Don’t want to spend my whole day cleaning and serilizing!)

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irenea8 | @irenea8 | 3 hours ago

What do others think of this model on Amazon. It is expensive but looks good in every way and even has auto clean mode in which you can add vinegar to get rid of built up scale.

Lavitro 3L Stainless Steel Warm Mist Humidifier with Easy Clean and Warm Steam Function, Healthy Air Mist Humidifiers for Bedroom Living Room, with Sleep Mode and Auto-off Setting

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pacathy | @pacathy | 2 hours ago
In reply to @lilianna "I only remember what Dr F. said but I do the nasal rinses if needed with..." + (show)
Profile picture for lilianna @lilianna

I only remember what Dr F. said but I do the nasal rinses if needed with boiled and cooled water and for my vaporizer I use distilled water. I have to be reasonable because I will lose my mind. I don’t want to be only boiling and sterilizing all day.

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@lilianna I agree! That’s why I appreciate a day or two of not boiling all distilled for my 1-2x a day sinus rinses. Lots of quick things add up to time eaters.

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