Oxygen Concentrator
Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2020 5:05 pm
Years ago Colin wrote about using an oxygen concentrator in flight.
On another forum about Covid there was suggestion about using an oxygen concentrator at home instead of going to the hospital. It was a good excuse to buy a gadget that I've wanted to experiment with. Never waste a crisis, right? I bought an Inogen One G5https://www.inogen.com/products/g5-systems/.
I haven't needed it yet for viral reasons but last weekend I took it up to 17,500 ft.
On a hot day in Florida the density altitudes were well above indicated. Would it be able to supply enough oxygen at the higher altitudes?
9,500' indicated (density altitude 11,310'), No supplemental oxygen: 94-95% SpO2.
13,500' indicated (density altitude 15,356'), Concentrator Setting "2": 91% SpO2
15,500' indicated (density altitude 17,338'), Concentrator Setting "3": 92-95% SpO2
17,500' indicated (density altitude 19,332'), Concentrator Setting "5": 94-96% SpO2. My resting heart rate has been on the high side all my life.
Unlike the O2D2 device, the puffs are not noticeable at the lower settings. In addition to monitoring the pulse oximeter, at first I kept checking the little green light that comes on with each dose to make sure it was working. Like the O2D2 an alarm sounds if time passes with no inspiration detected.
Positives:
It worked better than expected, supplying plenty of oxygen up to the high teens.
It never runs out of oxygen and never needs to have a tank filled.
Good battery life. I got the "double battery" option. That battery life seems long enough to last at least a tankful of fuel, "Up to 13 hours" according to the company advertising. You can also carry spare batteries. It comes with a car-type cigarette lighter power adapter but I don’t have a DC power receptacle in the new plane. I don't know how much current it would draw but the specs for DC power input say 10A max so you may have to put in a higher amp fuse.
Negatives:
A doctor's prescription is required to buy one from the Inogen company. I didn’t try eBay.
It only works for only one person at a time.
On another forum about Covid there was suggestion about using an oxygen concentrator at home instead of going to the hospital. It was a good excuse to buy a gadget that I've wanted to experiment with. Never waste a crisis, right? I bought an Inogen One G5https://www.inogen.com/products/g5-systems/.
I haven't needed it yet for viral reasons but last weekend I took it up to 17,500 ft.
On a hot day in Florida the density altitudes were well above indicated. Would it be able to supply enough oxygen at the higher altitudes?
9,500' indicated (density altitude 11,310'), No supplemental oxygen: 94-95% SpO2.
13,500' indicated (density altitude 15,356'), Concentrator Setting "2": 91% SpO2
15,500' indicated (density altitude 17,338'), Concentrator Setting "3": 92-95% SpO2
17,500' indicated (density altitude 19,332'), Concentrator Setting "5": 94-96% SpO2. My resting heart rate has been on the high side all my life.
Unlike the O2D2 device, the puffs are not noticeable at the lower settings. In addition to monitoring the pulse oximeter, at first I kept checking the little green light that comes on with each dose to make sure it was working. Like the O2D2 an alarm sounds if time passes with no inspiration detected.
Positives:
It worked better than expected, supplying plenty of oxygen up to the high teens.
It never runs out of oxygen and never needs to have a tank filled.
Good battery life. I got the "double battery" option. That battery life seems long enough to last at least a tankful of fuel, "Up to 13 hours" according to the company advertising. You can also carry spare batteries. It comes with a car-type cigarette lighter power adapter but I don’t have a DC power receptacle in the new plane. I don't know how much current it would draw but the specs for DC power input say 10A max so you may have to put in a higher amp fuse.
Negatives:
A doctor's prescription is required to buy one from the Inogen company. I didn’t try eBay.
It only works for only one person at a time.