General > General Technical Chat
Is my DIY sinus irrigation pump safe?
TomCruise:
Hey all, a little bit of an off topic question but... I don't claim to know anything about electronics or electricity but I attempted to make my own sinus irrigation pump instead of buying the 160$ one in the store to deal with my terrible sinus problems. However, I started wondering if I am sending harmful currents through my brain basically and just wanted to double check with some smart folk who know what they're doing.
This pump is a totally sealed and submersible pump. The stator is totally sealed off and water tight from the rotor. I'm powering this via a 12V 2A laptop charger. All electronics are completely isolated from the rotor, however, i just wanted to double check that the rotor is not picking up electromagnetic currents or something and passing them along in the output water into my sinuses lol.
I checked with a cheap voltmeter / ammeter in a bowl and the water showed 0 volts but i just wanted to double check.
Thanks for any feedback
https://app.photobucket.com/u/sanitysource/p/8d7fb4cd-690a-42d2-b7f7-1ed623c6e542
https://app.photobucket.com/u/sanitysource/p/9920ebbe-b57f-4a47-a7dd-38cea0fc62ad
https://app.photobucket.com/u/sanitysource/p/7531f502-5df4-482d-95a1-688765d42432
https://app.photobucket.com/u/sanitysource/p/33a5c725-d742-4516-9405-6ab3f75ac72c
VK3DRB:
Tom, your net worth is $600 million. Don't be such a miser and go pay the $160. Or see if Nicole has a spare one lying around. Great to see you are starting to see the light and getting into electronics. Just think... you could have done electronics from the start and one benefit is your knowledge of electronics would have attracted a lot more chicks. Pay isn't as good though.
Seriously, if whatever goes up your nose is NON-CONDUCTIVE, you might be OK. If it is conductive, the leakage currents from that switch-mode power supply will be an issue and there would be a current path to earth. As the power supply is NOT an medical approved power supply, don't even consider this if those tubes are metallic. Also, mucus might be conductive too (never tested it). The multimeter you used should be set to AC and check the voltage on the metallic parts with respect to earth.
By the way, I liked Top Gun.
james_s:
Electrically I'm sure it will be fine, if you want to be extra careful then run it from a battery or get a medical rated power supply.
From a medical standpoint I have no idea though, I'm not a doctor and I don't know what risks it might involve pumping water into your sinuses. I'd want to talk to a medical expert or at least have my hands on a commercial unit to get a feel for how it works, the pressure and volume involved and other aspects.
JohnnyMalaria:
You don't want to irrigate with water - it will irritate your nasal passages. You need to use salty water at the same ionic concentration as physiological fluid. That's about 9g of common table salt per one liter of water.
But why not just do what I do? Make up the solution in a bowl, stick your nose in and snort. Or use a neti pot: https://breathefreely.com/5-things-know-neti-pots/
BTW, whatever water you use, make sure it is sterile (e.g., you have boiled it first).
NiHaoMike:
Power it from batteries and that will eliminate any concerns of leakage current.
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