Air Circulation on the Cruise Ships

[JeffH]

Maybe I'm the only one who cares about this but...
Does anyone have any information on the oxygen levels inside of the inside stateroom cabins?
Is the air simply recirculated (resulting in constantly declining O2 levels)
or do they pipe in fresh air from somewhere? Where, how, do they have standards?
I've had a hard time getting my breath sometimes in the rooms due partially to my paranoia and as a result of a little sleep apnea cutting off my breathing for a bit and waking breathless.
I had the same problem at my house until I installed inward and outward fans on each side of my bedroom, never had the problem again at home unless the fans were shut off for several days for some reason (too hot out).
Last trip one evening my paranoia almost had me bolting to the cabin door until I realized that the hallways wouldn't be much better.

 

[Kramerica]

Perhaps you should invest in a breathing machine?

 

[JeffH]

I'm looking at it, but this rarely happens to me such that I would need to encumber my face with a mask whilst I sleepith...and my cats would probably be attacking it all night...or maybe, you're part of the Matrix and you're trying to incorporate me?
A sleep machine, however, would help in those instances where I can't sleep comfortably like I do at home. You get a lot of pillows on the cruise but they don't stack well, then there's this indent at the headboard making it even harder to stack pillows so that you can prop yourself up enough to keep your wind pipe from closing up.

 

[Kramerica]

You, my fellow chap, have very unique and specific problems.

 

[Sumrdog]

Honestly, sounds to me like you really need a sleep study...sleep apnea leads to many other medical conditions because you are temporarily denying your brain oxygen. Not that it's my business...

I would think on the cruise they would have no reason to recirculate air like airplanes do.

 

[GMRO]

You probably need to have your nose checked for a "deviated-septum" as well as lose some weight.

AGAIN as stated above, you have some sort of medical conditions that require some sort of attention. No tank or machine pumping O2 is going to fix that on it's own. Else one day at home or abroad you just may not wake up...

AND I'd venture to say the DCL has their air content in line with all safety regulations.

GOOD LUCK!

 

[JeffH]

Gosh, guys, I understand about sleep apnea (I mentioned it in my original post), I understand how to sleep, I'm considering the program, my brother has a mask, I'm on a weight loss program. I sleep REALLY well, normally, that isn't my question or my problem, so if you don't have an answer, stop bashing me about sleep apnea.
When you consider the size of the rooms filled with 2 or more breathing people, if the air is simply recirculated (like a typical home A/C) then the O2 levels will drop, and although you may not realize it, low oxygen levels are a concern, if low enough it can cause loss of consciousness and death.

 

[Sumrdog]

I was not bashing you at all. I was saying that sleep apnea is a much bigger concern than the lack of fresh air. As you said yourself lack of oxygen can lead to death. But it also can cause a condition called metabolic Syndrome. I am an RN it's just a reflex for me to suggest treating the cause verses the symptoms. I really had no intention of offending you. I apologize.

 

[Phonedave]

In the interest of being helpful to the OP

1) No CPAP or other "breathing machine" is going to help with your concern because they do not supply additional O2, merely supply a greater quantity of room air (or just keep your airway open)

2) You do seem to have a bit of a phobia, as you mention fighting the urge to run into the hallway. You are going to have to overcome that if you are in an inside stateroom.

3) While I have never been in an inside stateroom, a verandah room is the same thing when the door is shut. I have never found them to be stuffy while sleeping with a total of 3 people in one. I am going to assume that there is some sort of fresh air ventilation system for the entire ship. Down in the lower, inside, recesses of the ship there is very little fresh air movement. They most have some sort of way to supply fresh air.

-dave

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Lets not get snarky, y'all. That vibe belongs in the News/Rumors section. If someone has a question, no matter how far off in left field it may seem to you, they should be able to ask without fear of ridicule or condescension. We all have our quirks in one way or another so it's kinda fair to allow others to have theirs, too.

That said, I would seriously doubt a cruise ship stateroom would be a closed system. The incoming air would need to come from an outside source to maintain the air quality. The inside rooms can sleep up to 4 people so think how fast that would deplete the oxygen! It may be a situation where the simple lack of air movement is what throws you just enough to subconsciously change your ability to follow your usual sleep patterns. At home we sleep with the air down to about 70 & ceiling fan on high to move the air. Anywhere we sleep even if we match the temp if we don't have the air movement we are definitely aware all night. I am usually more wakeful. If tight places is already bothersome then pairing lack of your usual air movement could really mess with you. I'd see about buying a little travel fan to put in the room. You could also see if there are any fans you could borrow onboard. It may be worth the extra money on longer cruises to spring for the verandah just so you can rest better.

Good luck!

 

[ChuckElias]

if you don't have an answer, stop bashing me about sleep apnea.

I don't have an answer. But after reading the other responses, and before you made this post, I was considering making a post full of dire predictions (cats and dogs living together. . . MASS HYSTERIA!) b/c it seemed like the original "answers" you got weren't what you were looking for. It would have been poking fun at the responses, but I was worried that it would come across as mean-spirited toward you. All that is to say, I kind of got the same vibe you did from the responses you got; although I do think they were well-meaning.

low oxygen levels are a concern, if low enough it can cause loss of consciousness

Like sleep, right? That's good!

and death.

Oh. Never mind.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

LOL @ChuckElias! Loved your Ghostbusters quote!

Yeah, the part about going to sleep & not waking up because of the apnea stood out to me, too, but like you I didn't want a reference to it to come off as crass or uncaring. But really, if I could choose a place & way to go...think about it...sleeping toasty in my bed on a Disney cruise would be pretty high up on the list of preferred scenarios. LOL!

 

[JeffH]

thank you sweetpee for your thoughtful response.
...I do bring a good fan, although the cabins on the Dream do get nice and cold (not so on the Wonder/Magic).
...And, no, I'm not looking for some sort of investigation (I'm sure whatever Disney does, all the other cruise ships do, too)
...My concern isn't waking up breathless (that IS due to my apnea issues and that's a different concern that I am dealing with), it is how hard/long is seems to be to get my breath back.
...I'm just looking for some assurance that this issue has been addressed in the engineering of the air system, and not mismanaged by some budget-cutting moron-manager.
...I like to know how things work, and considering the fact that most home A/Cs and car A/Cs do NOT bring fresh air (unless to tell them too), I'm hoping this is NOT the case on a cruise ship.
...I've had no problems flying, and sleep quite well sitting up, however a sealed car running A/C only in recirculate mode filled with 4-6 people driving 300 miles between stops (5 hours), also faces low O2/high CO2 level that could threaten the thought capacity and consciousness of the driver. So if you're feeling sleepy, open the window.
...This has only happened to me 2 times in my last 2 cruises (maybe 3/3) out of 6 cruises, so that's why the apnea isn't the question I have.
...The ultimate problem is, YES, my sleep apnea and the difficulty I have trying to sleep in the positions that I normally sleep in to avoid my breathing from being blocked (my ultimate phobia) using the puffy, slippery pillows provided. I normally sleep on my back but with my head/back significantly raised up (4-5 pillows worth) and can sleep on my sides, but on-board I'm left to my sides.
...and with a veranda room, a rare occasional opening of the door would quickly restore the oxygen level in a room.
OTHERWISE: You can't find normally fresher air, than on a cruise ship, cruising along, at sea level (where the air is thickest, so the o2 is denser), away from the smog of the city.

 

[Sumrdog]

As I said earlier I had absolutely no intent to offend you. That is the problem sometimes with written communication, people can't see the feeling behind the words. I am sorry that you felt like you were being bashed. That is completely not the sea I swim in, especially on these discussion forums.
I hope you figure out what works for you

 

[sweetpee_1993]

You know, you could ask at Guest Relations if you could have a moment with someone in engineering or maintenance to discuss the air flow systems on the ship. If they tell you it's not possible then at least you tried. Best case, you get to talk to someone who might can give you firm answers as to how the air systems work. Right?

The first couple days on our recent Magic cruise (in a 1-bedroom suite w/2 verandah access doors) we found our stateroom to be a little on the overly warm side and not cooling the best at night. Hubby mentioned to our stateroom host to leave the curtains shut during the day so maybe the sunlight wouldn't warm the room so much. The host wanted to know if the room wasn't cooling. Didn't seem to be. He immediately put in an order with maintenance and someone came by within the next few hours. No clue what they did but whatever it was sure did change things. That night and every after we had the stateroom ready for hanging meat. It was COLD and the air was moving great. Maybe if your stateroom seems to stuffy your host can have someone check it for you.

Don't know why it took us until the last day to think to leave our verandah door open for our mid-day nap. That was heavenly listening to the water and having the breeze. Next cruise we are on that we don't have the kids I'd like to try sleeping with the door open if it's not too warm out. It really is wonderful!

 

[5thGenTexan]

I find that I have problems wiggin out sometimes with poor air circulation. Being packed like sardines on deck for a muster drill with no breeze tends to make me rethink cruising.... well for only 15 minutes or so. At home I sleep with the ceiling fan on every night. I absolutely hate not having my fan at night. I'm not sure I have been in a cabin where I felt it got cool enough, cept for Alaska. Our next trip will have a "porch" so I'm looking forward to taking advantage of that.

 

[Dagger]

OP, I can't answer your question, but just wanted to support ya.

I don't have sleeping issues and I totally get the paranoia thing. This Triumph stuff has me and has totally ruined my excitement about my first cruise (which is like 99% definitely going to be Disney now, because somehow I would feel much safer with them than another line, or at least hopefully be more distracted and able to forget my fears lol.)

Side note.... great job with your weight loss program, and honestly health does have such an impact on sleep, which is funny, because a good night's sleep also helps to make you healthier!!

 

[JeffH]

You know, you could ask at Guest Relations if you could have a moment with someone in engineering or maintenance to discuss the air flow systems on the ship

NOW THIS IS A COOL IDEA, maybe I can get a tour of the system (I would truly be interested) from one of the Engineers, and my 'concern' would drive a little wedge in with Customer Service (when you have an issue they tend to overcompensate sometimes)

And for the record, I did NOT feel that any one person was bashing me, it was just that everyone was focusing in on my sleep issues and not my actual concern/question. I'm sorry if I made anyone feel bad...you all were just looking out for me.

I've started losing some weight and have begun exercising for the 1st time in years (aside from our frequent trips to WDW and the miles of walking you can do at Epcot alone).

I do have a solution for hotels, I have this reading cushion-chair that goes on the bed and it holds the pillows in place, but it's too big to slip into a suitcase or bother to carry on (although I guess if I tag it, they'd bring it on for me???)

I'm also considering sleeping on the deck, where I'm sure it will be cool and windy...imagine literally sleeping under the stars (with no bugs bothering you),

On each of my 4 Magic/Wonder cruises I found the 1st night rather warm in the rooms, but they did cool nicely at the cruise cruised on. My 2 Dream rooms, however, were cool from the start...my roommate was too cold and wanted it turned up (glad he got another room for himself)

 

[wdwstateofmind]

Lets not get snarky, y'all. That vibe belongs in the News/Rumors section. If someone has a question, no matter how far off in left field it may seem to you, they should be able to ask without fear of ridicule or condescension. We all have our quirks in one way or another so it's kinda fair to allow others to have theirs, too

No one was being snarky to him at all...this site just has ubber emotional issues and 50% of the users handle their emotions like 12 yr. olds...it's so common where someone might actually know something but because another user say saw Mr. Oz saying something they are all the sudden an expert...I mean at the end of the day he did ask for peoples opinion no? just my two cents...

I did come here for the ventelation info though I swear I don't have sleep apnea, but I have a worse enough deviated septum and asphyxia at night from being allergic to everything on the Earth...after your post I think every nap will be with the verandah door open...

 

[sweetpee_1993]

No one was being snarky to him at all...this site just has ubber emotional issues and 50% of the users handle their emotions like 12 yr. olds...it's so common where someone might actually know something but because another user say saw Mr. Oz saying something they are all the sudden an expert...I mean at the end of the day he did ask for peoples opinion no? just my two cents...

I did come here for the ventelation info though I swear I don't have sleep apnea, but I have a worse enough deviated septum and asphyxia at night from being allergic to everything on the Earth...after your post I think every nap will be with the verandah door open...

This site is nothing compared to others when it comes to oversensitive people. Post #9 IS a bit far from the OPs concerns, leaning towards the insensitive side, and headed down Snarky Lane. I'm no expert other than being a caring human being with empathy towards others. The original question was about statistics or method for measuring/testing air quality because of sleep concerns. Answering said question by advising the OP to contact alleged "news" people about a possible expose story, telling the OP to stop wasting bandwidth, and advising the OP not to fly on airplanes because of the air quality was in no way helpful or productive. It didn't answer the question or offer any constructive direction. In fact, one could easily feel it was a bit of a harsh, unnecessary post altogether. Really??? You didn't get that??? At all???