Dennis, you've gotten some good advice. I've been on Cpap for about 10 years now, I guess.
Most of these points have already been mentioned, but I'll add to what I think is the stuff that helped me.
As others have said, make sure you get a Cpap machine with a HEATED humidifier. Remember, you can always "not" use the heat....but you'll find it comforting in those cold Missouri nights to have heated air. You control how much heat. As mentioned, use distilled water.
Definitely request a Cpap that has a feature called, or similar to CFlex or AFlex. As mentioned, this machine adapts to your breathing pattern and "backs off" the pressure as you exhale. WIthout this feature, you can get a little panicky feeling you're fighting to get a breath out against the machines inward pressure.
The use of the Ramp feature is helpful to many. The setting can be changed. For example, the machine might deliver only half of your rated pressure for 10-20 minutes. This is designed to help you get to sleeep before it goes to full pressure. After you become a seasoned pro, you'll probably just let er rip and use full pressure right off the bat.
There are many times of masks as mentioned, full face(also covers the mouth), nasal masks that just cover the nose(I prefer this and the reason is because you have to learn to keep your mouth shut while sleeping and the benefit of that is that you'll no longer snore). For those of us with spouses, they appreciate that. One of the downsides of masks is the associated headgear/straps that are required to hold the masks in place. They leave marks on your face for half the morning sometimes. Also as mentioned, masks can have a hard time sealing, which is very important, if one has a mustache or beard in the case of a full mask. A good seal is essential.
Many then opt for what are called Nasal pillows. They are small compared to most masks and plug directly into your nostrils. This for some, is the least claustrophobic of the apparatus. I found one in particular called the Tap Pap that doesn't even require any straps/headgear at all. It's attached to a mouthpiece that you boil and mold to your upper teeth. I alternate between the Tap Pap and a nasal mask. The nasal pillows can make your nostrils a bit sore at times from friction but there are creams you can buy to prevent that.
Good luck on whatever route you choose.
I've been using a CPAP for around 5 +years now......Lots of good advice here......
You CAN snore and not have sleep apnea....but if you have sleep apnea, you WILL snore....some common misperceptions is that only fat ppl have it.....WRONG....saw big and small folks of both genders in my sleep study "Class"....and a co-worker of mine who weighed 100lbs soaking wet had more severe SA than I did....he had around 57/min compared to 45 for me......
I use a Flex machine that backs off the pressure when you exhale and have the ramp feature set at 15mins(lower pressure until you fall asleep) and I rarely ever feel it kick into high before I'm asleep....took a week or so to get used to it......I wear the mask that only covers the nose as I couldn't stand the full faced one......I have a heated humidifier attached and keep it around the middle setting to keep from getting a dry throat......if you do tend to open your mouth a lot, they make a strap for your chin to hold it closed.....won't work if you lose pressure through your mouth....
I once woke up "drowning" and had accidentally knocked the humidifier knob to the highest setting.....there was water in my mask.....just turned it back and was fine.......
the week or so after I was use to it, I had the best sleep in a LONG time....I rarely miss using it....and I only get up maybe once a night now where as I use to have to get up to pee several times a night.....
Power went out at Cheaha one time and woke me up when the machine turned off...happened a couple of times at home too
I use distilled water in my humidifier and only clean it once a week with Ivory liquid soap, no odor type.......and clean the nose mask 1-2 times a week......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dXEgVK-fF4
