Smartbox

Do NOT clean your Smartbox with liquid of any kind, no matter what the instruction manual states. Use the filters provided by BRAVA. If you perspire heavily, you can cut a pantiliner to fit the inside tip of your dome to absorb sweat before it enters the tubing connected to the Smartbox.

Press the domes to your chest while the Smartbox is running to gain a better seal. The better the seal, the less the Smartbox has to work. You can do this by lying on the floor, on the bed, sitting bent over your knees in a chair. You can also try crossing your arms across your chest and pressing gently but firmly.

If think you are accidentally turning your Smartbox off, you can try facing it toward your chest when you put the system on. If this doesn't work, make a container for it out of a small box (Rx packaging, etc.). This will protect the on/off buttons from being bumped and turning the system off accidentally.

If your Smartbox is sounding weak, it may be flooded. Run a dry cycle. Take the rubber port cover off of the port, turn the box upside down in its cleaning tray, and turn it on. You can run it this way for 2-3 hours, or even longer. Some women run one every day for 10 minutes (using the alarm as a timer).

Inspect your Smartbox every day. Make sure there are no cracks in the stem, or anywhere else on the box. Make sure it's uploading data, and that it's uploading data correctly. If you note any problems with the Smartbox and you're under warranty, contact Brava Customer Service right away. If you are under warranty, Brava will send you a loaner Smartbox while they repair yours, so that you don't miss any days of wear.

If you're not under warranty and you need to have your Smartbox repaired, you can still arrange for a loaner. They'll put a hold (not a charge) on your credit card until they receive their loaner back. You must pay to send your Smartbox to Brava, and the repair will cost $50 - $100.

If your Smartbox stops working altogether, some women have had luck sucking the air out of the domes and using a barrette to clamp the tube. One woman's Smartbox stopped working and she opened it up, discovered that a soldered connection had come disconnected, and soldered it back together herself (it worked).

From Rin:

My Smartbox developed a thin crack in the stem in my seventeenth week. As the system was no longer under warranty and I didn't want to pay to have this fixed, my husband fixed it by wrapping the stem with kevlar thread. Ordinary thread is too weak to use, but a stronger thread that is less expensive than the kevlar thread might work.

He bought the kevlar thread from Edmund Scientifics (about $20). He tied a "constrictor knot" around the bottom of the stem. He then tightly wrapped the string around the stem and the loose end of thread from the knot. This held the crack closed. He then tied a knot at the top, using the loose end of the original knot. In fashion true to himself, he thinks there's probably a better way to do it, but I'm not unwrapping my Smartbox to let him try!

PJHamm's advice:

For a crack in the Smartbox stem, use a small amount of epoxy designed specifically for plastic only. Work the epoxy into the crack with a toothpick and then coat the outside of the crack. Gently clamp the stem together for twelve hours.