Update 12/16/13 I called Dex and they had me download the Dex information and send it to them. They agreed there was a lot of "out of range" time, but we were going to watch it for one more sensor. During that next week I got a "transmitter failed" alarm so they mailed me out a new one. This new one works better. There are still a few times that it says it's out of range when she's wearing it in her pouch though. I haven't taken any notes to verify this, but it seems to me that it's out of range more when the sensor is on her belly compared to when it's on her arm. And it seems to do it more when she's at school than when she's at home. It just seems odd to me. But... I still love it so I won't complain too much. Charlotte's been wearing the Dexcom G4 for a few weeks. While I feel like the accuracy of the G4 is so much better than the 7, it's been giving the "out of range" a lot even when she's wearing it in her pouch around her waist. She'll come home from school sometimes and it's only got an hours' worth of plot marks for the whole school day. Is anyone else having this problem? Is it the sensor or the transmitter or the receiver?
we had that with the 7+ when either the transmitter was failing or if the sensor went into the muscle layer. Two different problems but displayed the same way. How old is the transmitter?
We had one sensor that kept going out of range and giving us the ???. They replaced it. I often find "holes" in her day but it's because she leaves it in the car or at home. Sigh.
If you see it with multiple sensors, I would assume it is the transmitter. Our Dex is almost never out of range, and certainly never when he carries it.
We've only had it for a few weeks, so it's all new. Lately, she's only been wearing it on her stomach, and she's got enough fat there that I don't think it's going into muscle. And yes, we've seen this over multiple sensors. Looks like I need to be giving Dexcom a call...
I called. They want me to download the receiver and send the information over and their people can look at it....
I called Dex and they had me download the Dex information and send it to them. They agreed there was a lot of "out of range" time, but we were going to watch it for one more sensor. During that next week I got a "transmitter failed" alarm so they mailed me out a new one. This new one works better. There are still a few times that it says it's out of range when she's wearing it in her pouch though. I haven't taken any notes to verify this, but it seems to me that it's out of range more when the sensor is on her belly compared to when it's on her arm. And it seems to do it more when she's at school than when she's at home. It just seems odd to me. But... I still love it so I won't complain too much.
IMO unless the receiver is in something that prevents wireless transmission there should be NO excuse for out of range while on the body. We keep it in the pocket and practically NEVER get out of range. Water is a problem. Maybe it's the pouch.
I'll expand on what Swellman said, and say that in our experience, we never (seriously never) get out of range if the receiver is within 15 feet of him, and most of the time range is much greater than that. The one time we did get out of range when he was wearing it, we were at the Children's Museum, and I concluded that something must have been interfering with the signal. About 15 minutes after we left, it popped back on and was fine thereafter.
I have a local friend who's g4 was going out of range any time she was wearing it IN her spibelt. The best dexcom could figure was that there was some sort of static issue happening. It might be what you're seeing as well. You could try a different pump pouch, or try putting a dryer sheet in wiht the g4.
Interesting. She's wearing a Tally Gear TummieTote. Most of her clothes don't have pockets, so that's not an option anyway. How does the dryer sheet work?
I'm seriously doubting static as the cause. Does it go out of range when at home wearing the belt or is it only at one location? If only at one location I would suggest some type of RF interference.
while you may doubt it, Dexcom tech support told this person that it could very well be the cause. The dryer sheet (or piece of a dryer sheet, you wouldn't need the whole thing) needs to be tucked into the pouch . It just helps control the static. It's the same basic thing that people used to have to do with the first generation Omnipods.
To be precise: That sounds exactly like a CSR WAG to me. Regardless, I stand by my assertion that it's unlikely static. Anywhoo, I would test the strength of the transmitter by placing the receiver farther and farther away on a solid surface and see how far it takes to start going out of range. If it's something ridiculously short, say 3 feet then I would suggest it's either the transmitter strength or the ability of the receiver to receive the signal.
