Dust Masks

Am I the only one dumb enough to use cheap Home Depot dust masks for handling coal? My nose winds up full of black dust. Who knows where it goes besides my nose -- will I be the first case in Maine of black lung disease? Recently I saw my neighbor, who makes wooden furniture, with a mask like the one pictured. I bought a box from an internet site, a little more than $1 per mask, and they are vastly better than the cheapies. They fit better, seal much better, and filter much better. The ones I got are 3M model 1860. They are rated N95, which I don't understand completely, but it is a measure of how well they filter. I highly recommend them.

I use those cheapo face masks that are flat and fit with rubbers bands around the ears, use them for vacumning the ash. I can see that if you have a lot of loose coal to shovel, your mask is the way to go, no fooling around.

It is good you are thinking abt this,permit me to say that the dust in my house went down dramatically when I went from a hand fed to a stoket.

Heres a good test of how much coal dust /ash is flying around. Go to the dollar store and buy a couple cheap mirrors. Dustone off and lay it flat some close distance to the stove. Do the same at same time with the other mirror far away from the stove, that is the control. The difference of accumulation after several days is pretty much stove accumulation vs natural accumulation or somewhere in between, enjoy the test!!

I purchased a full face mask that has the replaceable 3m round filters. I can be in the bin (enclosed room) for hours and nothing gets in my eyes, mouth nose....works great......before that I had black all in my eyes, nose, amazing how this stuff finds its way in!

I like the 3m 8511 mask with the exhaust valve. They are easier to work hard while wearing especially if you wear glasses.

N95 filters out 95% of airborne particles,but is not oil resistant.

SD

I just use a dampened bandana & wear it over my nose & mouth like an outlaw................

SheepDog68 wrote:I like the 3m 8511 mask with the exhaust valve. They are easier to work hard while wearing especially if you wear glasses.

I will have to look into those. I have noticed that with the 1860, if I work outside it has enough resistance that I feel a little out of breath.

Just ordered the harbor freight nockoff.
Never thought about a exhale valve one
Before...can't wait to try...thanks

SheepDog68 wrote:I like the 3m 8511 mask with the exhaust valve. They are easier to work hard while wearing especially if you wear glasses.

N95 filters out 95% of airborne particles,but is not oil resistant.

SD

These are a good choice, I were them at work ( asphalt plant and crushing plants) and when tending the stove at home.

Not so sure about the Harbor fright knock off's but if they are NIOSH rated may be ok. You can find the 3M's for around $1 each and get a few uses out each if kept clean ( freezer bag)

The importance of wearing #masks. The education strategies must adapt immediately in #Europe and #USA.

#covid19 #coronavirus #pandemic #publichealth #herdimmunity

“Why face mask use, proven effective, is not being promoted in general use.? Because the government failed to stockpile and had no plan for how to ramp up production, and chose to shame the public into not buying masks instead of being honest. “ #peakprosperity

“50% compliance in donning the device resulted in a significant (at least 50% prevalence and 20% cumulative incidence) reduction in risk for fitted and unfitted N95 respirators, high-filtration surgical masks, and both low-filtration and high-filtration pediatric masks. An 80% compliance rate essentially eliminated the influenza outbreak. The results of the present study, as well as the application of the model to related influenza scenarios, are potentially useful to public health officials in decisions involving resource allocation or education strategies.”

Informative post K! But I gotta ask, are you a coal burner? If so, finish your profile--hell, nobody's gonna steal ya!

freetown fred wrote: ↑

Sun. Mar. 29, 2020 7:30 am

Informative post K! But I gotta ask, are you a coal burner? If so, finish your profile--hell, nobody's gonna steal ya!

I believe he is about as real as the robot that calls me every couple of days trying to sell me something. Probably some sort of bot looking for mask related posts.

Probably right Glen, but I figured since he didn't put a link in there it might actually be a concerned kinda post--I know, I know, this isolation is getting to ALL of us!!! LOL

kobe999 wrote: ↑

Sun. Mar. 29, 2020 7:20 am

An 80% compliance rate essentially eliminated the influenza outbreak.

Bot or not, there's sense in his posting. If masks don’t help, then why do virtually all doctors and nurses use them?

“... the greatest benefit of masking the masses … likely comes not from shielding the mouths of the healthy but from covering the mouths of people already infected. “
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/03/would-eve ... w-pandemic
I have read that a number of other places, too. Since there apparently are very large numbers of infected people with no symptoms, masks on those people could keep them from passing the virus to others. And since we don’t know which healthy people are carrying the germs, the only practical strategy is to mask everybody.

kobe999’s post says the authorities have cynically lied and discouraged and shamed people against masking, to keep the inadequate supply for healthcare workers. I think that is overstating it, but you have to wonder what would be the recommendation if there were enough masks to go around.

New York, now.
Lots of masks, but their 6-foot distancing seems to have broken down.
.

rberq wrote: ↑

Tue. Nov. 23, 2010 7:00 pm

I will have to look into those. I have noticed that with the 1860, if I work outside it has enough resistance that I feel a little out of breath.

The N95 with exhalation valves is what we use any time we have to wear safety glasses, such as during grinding or sanding work. Worth the extra cost if you wear glasses.

Very often that "extra resistance" you feel is because of exhaled breath moisture condensation causes air flow restriction through the filtering material.

The valve helps reduce moisture condensation from your breath that will start to make the mask damp, thus making inhaling tougher. The valve has less exhaust flow resistance than the paper filter material, so it reduces moisture buildup in the filter material.

And like the regular N95 they can be dried out and reused. When they get really clogged with dust, we often clear them by blowing compressed air inside the masks to remove the bulk of the dust that builds up on the outside.

Paul