Amid the scramble for protective equipment, factories in China have popped up to seemingly overnight to meet the demand. Yet tests of masks from 21 manufacturers shows half of respirators being marketed as N95 fail to meet that standard – with some no better than a cotton cloth. Factories Spring Up to Meet Mask […]
Category: Masks
Masks are an effective way to protect yourself from airborne pollutants such as PM2.5, viruses, bacteria and allergens. In general, there are 2 common types of masks: surgical masks and respirators like N95 and N99 masks. DIY masks are also a popular option for when surgical masks and respirators are not available. Read more to learn if masks actually work, how long masks can be used, how to wash them, and how to DIY your own mask.
Recent Masks Articles:
Finding Reliable N95 Mask Manufacturers & Suppliers
After testing 31 masks from 19 suppliers in China, we discovered that almost half of the masks were not meeting the N95 standards for filtering particles. What’s more, out of the 17 masks that did meet the N95 standard, most of these broke when we tried some simple structural tests. Many people are currently looking […]
Does Wearing Surgical Masks with The Wrong Side Out Affect Their Ability to Capture Viruses?
Amid the rush for masks with the coronavirus, some people are wearing surgical masks with the wrong side facing out, but does wearing surgical masks with the wrong side out affect their ability to capture viruses? Some online sources claim it doesn’t matter and that you can wear surgical masks either way. Let’s see […]
Which Color Side of Surgical Masks Faces Out?
Many medical masks have two different sides, so which color side of surgical masks faces out? This is an old question, but the arrival of COVID-19 has forced millions of people to become mask experts and know the answers to questions like this. Most Surgical Masks Are Made of Three Layers Surgical […]
Can HEPA Filters Be Used to Make DIY Face Masks?
HEPA filters have been mentioned as a possible fabric material for making DIY face masks. There are even YouTube videos showing how to DIY a mask out of a HEPA filter. But just how well can HEPA filters capture virus-sized particles, and can HEPA filters be used to make an actual face mask? In this […]
Can Masks Filter Pollen and Prevent Hay Fever?
Every year, spring’s blossoms bring with them wave of pollen. For places like Beijing, it’s also the start of the ‘snowy season’, with the hundreds of willow trees producing their fluffy catkin friends and the sniffles that follow. But how can we avoid the uncomfortable coughing and sneezing? Which masks work best for protecting us […]
Sanitizing Masks With Alcohol Degrades Performance
With mask shortages during the coronavirus outbreak, some doctors are sanitizing masks with alcohol so they can re-use them. But this raises questions about whether alcohol actually works and whether it degrades the masks. Does Alcohol Kill Viruses? The research on alcohol is clear. Alcohol kills viruses. Technically, viruses aren’t alive, so scientists focus on […]
The Ultimate Guide to Homemade Face Masks for Coronavirus
One month ago, we published one of the first rundowns of data on the best materials for making homemade masks. Fast forward and the CDC is now recommending face masks for everybody, spurring a worldwide movement to make homemade masks. The first summary (viewed over 4 million times!) was a great start on face mask […]
The Ultimate Guide to Homemade Face Masks – Supplemental Data
This article accompanies our Ultimate Guide to Homemade Face Masks for Coronavirus article, and covers our testing method and provides the original data. WATCH: Smart Air’s Paddy Explain How We Ran These Tests The Cambridge researchers used a fancy piece of kit called a Henderson apparatus to run their tests. This allows for the controlled […]
What’s The Difference Between N95 and KN95 Masks?
With such similar sounding names, it can be confusing to understand the difference between N95 and KN95 masks. What are KN95 masks, and are they the same as N95 masks? This handy chart explains the differences between N95 and KN95 masks (and all characteristics that are the same). In short, N95 masks are the US standards […]
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