I don’t think you need more than N95 for protection from airborne viruses. You can go up to P100, but it will make breathing harder. Your biggest win would come from getting a well-fitting elastomeric mask/respirator with N95 filters, and ideally, no unfiltered output port (for other people’s benefit).
As someone who’s had to wear a P100 half-mask respirator for reasonable periods (2-3 hours) before, it’s not really a big deal unless you have respiratory issues. Even the chain-smoking chuds at my old work who refused to mask because it made “breathing too hard” had no issues wearing one.
I remember having to do a gig where we had to wear respiratory masks a few years ago and our union had mandated that you could not wear them for more than 4 consecutive hours and for a total of 8 hours a day, due to the risk of developing liquid in your lungs. I’ve never looked into it since, but it’s always freaked me out. Beats having COVID tho
The single best thing you can do to ensure you’re protecting yourself is to do a home fit test. Surgical masks, KN95s, N95s have generally the same kind of filtration layer; the essential difference is the fit. Is it sealing on your face with <10% leakage, even when worn for long periods and while you speak and make facial expressions? You can’t really know this for sure unless you do a fit test.
A p100 with an exhalation valve. I use a gvs eclipse because it looks the most “normal” and is light so it’s comfortable for long stretches. Got it at Lee Valley, have seen them on Amazon.
Edit: you won’t be protecting others with this mask, I’m not worried about that because I live like a hermit. If you are then follow @TrashGoblin@hexbear.net’s advice
There’s a source control version of the Eclipse with no exhalation valve. One could also just cover the exhalation valve with either something impermeable or the electrostatic filtration layer scavenged from a medical mask or respirator if needed.
Other elastomerics that are popular these days:
MSA Advantage (speech diaphragm, with source control)
3M Secure Click (speech diaphragm, great feature where it auto-seal checks for you, no source control)
Honeywell RU8500 (speech diaphragm, no source control)
FloMask (low profile, good speech audibility, source control)
Not sure if you were talking about this one but the GVS Elipse I use (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B095YC3ZD5) has no exhalation valve! It fits small faces and is pretty comfortable for long use cases, only issue is it gets wet from all the humidity so when I’m done with it I use a paper towel to carefully wick out all the water and then air it out.
You can get N99 or N100 masks. I haven’t seen any that don’t have a valve for breathing out so they don’t protect others, just yourself.
For masks, the convention is that the number is its ability to filter out small particles and the letter is for whether it also protects (P) against oil-based particles or not (N), with R offering partial oil protection. There’s nothing wrong with using a P99 or P100 but it’s probably not doing anything more than an N99 or N100 for airborne diseases.
The silicone respirators that you can hook N/P100s to can be pretty nice. They have better airflow, in my experience, but are also much heavier. You’ll get a wet face using one for hours.
As others mentioned, fit is important. If you have a gap in your seal you’ve kind of defeated the difference between N95 and N100 already. If you have facial hair, shave. Then fit your mask to your face by adjusting the nose thing or the straps if they are adjustable. Do some rapid breaths in and out and see if there’s pressure/vacuum.
Also N95 is probably enough for the vast majority of scenarios. Given that money is limited, it might be better to buy many N95s rather than fewer N99s or N100s so that you can rotate them. I keep around the higher-Ns for occasions that seem particularly risky like poorly ventilated areas packed with people.
Hey so if I want to go beyond just a KN95, what’s a good mask I can like, right now?
I don’t think you need more than N95 for protection from airborne viruses. You can go up to P100, but it will make breathing harder. Your biggest win would come from getting a well-fitting elastomeric mask/respirator with N95 filters, and ideally, no unfiltered output port (for other people’s benefit).
As someone who’s had to wear a P100 half-mask respirator for reasonable periods (2-3 hours) before, it’s not really a big deal unless you have respiratory issues. Even the chain-smoking chuds at my old work who refused to mask because it made “breathing too hard” had no issues wearing one.
I remember having to do a gig where we had to wear respiratory masks a few years ago and our union had mandated that you could not wear them for more than 4 consecutive hours and for a total of 8 hours a day, due to the risk of developing liquid in your lungs. I’ve never looked into it since, but it’s always freaked me out. Beats having COVID tho
Thanks; I haven’t tried one and was only going by what a friend who introduced me to elastomeric masks said.
The single best thing you can do to ensure you’re protecting yourself is to do a home fit test. Surgical masks, KN95s, N95s have generally the same kind of filtration layer; the essential difference is the fit. Is it sealing on your face with <10% leakage, even when worn for long periods and while you speak and make facial expressions? You can’t really know this for sure unless you do a fit test.
It is pretty cheap and easy to do a DIY fit test.
Here’s a video that explains how to do it with a trash bag, some Splenda, and a $7 nebulizer.
Here is a written guide.
A p100 with an exhalation valve. I use a gvs eclipse because it looks the most “normal” and is light so it’s comfortable for long stretches. Got it at Lee Valley, have seen them on Amazon.
Edit: you won’t be protecting others with this mask, I’m not worried about that because I live like a hermit. If you are then follow @TrashGoblin@hexbear.net’s advice
I gave up on source control years ago. People can figure their own shit out, I can’t help them in the current “covid isn’t real” paradigm.
There’s a source control version of the Eclipse with no exhalation valve. One could also just cover the exhalation valve with either something impermeable or the electrostatic filtration layer scavenged from a medical mask or respirator if needed.
Other elastomerics that are popular these days:
MSA Advantage (speech diaphragm, with source control)
3M Secure Click (speech diaphragm, great feature where it auto-seal checks for you, no source control)
Honeywell RU8500 (speech diaphragm, no source control)
FloMask (low profile, good speech audibility, source control)
EnvoMask (low profile, source control)
Not sure if you were talking about this one but the GVS Elipse I use (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B095YC3ZD5) has no exhalation valve! It fits small faces and is pretty comfortable for long use cases, only issue is it gets wet from all the humidity so when I’m done with it I use a paper towel to carefully wick out all the water and then air it out.
The only thing about n95 is p100s. Idk if they even make p100 face masks. At that point you’re looking at a half face or full face respirator.
Full face elastomeric mask with p100 filters
You can get N99 or N100 masks. I haven’t seen any that don’t have a valve for breathing out so they don’t protect others, just yourself.
For masks, the convention is that the number is its ability to filter out small particles and the letter is for whether it also protects (P) against oil-based particles or not (N), with R offering partial oil protection. There’s nothing wrong with using a P99 or P100 but it’s probably not doing anything more than an N99 or N100 for airborne diseases.
The silicone respirators that you can hook N/P100s to can be pretty nice. They have better airflow, in my experience, but are also much heavier. You’ll get a wet face using one for hours.
As others mentioned, fit is important. If you have a gap in your seal you’ve kind of defeated the difference between N95 and N100 already. If you have facial hair, shave. Then fit your mask to your face by adjusting the nose thing or the straps if they are adjustable. Do some rapid breaths in and out and see if there’s pressure/vacuum.
Also N95 is probably enough for the vast majority of scenarios. Given that money is limited, it might be better to buy many N95s rather than fewer N99s or N100s so that you can rotate them. I keep around the higher-Ns for occasions that seem particularly risky like poorly ventilated areas packed with people.