The only times I've worn one of those throwaway blue surgical masks have been when medical facilities required me to use one of their masks instead of the one I usually wear. I never feel safe in those, they feel so flimsy and insecure and the fit around the cheeks is dreadful for me and even with the nose clip my glasses steamed up indicating a bad fit there. I'd obviously like both, a good fit and FFP3, but given the choice of a well-fitting FFP2 or a badly fitting FFP3 I'd go for the former in terms of protecting myself. However good the filter there is a huge gap in one's defences if some of the air being breathed in is not passing through the super-duper filter but is instead being pulled in around the edges. I wonder whether some of the persistent "it's to protect others not you" messaging is down to an acceptance that the throwaway paper surgical masks that so many people use just don't fit properly in many cases with air leaking in via the sides so basically very little protection for the wearer, doubly so now with the Delta variant where is is thought that fewer viral particles need to be breathed in to become infected.servodude wrote:Yeah they're great masks (we've has this conversation before ) and very comfortable (they're a great shape)Lootman wrote: I have been using Vogmask N99 masks since the beginning. Clearly they provide more protection, and I also find them more comfortable to wear than the standard N95s, which I have also used. And as someone else mentioned, the valve reduces the fogging of glasses if you wear them.
I am happy to see others wear the blue throwaway surgical masks, but for me they feel quite inadequate at protecting me rather than others.
The one I had died pretty quickly when I used it cycling during the bad fire season a while ago though and I switched to a similar shaped competitor's mask but with the replaceable carbon filter that can be removed (and as a plus - the rest of the mask washed!)
I think Vogmask recommend replacing after a year of "light" use (sooner if used in anger) if I'd got that long out of it I would have kept using them
We did use the old Vog as a template though for some "casual" masks that the seamstress indoors knocked out when they were a thing
- they were even more comfy as I repurposed some soft silicone (from an nasal cannula) on the top side of the ear straps
Surgical masks are OK for catching snotters
- the disposable N95 respirators though are a very different beast
- not least because they actually form an effective seal
- sd
Do you guys have any links to the masks you're talking about. I found what seems to be the Vogmask main site (https://www.vogmask.com/collections/all) and while the FAQ talks about their valved and non-valved masks the shop only seems to list one "collection" now, the non-valved version, with no mention of N99 certification that I could see. I'm wondering if the masks I'm seeing on this site are the ones you are talking Lootman about and, if not, whether Vogmask might have discontinued its N99 version.
I'd also be interested in any link you might have servodude to the one you use with the replaceable filter.
- Julian