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Why N95 masks are hard to make

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Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#121

Post by gdubs »

bamboozled wrote: post #107
ardit33 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rome was a "superpower" militarily but it couldn't feed itself, and had to rely on grain from Egypt and the fertile crescent to feed its population..... Here we can't produce some basic silly things... as it is not that economical during normal times... Perhaps farming subsides are not a crazy type of idea after all.

Well two things come to mind here: - People can learn from Rome's mistakes. - Rome did at least some farming. - Rome is no more.

I’m reminded of an old saying that there two hard things in Computer Science:

- cache invalidation

- naming things

- and off-by-one errors

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#122

Post by adrianN »

_2d30 wrote: post #19
droithomme wrote: post #9

I made a dozen good homemade masks in a few hours, and I am inept at sewing. With some practice I could make 200 a day. There's no point to doing so, it would be illegal for me to sell them. US is doing nothing whatsoever to ramp up mask or ventilator production. It's going to result in a lot of deaths.

Of a material that is sufficient to meet the standards of N95 masks?

Even homemade masks provide some protection. A lot less than N95 masks, but much better than nothing.

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#123

Post by doodlebugging »

Scoundreller wrote: post #113
doodlebugging wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe that microwaving a used mask could also be an effective way to sterilize the mask. (0) I found this information by following links from the CDC website a few weeks ago when I was exploring the possibility of buying masks for my family and found that they were already being hawked online at ridiculous prices. Perhaps steam and/or use of a pressure cooker could also be effective. Many people who do home canni…

> Perhaps steam and/or use of a pressure cooker could also be effective. Many people who do home canning of food goods have a pressure cooker and are already familiar with usage and cleaning. A pressure cooker is overkill. It's used in canning because you need to kill fungal/bacterial spores that can be very hardy pre-germination. Viruses are amongst the easiest to "kill", and live bacteria somewhere in the middle. I…

I know about the pressure canner for spores. We can a lot of things here around the house and insuring that we have sterilized everything up front to prevent any opportunity for botulism or other pathogen to ruin the food is at the top of the list. I didn't realize that viruses could be easier to kill though. I appreciate that nugget.

Full sunlight, being UV-rich should be effective though like you I don't know how long one should plan to expose each side. I'd be interested in anyone's thoughts there.

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#124

Post by mattkrause »

doodlebugging wrote: post #108
SirLuxuryYacht wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This[0] article goes over recommendations for extended use, reuse, and risks. It also has a healthy list of references, some of which are by Fisher et al., the author of the paper you linked. Most masks have a metal tab bending over the bridge of the nose, as well as metal staples for the elastic bands, which would prevent you from microwaving. Cartridge type filters would work though. [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.go…

I had considered the metal parts of the mask to be a potential problem. In the worst case scenario it should be relatively simple for mask owners to remove the metal tab from the nose and the staples holding the elastic bands before microwaving. Once they are done in the microwave the bands could be stapled in place with your ordinary stapler and the band reattached with hot glue. Those who have a needle and thread c…

You probably want to avoid manipulating the mask a lot, both because it may be contaminated and to avoid punctures.

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#125

Post by curiousgal »

> Timothy Robson, a business development manager at Hills, Inc. in Florida, is skeptical of the quality of such production lines

Oh fuck off! Where are the millions of dollars invested by the US to fill these shortages. Everyone likes to shit on China when it's the only country taking steps to fix the situation at a global scale.

They should probably keep their shitty made masks to themselves then if their quality is bad. How well will that sit with other countries? ...

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#126

Post by redisman »

tcbawo wrote: post #95
agumonkey wrote: post #80

any simpler process to make nanofiltering ? not necessarily tissue but maybe ceramic, or other solids (like activated charcoal)

Do we even have to do nanofiltering? What about a breathing mask/apparatus like firefighters use? In theory they should be quite reusable.

A gas mask is very taxing to breathe in. I'd imagine the doctors doing 12-16h days would be passing out left and right.

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#127

Post by Scoundreller »

doodlebugging wrote: post #123
Scoundreller wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Perhaps steam and/or use of a pressure cooker could also be effective. Many people who do home canning of food goods have a pressure cooker and are already familiar with usage and cleaning. A pressure cooker is overkill. It's used in canning because you need to kill fungal/bacterial spores that can be very hardy pre-germination. Viruses are amongst the easiest to "kill", and live bacteria somewhere in the middle. I…

I know about the pressure canner for spores. We can a lot of things here around the house and insuring that we have sterilized everything up front to prevent any opportunity for botulism or other pathogen to ruin the food is at the top of the list. I didn't realize that viruses could be easier to kill though. I appreciate that nugget. Full sunlight, being UV-rich should be effective though like you I don't know how l…

My comparisons for UV light have been SODIS for water (very effective for clear water).

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#128

Post by curiousgal »

dehrmann wrote: post #93

Generally good quote about Chinese manufacturing: > China can be all over the place. Sometimes you think you're in a Western factory. Others are kind of like a dirt floor sort of shanty trying to pass their stuff off as good as the other guys. And maybe it is.

Right. That is why they should stop exporting their shitty masks. Other countries will just have to import the superior quality masks than NO OTHER COUNTRY is producing at the necessary scale.

Even at times of crisis, you can count on good'ol HN to supply a dose of China hatred.

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#129

Post by geekthattweaks »

gdubs wrote: post #121
bamboozled wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well two things come to mind here: - People can learn from Rome's mistakes. - Rome did at least some farming. - Rome is no more.

I’m reminded of an old saying that there two hard things in Computer Science: - cache invalidation - naming things - and off-by-one errors

My favorite computer science joke by far!

Re: Why N95 masks are hard to make

#130

Post by swsieber »

_2d30 wrote: post #13

I do believe these masks are also made in the US, but this situation highlights exactly why a country having its own major manufacturing base is not just an economic need but rather also a national security need. The US needs to invest in itself immediately to rebuild its lost manufacturing base. In economic terms, under certain definitions and assumptions that are typical under modern economics, a trade war such as…

My first thought about this economic mess was that it clearly illustrates why it'd be a bad idea to have another world war, even if it were mostly economic or infrastructure based.

I now think that this is getting us prepared to have a world war.

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