Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

npr.org

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

91–100 of 232 posts

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#91

Post by Erik816 »

jorblumesea wrote: post #46

It's mind blowing how 3 years into a pandemic, we're just having the conversation about N95 and mask fit vs kn95 vs cloth mask. What a huge miss in public health. Should have been done summer 2020. The most effective, cheapest solution was just to wear a properly fitted n95. Sure, vaccines good, retrovirals, yes, but this should have been done long ago. Given the airborne and aerosolized nature having a real mask wou…

Since the beginning, I have been using N95s when I'm actually worried about catching the virus and think I might be able to prevent it (like grocery shopping early on, flights, etc.) I use cloth masks pretty much everywhere else for compliance or because I think the situation is low enough risk.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#92

Post by Der_Einzige »

TylerE wrote: post #67
glofish wrote: post #61

Quoted post unavailable.

> FP2 or N95 do not work either. You can't stop an airborne virus with a mask. Bullshit. Not even worth refuting someone so far removed from reality.

I'd guess that over 95% of people using these masks are unable to keep a seal on the mask. I'm still capital S shocked that we have not invented some better sealing system. Every time my glasses fog up, I know that whatever "protection" I am getting is nil, especially with omicron.

The OP is not "removed from reality", they are correct. We had many ways that we could have significantly reduced transmission - e.g. moving the majority of life outdoors (outdoor classrooms, outdoor restaurants/food-carts, outdoor shopping farmer market style). No one wanted to do this at any serious scale.

We need to do things that actually stop the spread, rather than continue useless healthcare theater. Design masks that can properly seal for the majority, or they are useless. Mandate uber drivers to have their windows down during drives - Mandate airlines to not pack people like sardines (which will NEVER happen).

Don't try to take this contrarian attitude with folks like this, it just makes you look like an ass. OP is not an anti-vaxxer. OP is not trying to hurt others. OP is frustrated y the lack of efficacy of current mitigation strategies.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#94

Post by CoastalCoder »

TylerE wrote: post #67
glofish wrote: post #61

Quoted post unavailable.

> FP2 or N95 do not work either. You can't stop an airborne virus with a mask. Bullshit. Not even worth refuting someone so far removed from reality.

Can you please share some sources that led you to this conclusion?

I don't have a settled view on this, and I'm eager to find good sources of information.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#95

Post by pacomerh »

khuey wrote: post #6

The 3M Aura N95s are pretty comfortable and cost a couple dollars each at Home Depot. They're also pretty good about directing your breath away from the top so your glasses won't fog up when wearing them.

That's the one I use and it covers really well. The only downside is that you can't put it on super quick.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#96

Post by TylerE »

CoastalCoder wrote: post #94
TylerE wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> FP2 or N95 do not work either. You can't stop an airborne virus with a mask. Bullshit. Not even worth refuting someone so far removed from reality.

Can you please share some sources that led you to this conclusion? I don't have a settled view on this, and I'm eager to find good sources of information.

Well, I mean, i understand the size of an airborn virus particle and the effectiveness of an N95 at filtering said particle sizes.

Virus aren't magic.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#97

Post by tasha0663 »

GeekyBear wrote: post #21

Scientists spent several years trying to convince the powers that be that Covid spread was airborne. >In an open letter published today (July 6 2020), 239 scientists from 32 countries urge the World Health Organization and other bodies to address the potential for airborne transmission of the coronavirus. The authors write that a growing body of evidence suggests “beyond any reasonable doubt” that the virus spreads i…

> How sad that it has taken this long to reach acceptance that you need a mask capable of filtering the air you breathe.

A lot of us were lied to about masks at the beginning of this, so it's not terribly surprising.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#98

Post by dghughes »

The CEO of my local provincial health authority Dr. Michael Gardam had some comments on N95 masks. He said visitors to the hospital here were asked to remove their N95 masks and were given medical/surgical masks instead. Partly due to not knowing how old or contaminated the masks were of visitors but also for mask performance issues.

Dr. Gardam said, paraphrasing, N95 are good at filtering when you breathe in but when exhaling they are not so great (poor fit?). The medial masks were good filtering both in an out maybe not as good as the N95 for filtering inward of very small particles. N95 are best at filtering small particles but larger droplets can be filtered by either the surgical or N95 masks.

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#99

Post by FridgeSeal »

colechristensen wrote: post #28

I really don’t see the point unless you’re immune compromised or at some other high risk. Omicron is the evolutionary result you wait for, better at spreading and less health impact so it significantly outcompetes other variants (it has, something like 95% of infections). Peak omicron is coming withina master of days or already passed across the US. It’s virulence is such that you can only delay not expect to forever…

> It’s time to admit defeat and plan for what that looks like and stop pretending like anything at this point is going to make this virus go away.

This isn’t defeat though? Winning doesn’t mean nobody gets the virus, it means we’re minimised ham and impact as much as possible, where possible. We might all get it, but there’s no reason for us all to get it at the same time and cause undue stress on our hospital system.

> really don’t see the point unless you’re immune compromised or at some other high risk

Because I have an active lifestyle and don’t really feel like risking chronic fatigue or lung damage unnecessarily? Because I have things I want to do, and having to sit at home isolating and being sick impacts my social life negatively? Because even if it’s not covid, I’m kinds of liking not sharing the air with that random person on public transport with some infection?

Re: Ready for an N95? Here's how to find a high-quality one that fits you well

#100

Post by nescioquid »

fallingknife wrote: post #2

I used to work in the oilfield. We had to be clean shaven on site because in an emergency we may be required to use masks, and your face needs to be clean shaven to form a seal. That's how things are done when there is a real safety risk. The lack of CDC guidance on this point speaks volumes as to how serious this is.

> The lack of CDC guidance on this point speaks volumes as to how serious this is.

It speaks volumes, at least. Heckuva job, Brownie.

I'm still flummoxed by Fauci's -- let's call it -- equivocation about masks being pointless, for which he later apologized and explained he was trying to conserve the supply of N95s for medical personnel. There is certainly an admixture of manipulating the public to achieve a desired outcome (rather than leveling with the populace) and gross incompetence and callous indifference at play.

If they really believed it were that serious, I hardly trust they'd do any more than cover their assess.

Post reply on HN