Reusing N95 Masks

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  • ToolAA

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Jun 17, 2016
    10,500
    God's Country
    This my first chance to post this but It’s been on my mind since I heard the presidents presser yesterday. He mentioned that we shouldn’t be throwing away N95 masks. I’m sure the Medical professionals and the OSHA guys watching were saying WTF.

    Here is the link.
    https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/21/politics/trump-sanitize-medical-masks/index.html

    Now I know that the president probably does not really know the ramifications of reusing a mask but desperate times do call for desperate measures, so what may be criticized as a dumb idea should be considered as a viable option under the circumstances.

    At work when the shortage hit, I purchased some cartridge style respirators for the shop and saved the N95 masks for my install crews. I told them to blow them out with compressed air at the end of the day. This was so they could blow out the construction dust, but I didn’t really consider the possible ramifications if their mask had been contaminated by COVID-19. They could potentially be spraying virus onto others or themselves.

    Here is what I’m thinking now. I’ve got plenty of Denatured Alcohol. At home I dunked a mask into a container of alcohol and let it soak in for about 30sec. Then I took it out, let the excess drain off and then simply let it dry out on the table. It took about 15min to be totally dry. I then blew it out with compressed air. I’ve been wearing it for about 10min now as I sit here typing. I can smell a very slight alcohol smell but other than that it seems to work fine.

    I’m no virologist but from what I understand the virus is killed when in contact with Alcohol. There doesn’t seem to be any reason why this wont work. So change my mind before I open myself and business up to some OSHA lawsuit down the road. Otherwise we implement this procedure tomorrow if we are still allowed to work.


    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
     

    ToolAA

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Jun 17, 2016
    10,500
    God's Country
    Here is a video about washing masks:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGHMU4iegLE&feature=youtu.be

    I also saw something on TV that said exposing each side of the mask to UVC light for one minute would disinfect them but they were also using seven masks and rotating them so each mask was only used one day a week and they had six days between uses.


    Thanks. I just have about 20 masks left 8 in use and an unopened box of 12. Just no way around daily reuse for us right now.
     

    LiveSteamer

    Member
    Mar 22, 2020
    27
    The Republic of Texas
    Google "reusing N95 masks". There is a lot of information in various articles and YouTube videos on the subject. I am considering using heat or UV light to disinfect masks for reuse. Information I have read said that heating a mask at 165 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes would kill the virus. I have a toaster oven in the shop that I use when powder coating my lead cast bullets that should do the job. I also have a UV lamp on order. I plan to empty a kitchen drawer and put the UV lamp in the drawer as a disinfection cabinet. Note, the UV lamp must be type UVC to disinfect and five minutes on each side of a mask should do the trick. DO NOT look at the UV lamp when it is on as exposure can damage your eyesight unless using UV glasses. The are a number of wet methods of disinfecting masks, alcohol, Clorox, hydrogen peroxide, soap and water and others. I prefer a dry method as I feel the wet methods may damage the structure of the masks, limiting the number of times they can be reused.
     

    Alphabrew

    Binary male Lesbian
    MDS Supporter
    Jan 27, 2013
    40,749
    Woodbine
    I have a few but I’m worried that re-using them is more dangerous than not even wearing them.
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    The problem is, you may be changing how the filtering media works. It is not purely a mechanical filtration (getting stuck in holes smaller than the particle). There are also electrostatic effects that attract and bind the particle to the filtering media.

    DO NOT REUSE RESPIRATORS. They are single use only.

    Trying to disinfect and reuse, and you are now a testing agency, into unknown territory.

    If you have a cartridge type respiratory, it can be reused. You should disinfect it, inside and outer surface, using appropriate methods. Check the manufacturer's website for details. Some cleaning products can harm the elastomeric material of the facepiece.
     

    Half-cocked

    Senior Meatbag
    Mar 14, 2006
    23,937
    I have 20 N95 masks; if one of our household (4 people at the moment) gets it, they won't last through the whole contagious period.

    I will re-use them if, and when, they're needed; 170F oven for 10 minutes should kill any virus particles. Obviously if there is any degradation of the mask's materials, other approaches will be tried.

    You can speculate all you want that *maybe* this won't work, but it's *definite* that not wearing a mask around someone with the virus is dangerous as f***.
     

    sino26

    Member
    Mar 5, 2013
    239
    Columbia
    My wife is an RN. Her hospital has gone from one N95 mask per shift to everyone being told to reuse masks. I don't think they are cleaning them, just storing in a ziplock with their name on it. They are saying WTF though. Housekeeping staff don't get masks so i guess it's better than nothing.
     

    Blacksmith101

    Grumpy Old Man
    Jun 22, 2012
    22,163
    Any mask is better than no mask just like any gun is better than no gun.

    If you have the luxury of multiple masks you can always use them in rotation because the virus only lives for a period of time (three days on plastic, etc.). For example if you had seven masks and wore one each day then you would not wear the first one again until it had sat for seven days which is probably long enough to kill any virus.
     

    pbharvey

    Habitual Testifier
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 27, 2012
    30,158
    We made a sheetmetal box with a UVC light inside it at work to sanitize the masks
     

    Xshot

    Ultimate Member
    BANNED!!!
    Aug 14, 2013
    1,645
    Pasadena, MD
    How do the respirators with replaceable cartridges compare to the N95 masks? I was under the impression my respirator was infinitely better at filtering everything and anything than the N95 mask. I can't find anything definitive online about it.

    My wife is pregnant and if there's an emergency and she needs to leave the house I want to give her whichever is better obviously.
     

    Alphabrew

    Binary male Lesbian
    MDS Supporter
    Jan 27, 2013
    40,749
    Woodbine
    Some good news
     

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