Masks

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Read the WHO & HSE guidelines on masks. Wearing one to the shops is a waste of a mask and money. They have no proven benefits unless you have the Virus or are nursing someone who has the virus.

Incorrect. There are numerous studies that demonstrate that wearing even a surgical mask correctly mitigates risk of infection. This is a fact. Why would you wear one if you were nursing someone who was infected if they have no benefits in lowering risk? Why would an infected person wear one if they have no proven benefits. Your cocksure statements make zero sense.

Go sit outside a hospital and watch. You won't see doctors & nurses wearing masks coming out of work & on their journey home. They have been trained & they know masks are of no use in general use.

From the AMA here with the hospital consultant on the matter. "I plan to wear masks on my way into work and home starting Wednesday. But I know how to put them on, fit them and take them off so they'll be effective for me, hopefully."

The single main reason why health authorities in the West have been saying don't wear a mask is because we don't have enough of them to go around for those working in the health services with a far higher exposure risk. That's it. End of.

And clearly it has worked as people insist on repeating the same contradictory message the same health services have been putting out. Actually it's an interesting insight into how propaganda works and how easily people will accept obviously contradictory information from on high, even in this case where it's most certainly for the positive.

In places like Taiwan their health services have been saying do wear a mask, to the degree that fines can be imposed for not wearing one in public, because they have enough of them to go around(they were producing ten million of them per day).

BrianD3 wrote: »

In terms of what I have, about 30 x FFP2 and FFP2V disposable masks (technically respirators), never used but many of them are expired, if things get worse I'll start with the FFP2V non expired ones and work from there.

Also have a Sundstrom respirator and 5 x replacabale P3 filters I won't be wearing that to Tesco unless things get a lot LOT worse.

The Sundstrom would reduce your chances of picking up the virus substantially. Such P3 rigouts are what medical experts use in high pathogen zones. On the expiry front P3/2 filiters or masks don't expire as such. They're particulate filters, so only expire if they become clogged up. Unlikely if you're not in construction or other dusty environment like sanding body filler on a car. Activated carbon filters do expire and lose effectiveness pretty quickly as the carbon becomes saturated with time, but they wouldn't be for virus type environments(though would no doubt still filter quite a bit of the air.

Marsden35 wrote: »

I've got a full hazmat setup due to having spray painted cars in the past.

So far I've felt it's a bit overkill to go out like that.

This get-up must be worth a fortune just now.

The price gouging online and off for such things has been ridiculous. I got this half face job last year for a completely different reason, cost me 20-25 quid delivered.



Now the same masks are going for 120 plus quid on ebay and the like. If you can get one. As it turned out(though no foresight on my part) that's actually a very good one for pox prevention purposes. It's more compact than similar and more comfortable and has a handy way to check for good fit and seal. And yep I can confirm it will seal with a tight beard. If I were to close the filters I'd turn blue in short order. And it's much easier and safer to clean because the filters aren't exposed. One major issue with such masks are they give zero protection to others if the wearer is infected as the exhaled air is unflitered.

Now I wouldn't wear one to the shops. Yet. But if I had to take public transport or be in a small enclosed space with lots of people, then damn right I would. I do wear the surgical type when I go out. A) they are protective because I know how to wear and use one and more because I don't want to risk infecting someone else. I tend to be asymptomatic with the usual "bugs" that go around. EG the only flu I've ever obviously caught in my life was of the swine variety and I brushed that off over a weekend. I am quite sure I've infected others with bugs down the years when I felt fine or a "bit tired"(I'm pretty sure I gave that swine flu to an ex). Now this current dose could go against type and put me in a pine box in a few days, but it would kill me if I thought I'd risked giving it to someone else because I felt OK.

Kenjataimu wrote: »

I saw this video yesterday

Also saw this on how to make a homemade mask

https://m.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=400&width=224&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fodiviofficial%2Fvideos%2F807790806395450%2F



Not sure these vids are helpful or not tbh.
A lot of people arguing for and against.

Well the Czechs have seen a day on day reduction in the numbers. That vid and drive to make masks a given when out and about should be applied everywhere this virus has spread.

I mean on the one hand we're told to cough into a tissue, or worse case into the crook of your elbow to lower the risk of spread, yet a tissue/elbow actually stuck on your face is useless? Jesus. :rolleyes:

Look I know why they had to come out with it and hopefully it did leave more PPE for those on the front lines of this, but when these shipments of masks from China dial down that need this country - and the HSE has to lead in this and backtrack - must get mask wearing a societal given until a vaccine surfaces.