Mask Material --Think Out of the Box: How about HEPA Home Air Conditioning Unit Filters?

[TheBlackAdder]

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A TBA brain fart: Filtrete 2800 or 2200 model home filters

And, since the material is accordioned, the amount of unfolded media is 4-5 larger than the box.


https://www.filtrete.com/3M/en_US/filtrete/products/?N=4315+3292675507+3294529207&rt=rud


Attracts and captures microscopic particles such as smoke, cough and sneeze debris, bacteria and viruses—and large particles, including lint, household dust and pollen






EDIT: They could also be cut into circles , rectangles and stacked and used as makeshift respirator mask filters.





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[Merlot]

1. I was thinking of using my HEPA vacuum bags

They're made of fabric, pretty thick, but I can breath through it.

[happybird]

4. Ha! Great minds think alike

We posted at the same time.

[happybird]

2. We were talking about fancy vacuum cleaner bags with HEPA filters at work the other day

and if they could somehow be converted into mask material.

[Merlot]

8. Make the masks with a pocket for a filter insert

Then cut the vacuum bag into filters sized pieces. That way you'd use less of the vacuum bag. Change out the filters as needed.

I'm wondering if they can be washed/sanitized?

[gibraltar72]

3. Sanitary napkins.

[In_The_Wind]

7. Too thick to breath through.

[dweller]

5. a couple of cases of those

and i could construct an isolation chamber
🤔

i also read vacuum bags would work, cut out 2 holes for eyes
voila, mystery comedian style
😁

✌🏼

[dalton99a]

6. Should work theoretically - the problem is facial fit (esp. for healthcare workers

who are constantly within 6 ft of patients)

The virus that causes COVID-19 is approximately 0.125 micron (125 nanometers) in diameter. It falls squarely within the particle-size range that HEPA filters capture with extraordinary efficiency: 0.01 micron (10 nanometers) and above. Many media outlets have incorrectly stated that HEPA filters don’t filter below 0.3 micron and therefore can’t capture the new coronavirus. That claim is flat wrong. (This NASA study of HEPA filtration is quite technical, but the graph on page 7 and the preceding paragraph do a good job of explaining why HEPA filters are actually most efficient—almost 100 percent at 0.01 micron—at capturing ultrafine particles below the 0.3-micron HEPA test standard.)

https://thewirecutter.com/blog/can-hepa-air-purifiers-capture-coronavirus/

[Merlot]

9. For people just going out into the world - grocery shopping, etc

it would at least help. There are not as many sick people around and you're hopefully staying outside of 6 feet from everyone, a luxury medical professionals don't have.

[TheBlackAdder]

12. Two layers of MPR 2800 would be better than an N95 filter, inserted in a cloth mask outer layer.

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https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/1740587O/filtrete-merv-vs-mpr.pdf

It would have to be enclosed in a cloth material for comfort.

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[WePurrsevere]

10. I researched this a week ago, shared my idea on FB and

have used them for hubby and I. From what I can see as long as they filter out .3 microns they're about, if not the same, filtration as the N95 mask.

From experience I suggest adding a soft paper towel to the side next to your face. Fan told it the same way as the filter. I use cotton crochet yarn to tie it.

[Jersey Devil]

11. Not if they contain fiberglass

Then you'd be breathing the fiberglass particles into your lungs with every breath.

[TheBlackAdder]

13. If they are enclosed in a fine cloth material it wouldn't.

[ornotna]

14. If they contain fiberglass

You would be breathing the particles just using them in your AC system I would think.

[Jersey Devil]

15. They are contained in a filter

If you start cutting up filters you would lose the containment at least in part.

[ornotna]

17. pleated filters don't normally contain fiberglass

They're usually made with polyester and cotton.

Disposable pleated filters are made of polyester or cotton paper sheets and are better at trapping particulates. They are generally rated from six to 13 on the MERV scale. Cotton filters have higher ratings and their fibers can self-charge to remove smaller particles from the air. They usually have a MERV rating of 10 or higher and are slightly more expensive than the typical pleated variety.

https://www.brennanshvac.com/blog/what-is-your-furnace-air-filter-made-of

[TheBlackAdder]

18. Filtrete filers are not made of fiberglass, they are polypropylene and polyolefin plastic.

[CrispyQ]

16. Here's a DIY face mask pattern and instructions that includes an optional pocket for a filter,

and a wire nose guard.

https://jennifermaker.com/face-mask-patterns-cricut/

[KY_EnviroGuy]

19. No. Not proven fit for purpose.

We should not be suggesting or recommending any material or product for other people's protection against contracting a potentially fatal disease unless it has been approved and tested under the Federal code linked here:

42 CFR Part 84 Respiratory Protective Devices: https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=c9c15fd462ffe5c4f4e85b73f161b2e0&r=PART&n=42y1.0.1.7.67#se42.1.84_11143

Filtration materials are carefully selected and tested under the worse case conditions of use for each application, including particulate or gas capture rate and breathing air flow rate, and production of assembled devices is carefully controlled and monitored. Pleated or flat HEPA filter material for furnaces and air purifiers is tested only for their specific intended use.

Of course, we are free to use anything we like for our own personal protection. Just please be aware that you may be creating a false sense of security for yourself and others around you by using anything not scientifically proven fit for purpose by a certified testing lab.

[TheBlackAdder]

20. When people are making cloth masks, thinking that's good enough, we're beyond that phase.

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People are reusing N95, P100, P95, R95 & R100 masks, making shields out of plastic lettuce box lids, and trying to scrounge for anything that can suffice due to the lack of available masks, that general guideline does not apply anymore.

That was a January 2015 guideline.

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[KY_EnviroGuy]

21. The gist of my post was.....

If we're going to post ideas of any sort for personal protection against a deadly virus, we should include a disclaimer reminding everyone it is purely an untested amateur idea and has no guarantee of performing the task and to use at your own risk.

What guarantee can you provide that such ideas are even the least bit effective? I'll remind everyone that we're dealing with virus particles on the order of 0.05 microns diameter in aerosol form or micron-size water vapor with entrained virus and common sense rules do not apply. Each filter media is designed to capture a certain percentage of particulate in a certain size range, of a certain chemical nature, and for a specific air flow rate per unit area. When design flow rates are exceeded, micron-size particles can rush through a filter like a rocket.

Any type common filter media will likely block a certain unknown percentage of vapor and particulate trying to pas through it. But is that percentage 2% or is it 75%, or is it nearly zero? However, in our culture, use of such things tend to create complacency and recklessness, especially as thousands of amateur ideas float about on blogs and social media.

I don't think I could live with the shame if I recommended the use of a product intended for furnace filters to my next door neighbor after which he jury-rigged himself a mask and then went to his job for a long shift at a retail store or hospital, totally believing that he was safe and then died the next week of coronavirus.

I posted the link to the NIOSH rule so people could realize how complex the requirements are for such devices. They are complex for a reason.