Elastomeric masks: my experience so far.
Mar. 15th, 2023 07:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
artsyhonkerIn late spring 2021, as various UK covid protections were easing, a friend of mine travelled to a funeral. This was before most people were vaccinated. Several members of her travelling party came back with COVID. She did not.
She was wearing a 3M 6000-series elastomeric respirator half face mask with P3 filters, and I decided I wanted one. I had previously been wearing cloth masks with a filter insert, and avoiding public transport and indoor spaces that are not my home as much as possible. This and a hefty dose of luck had been enough to keep me safe from getting COVID, but masking levels in the UK have never been very high outside of medical settings (and my church, for a while), and I wanted something that would protect the wearer. I didn't really want to switch to disposable respirators, though, because of the environmental impact of all that plastic.
So I bought the 6200, which is the medium size (6100 is small, 6300 is large) and some filters. That was my first elastomeric. I was surprised at how much easier it was to breathe in than the cloth masks. I wore it for strength training. I wore it on the rowing machine. (Both of these were in a one-on-one fitness facility which has since closed; I haven't been back to a Big Gym because I don't really like them enough to pay for them.) It is still my go-to for public transport, or any other crowded indoor situation where I don't really need to speak to others and I'm not singing (I can sing in it, but it's pretty miserable to do so). I love that by covering the outflow with my hand and trying to breathe out I can test the outflow seal; by squeezing the hard case filters and breathing in, I can test the inflow seal. Being able to test seal just before getting onto e.g. a crowded train, without having to take the mask off or mess about too much, is really, really good. At first I used a 3D-printed clip to filter the outflow for a while, then on a trip to Canada purchased some boxes of the model 604 outflow filters, which are much better in terms of breathing resistance, but at the time unobtainium in the UK (and still rarely available outside of the evil big river website). (I was very miffed that Transport Canada would't allow me to wear this mask on the plane, even with outflow filters: a clear case of the rules not being finely nuanced enough for real life.) I like the strap arrangement, with one neck strap (with a clip) and one head strap that divides in two at the back, keeping it very secure on my head. But it's big and it's bulky, and it's often very difficult for others to understand me when I speak while wearing it, not only because they can't lip-read, but because it muffles my voice so much. This is worse with an exhalation valve filter but even without it's pretty bad. Source control also makes it harder to exhale, which meant that with heavy exercise the seal would be imperfect when I was breathing out (but fine breathing in).
On that trip to Canada where I needed a mask on the plane but wasn't allowed to wear the 6200, and occasionally at social events with sufficient precautions in place (everyone vaxxed, and either testing beforehand or with very high mask-wearing and decent ventilation) I would switch to a 3M Aura FFP3, but the straps on these are flimsy and breakable, and the seal doesn't last for very many cycles of taking the mask off and putting it on again. And they're not cheap for something that doesn't last for very many wears. I wanted to do better.
So in November 2022 I decided to do some more research.
My first priority was making my speech more understandable. I tried the
3M Secure Click Half Mask Reusable Respirator with Speaking Diaphragm. I tried Medium, on the grounds that the 6200 fits me pretty well. It worked -- after a fashion! The speech diaphragm, which is basically a thin piece of plastic on the outside of the mask that vibrates and amplifies the vibrations of my voice, made me much easier to understand! However I found the material hard and uncomfortable, and never really got on with wearing it for longer periods of time. It's possible that the large size would ahve worked better for me, but I didn't want to spend more money on a big one because of other things about this mask that I don't like. There isn't an option for an outflow filter, and it would be difficult, possibly impossible, to rig something up by putting a mask or other cover over top, unless I go the route of literally sticking a piece of mask material down with tape (which I could do, but don't necessarily want to). And... the exhalation valve is right in the bottom of the mask. This means that condensation collects there and then drips out onto my shirt, making me look like I'm drooling. I've been a brass player long enough to know that no matter how many times you tell someone it's just condensation, they really do believe it's spit. All my elastomerics will have condensation if the weather is cold enough, but most of them I have to lean forward for it to come out the exhalation valve, which means I can control it if I need to (lean forward with a handkerchief on the valve, breathe out forcefully). I already look like -- I already am -- a weirdo with a mask. I don't need people thinking I'm a drooling weirdo with a mask.
There is an MSA respirator with a speech diaphragm that also can be used with an outflow filter. At the time I was doing this research they were out of stock everywhere I could get them in the UK. I may look into it in future.
I also tried the GVS Elipse P3 respirator. It's lightweight and comfortable. I like the wider straps for comfort, however I do find the top one tends to slide around unless I anchor it on a ponytail or bun or similar; I don't find it fits me quite as well as the 3M 6200, but I'm quite a bit more understandable in this mask than in that one. Testing the inhalation seal just before getting onto public transport isn't possible, though, and there isn't an option for an outflow filter. I can test the outflow seal if I cover the exhalation valve very very carefully and then try to breathe out, though. There are filter covers available, which I think might be possible to use for testing the seal. Added bonus: I can blow out candles in this one! Based on this mask, I would be pretty happy wearing the similar Elipse P3 Source Control mask (unobtainium in the UK as far as I can tell except, again, through Amazon), or indeed the Elipse P100 Source Control NIOSH, which in November and December I wasn't able to find here at all. But in practice, I don't use it very much, because I have options that are either way more reassuring in terms of testing seal, or slightly more reassuring in terms of testing seal but much easier for intelligibility and transport.
I still wanted something... smaller. Easier to throw into a pocket on a walk, but still with an elastomeric seal. So I looked into other options. The Flo Mask doesn't ship to the UK. The Canadian [breathe]2 mask does, but the shipping is extremely expensive, and I wanted to check out other options first.
I tried the Airhead mask. I like the design; I like that you can block the exhalation valves; I like the idea of being able to quickly open the front to eat or drink something, then close it back up again. I like the almost professional look of it. But it didn't fit me at all, it was just far too small. I have passed it on to the friend who put me on to the 3M 6000-series masks, who says:
I tried the Breathe Happy Commuter 98. They're currently on sale for better than half price, so... I honestly don't think this company will be in business much longer. (That said, the filters are just flat pieces, so you could buy FFP2 masks and cut them up or something if you need replacement filters.) It was also far too small to seal properly on my face, so I passed it on to the same friend for testing. She says:
I tried the Airpop Active+ mask. It doesn't seal, at all. It isn't really an elastomeric fit. I think something like the Cambridge mask would be a better bet if you want a reusable cloth mask.
And then I tried the Stealth masks. This is... a bit complicated, but essentially there are a few different "wrappers" for the same actual mask product. The mask is really their Stealth Lite-Pro FFP3 Facemask. (They seem frequently sold out there but are also available from the evil big river site, Screwfix, and various other retailers.) The filters aren't replaceable, but the masks are rated for a month of "multi-shift" use at 8+ hours/day, which is frankly absolutely ages. (And what we know about particulate filters is that really they don't wear out, they just... clog up. The problem is the seals, hence my focus on elastomerics.) Anyway, they come with a minimal harness with two elastic straps (in green or black, depending where you get them from), or a couple of options for cloth covers: the City version, which comes in a few different colours and either S/M or M/L, or the Velo version, which is the same thing but "designed for cycling" i.e. it's shiny I guess? These attach the mask to your face by velcro with a single strap that goes around the bottom of your head/top of your neck, so if you struggle with two-strap arrangements, these might be suitable. I think the cloth covers would also offer possibilities for source control, you could probably sandwich some filter material in so it covers the exhalation valve, but I have not tried this, because I find the fit of this mask better with the two-strap fitting.
The Stealth Lite-Pro is by far the least comfortable of my elastomeric masks, but also by far the most intelligible. I have made one modification, in which I took the bottom strap and added a hook, so I can undo it instead of shoving it up and down over my head, and that helps a lot: the straps on this mask are fairly tight. It does press on my nose a bit and this can affect my singing voice, but basically I can sing in this mask, well enough to lead an amateur choir reasonably well. There is no way to "test" seal, but unlike the other masks without a way to test seal, I can inhale sharply or breathe out suddenly and physically see the filters moving in and out. And I've spent enough time now in elastomerics that I have a pretty good idea of what a good seal feels like. The Velo (or maybe the City?) model comes with a little zipper bag, and I've been using that to store the mask when I'm on my bike or just out for a walk; it fits in my (large-ish) coat pocket, which makes it much easier to deal with than my other elastomerics.
Drawbacks: with the 3M 6200 I can take off the top head strap and let the mask dangle by the bottom strap, around my neck in front of me. This is good if I'm going in and out a lot (which happens frequently when I'm gardening at church, for example, or if I'm walking from church to the train station and want my mask handy for the crowded bits of pavement but am fine without it going through the park). I can't really do this with the Stealth mask, the harness construction often gets twisted up and pulls off of the mask. (This is easy for me to put back together, but I don't want to do it every time, and eventually it will shorten the life of the mask.) Changing the bottom strap to one I can unhook rather than put over my head has helped a lot with how much this bothers me, though, because now I can easily hang the mask through the door handle instead.
The filters on this mask are exposed, and they get filthy pretty fast. This is partly because of the incense, I think. But it's not great.
The adjustment on the straps is close to my face, and the straps tend to flap around and annoy me. I can tuck them into themselves to prevent this, but I often forget.
It's... definitely not perfect. It's less comfortable than the 3M 6200. But it's really nice to be able to have conversations again, indoors. It's convenient to carry. It's also helpful to be able to do some paid choral rehearsing work -- very much on an amateur level, and it's definitely not ideal even then as this is something where people do find the lip-reading cues extremely useful -- but well enough that I'm still the best person to do it in the context I'm in.
Further modifications I want to make to this mask include a cloth cover (not neoprene) to go with the existing elastic harness, preferably one that will cover the exhalation valve too (I'll start with using some of my several cloth masks from the period where I was wearing those; I have several, it's just a matter of working out how to attach them and whether I look like a goof). I also want to put some loops on the straps to hold the loose ends of the elastic; it's just 13mm elastic, we're not talking about hens' teeth here. I might look into getting or making a halo-style top strap, or an integrated cover-and-strap like the neoprene ones Stealth sell but positioned in such a way to let me do the neck-dangle thing; this is more involved, but not beyond my capabilities. Or I could just find a 3M 4000-series and steal the straps from that if I can't be bothered with a cover.
I have also experimented with putting a straw port into this mask. It was quite difficult to do, because the filter material is quite thick. The straw ports themselves are quite delicate, too, and the straw had to be offset to one side which was awkward. For everyday use, I don't recommend this. However, I have successfully used the straw port to drink fluids, and to eat very thin kabanossi sausages (Sokolow do very thin ones). I think in future -- for example, if I needed to go on a 10h train journey with not much ventilation and knew I would still need to eat and drink -- I would probably opt to put a straw port in a thinner mask like an Aura FFP3, and just switch to that mask when necessary, but I'm not sure, because I think the seal with my face really is much more robust on the Stealth Lite-Pro. Maybe my best bet would be the "hold breath, lift mask, take a bite, put mask back" move. I don't have a lot of practice at this and it also isn't perfect, but it is definitely more doable with an elastomeric for me than with other masks.
Anyway, where I am now with masks is:
- On public transport, or in situations where I'm going to be wearing a mask for a long time but don't need to speak, I wear the 3M 6200 mask, with or without an exhalation filter for source control.
- At church, if I am singing, or in other situations where conversational clarity is important, or if I'm just nipping into a shop, I wear the Stealth Lite-Pro.
- If I'm not sure what the day holds and I definitely only want to carry one bulky mask, I grab the GVS Elipse as a good "all-rounder" where people can still understand me better than the 3M 6200 but the mask itself is more durable than the Stealth Lite-Pro. (In practice, this doesn't happen often; it's almost always worth carrying both the 3M 6200 and the Stealth Lite-Pro and just switching from one to the other when I finish being on public transport and start needing to talk to people.) I would also switch to the GVS Elipse for public transport if the 3M 6200 were damaged in some way.
- I am considering purchasing some Stealth FFP3 masks with clear anti-fog windows, to carry as a "just in case" mask in the event that I need to speak with someone who relies enough on lip-reading that conversation is impossible, and we can't go outside. I am also considering whether I could modify those masks in some way to have an elastomeric seal: the upside to the Stealth Lite-Pro being not having replaceable filters (or rather, the filters and the elastomeric seal being in one piece) is that eventually I will have a bunch of elastomeric seals to play with. I feel like it would be easier to do this with something like the Flo Mask or [breathe]2 mask, but, well, I don't have those to hand.
- I mostly don't wear a mask outdoors unless it's crowded. How much crowding I am willing to tolerate depends on whether I'm sitting around or moving; I almost never wear a mask for cycling and walking, I almost always wear one on outdoor train platforms.
At this point, I'm not planning on trying out any more elastomeric masks, though if there were one with a lip-reading window, source control AND a speech diaphragm, I would be very interested indeed.
A note on source control: when a majority, or even more than about 40% of people, were wearing masks on public transport and in indoor situations, I was more concerned about filtering my exhalations. After all, my biggest goal here is not "don't get COVID" but "don't give COVID to anyone else", and that includes the general public. However, as generalised mask-wearing has decreased, I'm less bothered about source control. I'm taking many more precautions than most other people are, and in a crowded train the marginal risk I pose to others (compared to all the other unmasked people around us) is tiny. I usually carry a 3M Aura FFP3, and often my 3m 6200 half-face elastomeric with a 604 filter, so if I happen to encounter someone who is immunocompromised, or who is more comfortable spending time with me if I filter my exhalations, I can switch to either of those (depending on how comfortable I am with the conditions and how important it is for my words to be heard clearly). For now, I am happy with this compromise.
The very best mask for you is the one you will actually wear when you're inside with other people. I can't tell you which one that is, I can only tell you which ones work for me and why.
There is no perfect elastomeric mask that will let me do everything I want to do without any hassle: there are tradeoffs. There is no mask that fits everyone perfectly and works well for everyone, and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying. But there is a huge variety of very good re-usable masks out there, they do reduce your risk of catching covid and other airborne illness if you wear them, and until we have good ventilation standards in schools, hospitals, other workplaces and hospitality spaces, it's worth spending some time and energy finding out what works best for you.
She was wearing a 3M 6000-series elastomeric respirator half face mask with P3 filters, and I decided I wanted one. I had previously been wearing cloth masks with a filter insert, and avoiding public transport and indoor spaces that are not my home as much as possible. This and a hefty dose of luck had been enough to keep me safe from getting COVID, but masking levels in the UK have never been very high outside of medical settings (and my church, for a while), and I wanted something that would protect the wearer. I didn't really want to switch to disposable respirators, though, because of the environmental impact of all that plastic.
So I bought the 6200, which is the medium size (6100 is small, 6300 is large) and some filters. That was my first elastomeric. I was surprised at how much easier it was to breathe in than the cloth masks. I wore it for strength training. I wore it on the rowing machine. (Both of these were in a one-on-one fitness facility which has since closed; I haven't been back to a Big Gym because I don't really like them enough to pay for them.) It is still my go-to for public transport, or any other crowded indoor situation where I don't really need to speak to others and I'm not singing (I can sing in it, but it's pretty miserable to do so). I love that by covering the outflow with my hand and trying to breathe out I can test the outflow seal; by squeezing the hard case filters and breathing in, I can test the inflow seal. Being able to test seal just before getting onto e.g. a crowded train, without having to take the mask off or mess about too much, is really, really good. At first I used a 3D-printed clip to filter the outflow for a while, then on a trip to Canada purchased some boxes of the model 604 outflow filters, which are much better in terms of breathing resistance, but at the time unobtainium in the UK (and still rarely available outside of the evil big river website). (I was very miffed that Transport Canada would't allow me to wear this mask on the plane, even with outflow filters: a clear case of the rules not being finely nuanced enough for real life.) I like the strap arrangement, with one neck strap (with a clip) and one head strap that divides in two at the back, keeping it very secure on my head. But it's big and it's bulky, and it's often very difficult for others to understand me when I speak while wearing it, not only because they can't lip-read, but because it muffles my voice so much. This is worse with an exhalation valve filter but even without it's pretty bad. Source control also makes it harder to exhale, which meant that with heavy exercise the seal would be imperfect when I was breathing out (but fine breathing in).
On that trip to Canada where I needed a mask on the plane but wasn't allowed to wear the 6200, and occasionally at social events with sufficient precautions in place (everyone vaxxed, and either testing beforehand or with very high mask-wearing and decent ventilation) I would switch to a 3M Aura FFP3, but the straps on these are flimsy and breakable, and the seal doesn't last for very many cycles of taking the mask off and putting it on again. And they're not cheap for something that doesn't last for very many wears. I wanted to do better.
So in November 2022 I decided to do some more research.
My first priority was making my speech more understandable. I tried the
3M Secure Click Half Mask Reusable Respirator with Speaking Diaphragm. I tried Medium, on the grounds that the 6200 fits me pretty well. It worked -- after a fashion! The speech diaphragm, which is basically a thin piece of plastic on the outside of the mask that vibrates and amplifies the vibrations of my voice, made me much easier to understand! However I found the material hard and uncomfortable, and never really got on with wearing it for longer periods of time. It's possible that the large size would ahve worked better for me, but I didn't want to spend more money on a big one because of other things about this mask that I don't like. There isn't an option for an outflow filter, and it would be difficult, possibly impossible, to rig something up by putting a mask or other cover over top, unless I go the route of literally sticking a piece of mask material down with tape (which I could do, but don't necessarily want to). And... the exhalation valve is right in the bottom of the mask. This means that condensation collects there and then drips out onto my shirt, making me look like I'm drooling. I've been a brass player long enough to know that no matter how many times you tell someone it's just condensation, they really do believe it's spit. All my elastomerics will have condensation if the weather is cold enough, but most of them I have to lean forward for it to come out the exhalation valve, which means I can control it if I need to (lean forward with a handkerchief on the valve, breathe out forcefully). I already look like -- I already am -- a weirdo with a mask. I don't need people thinking I'm a drooling weirdo with a mask.
There is an MSA respirator with a speech diaphragm that also can be used with an outflow filter. At the time I was doing this research they were out of stock everywhere I could get them in the UK. I may look into it in future.
I also tried the GVS Elipse P3 respirator. It's lightweight and comfortable. I like the wider straps for comfort, however I do find the top one tends to slide around unless I anchor it on a ponytail or bun or similar; I don't find it fits me quite as well as the 3M 6200, but I'm quite a bit more understandable in this mask than in that one. Testing the inhalation seal just before getting onto public transport isn't possible, though, and there isn't an option for an outflow filter. I can test the outflow seal if I cover the exhalation valve very very carefully and then try to breathe out, though. There are filter covers available, which I think might be possible to use for testing the seal. Added bonus: I can blow out candles in this one! Based on this mask, I would be pretty happy wearing the similar Elipse P3 Source Control mask (unobtainium in the UK as far as I can tell except, again, through Amazon), or indeed the Elipse P100 Source Control NIOSH, which in November and December I wasn't able to find here at all. But in practice, I don't use it very much, because I have options that are either way more reassuring in terms of testing seal, or slightly more reassuring in terms of testing seal but much easier for intelligibility and transport.
I still wanted something... smaller. Easier to throw into a pocket on a walk, but still with an elastomeric seal. So I looked into other options. The Flo Mask doesn't ship to the UK. The Canadian [breathe]2 mask does, but the shipping is extremely expensive, and I wanted to check out other options first.
I tried the Airhead mask. I like the design; I like that you can block the exhalation valves; I like the idea of being able to quickly open the front to eat or drink something, then close it back up again. I like the almost professional look of it. But it didn't fit me at all, it was just far too small. I have passed it on to the friend who put me on to the 3M 6000-series masks, who says:
Airhead: works reasonably well, but has tight tolerances. Cannot wear it over a hat without adjusting it again. This wouldn't be a problem if it was easy to adjust but it's not. The straps aren't easy to adjust on your face so ou have to adjust, try, adjust again until it's right. But when it's right it's reasonably comfortable and I'm definitely easier to understand. Comfort-wise it's less comfortable than a 3M 6100, but for interacting with people it's easier. Oh and the magnetic catch on the airhead sticks to stuff. It picked up a fork off the table when I turned my head.
I tried the Breathe Happy Commuter 98. They're currently on sale for better than half price, so... I honestly don't think this company will be in business much longer. (That said, the filters are just flat pieces, so you could buy FFP2 masks and cut them up or something if you need replacement filters.) It was also far too small to seal properly on my face, so I passed it on to the same friend for testing. She says:
The commuter 98 mostly works, though needs to be positioned quite precisely on face. Breathing more heavily than resting means the mask gets pushed off my face so air escapes round the sides but it stays sealed for breathing in. Has the advantage of looking less scary and intimidating, but doesn't make me more easy to understand. Comfortable for a journey but would not want to wear for many hours straight.
I tried the Airpop Active+ mask. It doesn't seal, at all. It isn't really an elastomeric fit. I think something like the Cambridge mask would be a better bet if you want a reusable cloth mask.
And then I tried the Stealth masks. This is... a bit complicated, but essentially there are a few different "wrappers" for the same actual mask product. The mask is really their Stealth Lite-Pro FFP3 Facemask. (They seem frequently sold out there but are also available from the evil big river site, Screwfix, and various other retailers.) The filters aren't replaceable, but the masks are rated for a month of "multi-shift" use at 8+ hours/day, which is frankly absolutely ages. (And what we know about particulate filters is that really they don't wear out, they just... clog up. The problem is the seals, hence my focus on elastomerics.) Anyway, they come with a minimal harness with two elastic straps (in green or black, depending where you get them from), or a couple of options for cloth covers: the City version, which comes in a few different colours and either S/M or M/L, or the Velo version, which is the same thing but "designed for cycling" i.e. it's shiny I guess? These attach the mask to your face by velcro with a single strap that goes around the bottom of your head/top of your neck, so if you struggle with two-strap arrangements, these might be suitable. I think the cloth covers would also offer possibilities for source control, you could probably sandwich some filter material in so it covers the exhalation valve, but I have not tried this, because I find the fit of this mask better with the two-strap fitting.
The Stealth Lite-Pro is by far the least comfortable of my elastomeric masks, but also by far the most intelligible. I have made one modification, in which I took the bottom strap and added a hook, so I can undo it instead of shoving it up and down over my head, and that helps a lot: the straps on this mask are fairly tight. It does press on my nose a bit and this can affect my singing voice, but basically I can sing in this mask, well enough to lead an amateur choir reasonably well. There is no way to "test" seal, but unlike the other masks without a way to test seal, I can inhale sharply or breathe out suddenly and physically see the filters moving in and out. And I've spent enough time now in elastomerics that I have a pretty good idea of what a good seal feels like. The Velo (or maybe the City?) model comes with a little zipper bag, and I've been using that to store the mask when I'm on my bike or just out for a walk; it fits in my (large-ish) coat pocket, which makes it much easier to deal with than my other elastomerics.
Drawbacks: with the 3M 6200 I can take off the top head strap and let the mask dangle by the bottom strap, around my neck in front of me. This is good if I'm going in and out a lot (which happens frequently when I'm gardening at church, for example, or if I'm walking from church to the train station and want my mask handy for the crowded bits of pavement but am fine without it going through the park). I can't really do this with the Stealth mask, the harness construction often gets twisted up and pulls off of the mask. (This is easy for me to put back together, but I don't want to do it every time, and eventually it will shorten the life of the mask.) Changing the bottom strap to one I can unhook rather than put over my head has helped a lot with how much this bothers me, though, because now I can easily hang the mask through the door handle instead.
The filters on this mask are exposed, and they get filthy pretty fast. This is partly because of the incense, I think. But it's not great.
The adjustment on the straps is close to my face, and the straps tend to flap around and annoy me. I can tuck them into themselves to prevent this, but I often forget.
It's... definitely not perfect. It's less comfortable than the 3M 6200. But it's really nice to be able to have conversations again, indoors. It's convenient to carry. It's also helpful to be able to do some paid choral rehearsing work -- very much on an amateur level, and it's definitely not ideal even then as this is something where people do find the lip-reading cues extremely useful -- but well enough that I'm still the best person to do it in the context I'm in.
Further modifications I want to make to this mask include a cloth cover (not neoprene) to go with the existing elastic harness, preferably one that will cover the exhalation valve too (I'll start with using some of my several cloth masks from the period where I was wearing those; I have several, it's just a matter of working out how to attach them and whether I look like a goof). I also want to put some loops on the straps to hold the loose ends of the elastic; it's just 13mm elastic, we're not talking about hens' teeth here. I might look into getting or making a halo-style top strap, or an integrated cover-and-strap like the neoprene ones Stealth sell but positioned in such a way to let me do the neck-dangle thing; this is more involved, but not beyond my capabilities. Or I could just find a 3M 4000-series and steal the straps from that if I can't be bothered with a cover.
I have also experimented with putting a straw port into this mask. It was quite difficult to do, because the filter material is quite thick. The straw ports themselves are quite delicate, too, and the straw had to be offset to one side which was awkward. For everyday use, I don't recommend this. However, I have successfully used the straw port to drink fluids, and to eat very thin kabanossi sausages (Sokolow do very thin ones). I think in future -- for example, if I needed to go on a 10h train journey with not much ventilation and knew I would still need to eat and drink -- I would probably opt to put a straw port in a thinner mask like an Aura FFP3, and just switch to that mask when necessary, but I'm not sure, because I think the seal with my face really is much more robust on the Stealth Lite-Pro. Maybe my best bet would be the "hold breath, lift mask, take a bite, put mask back" move. I don't have a lot of practice at this and it also isn't perfect, but it is definitely more doable with an elastomeric for me than with other masks.
Anyway, where I am now with masks is:
- On public transport, or in situations where I'm going to be wearing a mask for a long time but don't need to speak, I wear the 3M 6200 mask, with or without an exhalation filter for source control.
- At church, if I am singing, or in other situations where conversational clarity is important, or if I'm just nipping into a shop, I wear the Stealth Lite-Pro.
- If I'm not sure what the day holds and I definitely only want to carry one bulky mask, I grab the GVS Elipse as a good "all-rounder" where people can still understand me better than the 3M 6200 but the mask itself is more durable than the Stealth Lite-Pro. (In practice, this doesn't happen often; it's almost always worth carrying both the 3M 6200 and the Stealth Lite-Pro and just switching from one to the other when I finish being on public transport and start needing to talk to people.) I would also switch to the GVS Elipse for public transport if the 3M 6200 were damaged in some way.
- I am considering purchasing some Stealth FFP3 masks with clear anti-fog windows, to carry as a "just in case" mask in the event that I need to speak with someone who relies enough on lip-reading that conversation is impossible, and we can't go outside. I am also considering whether I could modify those masks in some way to have an elastomeric seal: the upside to the Stealth Lite-Pro being not having replaceable filters (or rather, the filters and the elastomeric seal being in one piece) is that eventually I will have a bunch of elastomeric seals to play with. I feel like it would be easier to do this with something like the Flo Mask or [breathe]2 mask, but, well, I don't have those to hand.
- I mostly don't wear a mask outdoors unless it's crowded. How much crowding I am willing to tolerate depends on whether I'm sitting around or moving; I almost never wear a mask for cycling and walking, I almost always wear one on outdoor train platforms.
At this point, I'm not planning on trying out any more elastomeric masks, though if there were one with a lip-reading window, source control AND a speech diaphragm, I would be very interested indeed.
A note on source control: when a majority, or even more than about 40% of people, were wearing masks on public transport and in indoor situations, I was more concerned about filtering my exhalations. After all, my biggest goal here is not "don't get COVID" but "don't give COVID to anyone else", and that includes the general public. However, as generalised mask-wearing has decreased, I'm less bothered about source control. I'm taking many more precautions than most other people are, and in a crowded train the marginal risk I pose to others (compared to all the other unmasked people around us) is tiny. I usually carry a 3M Aura FFP3, and often my 3m 6200 half-face elastomeric with a 604 filter, so if I happen to encounter someone who is immunocompromised, or who is more comfortable spending time with me if I filter my exhalations, I can switch to either of those (depending on how comfortable I am with the conditions and how important it is for my words to be heard clearly). For now, I am happy with this compromise.
The very best mask for you is the one you will actually wear when you're inside with other people. I can't tell you which one that is, I can only tell you which ones work for me and why.
There is no perfect elastomeric mask that will let me do everything I want to do without any hassle: there are tradeoffs. There is no mask that fits everyone perfectly and works well for everyone, and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying. But there is a huge variety of very good re-usable masks out there, they do reduce your risk of catching covid and other airborne illness if you wear them, and until we have good ventilation standards in schools, hospitals, other workplaces and hospitality spaces, it's worth spending some time and energy finding out what works best for you.
no subject
Date: 2023-03-15 02:41 pm (UTC)Right now I'm using disposables (3M Aura works well for me) for situations like work or synagogue services where I need to be able to talk to others occasionally, and removing my mask altogether for situations where people are there specifically to listen to me like when I'm leading the service, preaching or teaching. I am fascinated to hear that you can manage communication-intensive activities while wearing a Stealth mask. That, and the fact that aesthetically they're somewhat professional looking rather than medical or industrial might be a good reason to try that. I'm really not happy about teaching unmasked, but didn't really feel I had a better option, and this post suggests that possibly I might.
You make a very clear point about source control; I've been worrying about masks intended for industrial use with outlet valves as I really, really don't want to infect anyone else with Covid if I mess up my precautions. It does make sense that if people are willing to take trains with unmasked people, me wearing a less than perfect mask isn't adding to their risk much.
no subject
Date: 2023-03-15 03:59 pm (UTC)I'm so glad you found it helpful!
There are several different masks with source control at the industrial end of things, but as I already have the 3M 6200 and all the filters I am likely to need for several years (...they were cheaper in bulk and all three of us in the household have that mask), there wasn't much point in trying very many of them. (I still kindof want to try the MSA one though.) But if the first one you try is really annoying in terms of fit, then it might well be worth passing it on to someone close to you and trying others. I bought the GVS Elipse partly because of a YouTube video I saw (and don't have a link to hand for at the moment) of someone wearing different masks and speaking. Of the ones available in the UK, it seemed to have the best sound quality.
I think it also helps that I do have a strong voice, and the ability to speak more loudly/clearly/slowly if needed. Of course, some of that is also practice. Even in the 6200 I can have a one-on-one conversation with a person who has good hearing if I slow down enough -- but it's frustrating. The Stealth Lite-Pro is not perfect but, for me, is far less frustrating. Do I have to speak more clearly in noisy environments? Yes. Do I have to adapt my choral conducting style to use my hands more and my face less? Absolutely. But I can still sing well enough to teach people new music, and that would just be entirely impossible in the 6200.
I still haven't found anything I can wear to play a brass instrument -- I think it would have to be some kind of ridiculous whole-head filter hood setup with a port for the French horn leadpipe -- but I already wasn't playing regularly long before the pandemic started, so I honestly haven't really been looking.
no subject
Date: 2023-03-15 08:22 pm (UTC)Thank you, this is a useful reference for when I have energy to try and find another mask that fits me better.
no subject
Date: 2023-03-15 08:57 pm (UTC)I hope you find something that works well for you.
no subject
Date: 2023-03-17 02:25 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-03-17 07:00 am (UTC)Glad it's helpful.