One of the challenges with face masks is that they often cover key facial features and expressions that are important for communicating speech and emotions. For many people, this means missing out on smiles, and having a little bit more trouble understanding other people in noisy environments. For people that are deaf, hard of hearing, […]
3 Easy DIY Mask Tests
In an ideal world, the safety and efficacy of all of the fabrics and materials used in handmade masks for COVID-19 would be tested using the same standards and facilities used by researchers and large manufacturers. Unfortunately, very few people have access to these resources. In this post we provide instructions for three easy DIY […]
A Breathable Combination: An N95 plus a NWPP Mask Cover
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are global shortages of N95 respirators resulting in large scale adoption of procedures and policies for the extended use and re-use of N95 respirators. In this post we do a deeper dive into the quantitative breathability data for the MakerMask: Cover, a breathable N95 mask cover. The […]
The Big Four: Criteria for Fabric Mask Materials for COVID
Ésta immersión profunda mira al criterio “Cuatro Grande” evaluado en evaluaciones preliminarias de materiales de máscaras comunitarias: cáracteristicas de los materiales, respirabilidad, repelencia al agua, y opcións para disinfección. Más especificamente, enfocamos en polipropileno no tejido (PPNT), que está usado comunmente para máscaras comerciales. A pesar de que PPNT ideal de grado médico no está disponible para uso comunitario, PPNT está disponible comunmente en diferentes pesos y grados para otros usos del hogar y/o otros propósitos comerciales, como bolsas reusables de compras. Aquí tomamos una mirada más profunda a los 4 criterio peliminares considerado cuando evaluando fuentes potenciales de PPNT.