3 ms·

I started wearing an N95 with vent immediately. Pretty sure it works to protect me. I asked local public health folks if this was OK (back when they were saying

I started wearing an N95 with vent immediately. Pretty sure it works to protect me. I asked local public health folks if this was OK (back when they were saying only wear if sick) pointing out it just costs pennies. They said not to believe "misinformation" but they would not arrest anyone for wearing a mask. Vent makes it extremely comfortable, no glass fog etc. Then they said the vent somehow was bad for others, but let others wear cloth masks. That made no sense, the vent is a hard stop and then exhalation goes towards ground. There are still plenty of people who think / lecture about a vent being bad. And the lists goes on. I had a friend who was a doctor who did an N95 + face shield and did not catch covid for months treating covid patients, so I do have some faith in N95.

mach1ne 5y ago
Whether the vent is bad for others depends on whether the air from your breathing goes through any filter. COVID spreads with aerosols, and the more aerosols in the environment, the higher the chance of infection. You actually need to breathe in quite a bit of viral stuff in order to get infected. If the vent allows for more aerosols than a closed surgical mask, then the vent is worse for the people around you. It's not really relevant where the vent is in the mask. But whether the difference is significant enough to cause a problem, I don't know.
- onphonenow 5y ago
  It doesn't go through a filter, it just hits the flap and stops / goes down. This is still obviously equal to or better than 90% of the masks I see people wearing (surgical / cloth etc).