Please wash your new cloth face masks

brianlux
brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,662
edited July 2020 in All Encompassing Trip
Seriously.  I was thinking about this the other day when a friend gave me a cloth face mask she made and again today when my wife bought me a couple of new cloth face masks.

Whenever I buy new clothes, I always wash them before wearing them.  I especially became aware of the wisdom of doing this in the late 1980's when I worked in men's clothing at a Macy's.  One of the other workers told me that new clothes have formaldehyde and other chemicals in them to keep bugs out during shipping.

So if you have a face mask made from new cloth and you put it on and breathe through it...  yeah.  Gross to think about, right?  So, please, wash them first at least once and maybe even hang them out in the air to dry before wearing them.
"It's a sad and beautiful world"
-Roberto Benigni

Post edited by brianlux on

Comments

  • deadendp
    deadendp Northeast Ohio Posts: 10,434
    And please for the love of all that is good and right, wash your masks everyday.

    We change our masks at lunch. We have already worn it for several hours, and I feel it is probably a bit healthier to put a clean mask on. Besides, some of ours are the same print in and out and I'm afraid we wouldn't pay attention (my husband) and put the wrong side back on. 
    2014: Cincinnati
    2016: Lexington and Wrigley 1
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,662
    deadendp said:
    And please for the love of all that is good and right, wash your masks everyday.

    We change our masks at lunch. We have already worn it for several hours, and I feel it is probably a bit healthier to put a clean mask on. Besides, some of ours are the same print in and out and I'm afraid we wouldn't pay attention (my husband) and put the wrong side back on. 

    Excellent added point, p.  Thanks! 
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • hedonist
    hedonist Posts: 24,524
    Thanks, moms ;)

    (I actually had to tell my mom this a couple months ago, as she was just flipping over and re-using them.)
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,662
    hedonist said:
    Thanks, moms ;)

    (I actually had to tell my mom this a couple months ago, as she was just flipping over and re-using them.)

    All the Mothers say, "You're welcome!" :smile:

    Mothers of Invention Album Oriented




    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • Spunkie
    Spunkie i come from downtown. Posts: 7,095
    Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't, hasn't killed me yet!
    I was swimming in the Great Barrier Reef 
    Animals were hiding behind the Coral 
    Except for little Turtle
    I could swear he's trying to talk to me 
    Gurgle Gurgle
  • Purple Fairy Tree
    Purple Fairy Tree Posts: 2,055
    Have you got a pink mask @tish?
  • Spunkie
    Spunkie i come from downtown. Posts: 7,095
    edited July 2020
    No. I have N95s from when I preparing to travel over Spring Break and to Europe in the summer. I feel too guilty to wear those good ones when I need them, like in a hospital or at the dentist. I picked a grey one and was given a violet one with little flowers. 
    Post edited by Spunkie on
    I was swimming in the Great Barrier Reef 
    Animals were hiding behind the Coral 
    Except for little Turtle
    I could swear he's trying to talk to me 
    Gurgle Gurgle
  • dankind
    dankind Posts: 20,841
    I've been using the same N95 valve mask for grocery store runs since March. I would estimate that I've worn it a total of eight hours now, maybe a bit more. Probably time to switch it out. 
    I SAW PEARL JAM
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,662
    dankind said:
    I've been using the same N95 valve mask for grocery store runs since March. I would estimate that I've worn it a total of eight hours now, maybe a bit more. Probably time to switch it out. 

    Sounds like a good plan.  This site says eight hours is a good maximum use cut-off:

    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • Gern Blansten
    Gern Blansten Mar-A-Lago Posts: 22,189
    you never know....that mask might be from an old pair of boxers
    Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018)
    The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)

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    2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
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  • deadendp
    deadendp Northeast Ohio Posts: 10,434
    dankind said:
    I've been using the same N95 valve mask for grocery store runs since March. I would estimate that I've worn it a total of eight hours now, maybe a bit more. Probably time to switch it out. 
    We did the same with the N95. We decided to toss them after they were worn all day for 3 days to the hospital ICU.  It may seem gross, but I gave mine to my husband when we retired his so that he had another one to wear.  (We were in a pinch and neither one of us felt a homemade mask was appropriate for that situation.)  Otherwise, we wear the lil fabric masks.  My daughter has some from Target, but they are a touch big on her so we need to use an extender to pull the straps back.  I'm having some made for her.  The good thing is that the Target masks don't fog up her glasses.  

    If they weren't worn in the ER/ICU, we would most likely still be using them.  I would probably still leave the N95s hanging on the line, in the sun and/or overnight.  There were a few times I left them hang on the line for days at a time. 
    2014: Cincinnati
    2016: Lexington and Wrigley 1
  • Spunkie
    Spunkie i come from downtown. Posts: 7,095
    Okay, thanks guys. I'll start wearing my respirators in high risk situations. A small group of young, dumb, full of cum tourists got 1000 people at risk here and we're finally on the covid map in a bigger way.
    I was swimming in the Great Barrier Reef 
    Animals were hiding behind the Coral 
    Except for little Turtle
    I could swear he's trying to talk to me 
    Gurgle Gurgle
  • deadendp
    deadendp Northeast Ohio Posts: 10,434

    2014: Cincinnati
    2016: Lexington and Wrigley 1
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,662
    deadendp said:


    Cool!  :plus_one:  
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • oftenreading
    oftenreading Victoria, BC Posts: 12,856
    deadendp said:


    You guys are sure mask-positive! Well done!
    my small self... like a book amongst the many on a shelf
  • deadendp
    deadendp Northeast Ohio Posts: 10,434
    oftenreading said:
    deadendp said:


    You guys are sure mask-positive! Well done!
    Ohio/Akron both have a mask mandate. Summit County did, but our county alert color was downgraded. Either way, it's gonna be a while...

    Work...


    City of Akron ordinance is in effect until a vaccine is approved by the CDC. 
    2014: Cincinnati
    2016: Lexington and Wrigley 1

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