Community Chat

[germanshepherdlove]

@Moonlady I have a large selection of cloth facemasks and would never reuse one without laundering....that to me is just disgusting.  So, I think others are not lying either when they say they launder theirs after one use.  As soon as I get home I place it into the hamper and then wash my hands.  If I'm doing laundry that day they'll get washed immediately.  I wash them in hot water and then in a hot dryer.  

[Twins Mom]

Returning to work at preschool, DD comes home and strips in garage, grabs robe and heads to shower.  Mask in hamper with clothes.  All need good wash.  I need to get busy sewing more masks for trips to store, garden, etc.

I fear many people not washing masks after wearing.  DD notices co-workers setting mask down without thought to what is close by and then putting back on.  Unfortunately we can't re-explain the do's  and don't s of masks.  It is something to think about and learn.  

Originally I had heard cotton the best fabric, now we hear otherwise.  Of course I just got my shipment of fabric.  Oh my, I can't keep up with advice!

[germanshepherdlove]

The other point worth mentioning.  The masks from qvc and the ones I received directly from China, though look like surgical masks, are not.  Surgical masks that are worn by medical personnel are not sold to the rest of us.  So, we are using inferior masks that look like the real thing but are not.  Real surgical masks are not available to the general public. I wish a study was done comparing faux surgical masks with fabric masks.  Unless you are a nurse or a doctor, you are not wearing a surgical mask to the grocery store and doubtful medical staff would take a stash of them home for that purpose.  

[Cakers3]

I find the "blue" masks do not fit well at all. I have to pin them to my hair at my ears.

It is another reason I'm not spending money on masks made by Vera Bradley, etc.

I just don't want to find out I've wasted $$.

I'm staying with my homemade masks; I can adjust as needed.  I've been using two different no-sew techniques and they work for me.

[Cakers3]

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@Moonlady wrote:

I use the disposable surgical ones exclusively.

When I see cloth masks, all I see is unhealthful mouth-breathing, and all I envision is spit, snot, and pathogen-infested material. One big yuck. And like randomly-tested reusable bags (ironically now banned in many venues in favor of single-use plastic ones, shown to be petri dishes), those who say they're laundering them after each use, are lying.

The surgical masks far outnumber the cloth masks here. Maybe that's because they're the ones being distributed by local public agencies. They're also easy to breathe through, and obviate the need for some to breathe through their mouths, or to breathei n a labored manner.

And the disposable masks are now so accessible that they're being disposed of after each use, at least by us. There's no excuse now for people reusing them. Wegmans has them, Tops has them, a number of pharmacies have them-- even Big Lots is now selling them. And they're affordable, too.

Notwithstanding the debated efficacy of wearing a mask to prevent or reduce transmission of this virus, disposable surgical masks are the way to go.

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@Moonlady   Please point me in the direction that supports your assumption that people who say they wash their cloth masks are lying.

Are you checking in at every window, Mrs. K?

ETA:  Not sure if this is about the masks or the bags. Either way, it's not cool to say people are lying.  How do you know???

[QueenDanceALot]

I have 12 cotton masks and none of them get worn more than once before washing.

No, @Moonlady , I am not lying.

I'm not having to breathe through my mouth either.

[QueenDanceALot]

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@Deree wrote:

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@kitcat51 wrote:

Threw all my masks away, switched to a face guard on an eyeglass frame & it's great...no breathing  problems, it's cooler, my eyes are covered & I can clean it anytime anywhere with an alcohol wipe.

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@kitcat51  I just ordered a couple of those for the summer when it will be too hot to wear the 3 layers I currently wear - 2 masks and a cotton insert.  I figure one mask and the shield will be good.  The only thing is I've heard criticism of the shield because air flow goes upwards through the bottom but if hospital workers wear them that's good enough for me.

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@Deree 

Hospital workers wear a mask AND a shield.  

[Cakers3]

People speak while wearing disposable masks.

People sneeze and cough while wearing disposable masks.

A runny nose "knows" no difference if it is covered by a disposable mask or by a cloth mask.

So if one thinks she is pure as snow wearing a disposable mask, think again.  Your spit, snot, and dribbles are clinging to the inside of your disposable mask until you remove it.

Be sure to wipe your face after.  You never know if a wooger is hanging out one of your nostrils.

[Deree]

@QueenDanceALot   Yes, Of course they do.  I mentioned the air flow in case 1. those who are really concerned about transmission don't think that a shield is good enough alone and 2.  because it was pointed out on the news by someone (I forget who, but probably a doc) that the airflow is actually directed upwards under/behind the shield.  

Please don't argue with me about it because I've had enough of that here to last me a while. I'm just relating what I heard.  I don't know if it is so but have to admit the airflow thing makes sense to me. I realize hospital workers use shields over masks -- as they should -- because coughing sneezing and spittle that is projected directly at them is stopped by the shield first and foremost.

[Mj12]

We toss our cloth masks in the laundry and wash in hot water every single time we get home. Period.  Obviously we have several. 🙄