4sallypat
macrumors 603
Wow a year of the same mask ???
There are lots for sale now (N95) 3M masks on eBay and Amazon.
Going for about $1 per mask in quantities...
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
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COVID/Coronavirus non-political DISCUSSION thread
- Thread starter hawkeye_a
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There are lots for sale now (N95) 3M masks on eBay and Amazon.
Going for about $1 per mask in quantities...
Madhatter32
macrumors 68000
Yes, I have other masks of course but reserve my N95 (it's actually an R95 which is even more protective) for higher risk situations. I was lucky to be able to get a set of 5 N-95s from Amazon last May or June but they never became available again and those masks had the ear loops, which I hate. I gave those masks away to love ones because I had a mask already. I primarily use washable fabric masks but if you have a link for N95s on amazon it would be appreciated. I used to buy the R95s at Home Depot for special repairs using aerosols but they no longer sell these masks to the general public. I am still looking for mask rated at N95 or KF95 or above -- not KN95 -- that is not prioritized for medical organizations and available to the public. They pop up periodically but are hard to find. Of course I would prefer a mask made by 3M or Honeywell. Thanks.
dk001
macrumors demi-god
Is double masking really even effective? I tried double masking the cloth ones I have and it just forces more out the sides. Redirects instead of filtering IMO.
^. Reference the above post: I linked an article from the CDC in post #577 of why they’re recommending double masking and the effects behind it.
Quick snip from the CDC:
“One standard cloth mask has the capability of blocking about 40% of C/19 virus particles, where-as two cloth masks combined, has the capability of blocking 90% C/19 virus particles.”
******************************
My take on this:
Regardless, in order to properly ‘double mask’, the first mask that you’re wearing would have to be a proper seal around your nose and mouth (Lets use an N95 or a properly fitted cloth mask for example), not allowing air to escape, and then the secondary mask would have to be some type of cloth/paper fabric covering the primary mask. But aside all of that, let’s just be honest here, it will be a rarity to find people double masking. Why do I believe that? I pay enough attention in the general public where most people don’t wear their mask properly anyways, let alone those who are complacent where they probably forget their mask in their car and they just disregard wearing one at all.
The biggest contribution to improper mask wearing, is if it’s too large for the individual wearing it/not wearing the mask properly where it’s not covering the nose and mouth. And I don’t mean to denigrate anyone, but it’s not difficult to find a mask that fits properly, there’s plenty of options on the market that are inexpensive to wear one that does (With sizing charts). But like I said, there an inconvenience to the public, therefore they would rather just quick put it on and take it off where required v.s. wear one effectively.
Either way, I don’t see the majority of people double masking moving forward, and partially because of the fatigue of masking as it is already, and it seems like it’s ‘mentally taxing’ on people to even wear one effectively, where two would probably be a major challenge for the general public.
Quick snip from the CDC:
“One standard cloth mask has the capability of blocking about 40% of C/19 virus particles, where-as two cloth masks combined, has the capability of blocking 90% C/19 virus particles.”
******************************
My take on this:
Regardless, in order to properly ‘double mask’, the first mask that you’re wearing would have to be a proper seal around your nose and mouth (Lets use an N95 or a properly fitted cloth mask for example), not allowing air to escape, and then the secondary mask would have to be some type of cloth/paper fabric covering the primary mask. But aside all of that, let’s just be honest here, it will be a rarity to find people double masking. Why do I believe that? I pay enough attention in the general public where most people don’t wear their mask properly anyways, let alone those who are complacent where they probably forget their mask in their car and they just disregard wearing one at all.
The biggest contribution to improper mask wearing, is if it’s too large for the individual wearing it/not wearing the mask properly where it’s not covering the nose and mouth. And I don’t mean to denigrate anyone, but it’s not difficult to find a mask that fits properly, there’s plenty of options on the market that are inexpensive to wear one that does (With sizing charts). But like I said, there an inconvenience to the public, therefore they would rather just quick put it on and take it off where required v.s. wear one effectively.
Either way, I don’t see the majority of people double masking moving forward, and partially because of the fatigue of masking as it is already, and it seems like it’s ‘mentally taxing’ on people to even wear one effectively, where two would probably be a major challenge for the general public.
I only have a mask in car for anytime I have to run in a store or somewhere. It’s pretty stupid. Any other time I don’t bother. Work, home, friends, no one wears them. Hopefully the nonsense ends this year.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
I got these in last week:
4 boxes of 10 qty 3M N95 masks for $1 each plus free shipping from Amazon:
dk001
macrumors demi-god
Thanks for the reply however you point out a relevant item; seal.
Pretty much all of the masks sold these days do not have that making double masking pretty much useless.
ritmomundo
macrumors 68020
I was at Costco a couple weeks ago, and some guy in line literally pulled down his mask to cough several times loud, then put it back up. 🤦♂️ The dagger looks he got...
I love food probably more than anybody I know. It’s one of the small prices that I’m willing to pay for a quality product, And that means from any restaurant that’s willing to keep my safety in mind awhile I support their establishment.
So What’s my point?
Since the pandemic, a lot of restaurants have had to make adjustments and obviously guidelines have to be followed. But not all restaurants obviously care about the patrons, when they care more about their spreadsheets pushing numbers and not following safety guidelines. But like many of us, some consumers are leery of dining in and which restaurants to choose that actually are using systematic practices in terms of social distancing, masking, etc.
But now in my state, they just implemented a ‘restaurant Association league’ [R.A.L.] available online to see which restaurant has the highest safety ratings and which restaurants actually qualify (Also Pledge) to follow specific guidelines to protect consumers with their dine-in experience to the best of their ability with food safety handling guidelines and employee health safety.
It’s actually really unique, because these restaurants are rated based on their overall cleanliness, reviews from customers and the restaurant staff also have to follow guidelines of hyper sanitization, capacity limits, social distancing of 6 feet or more for tables and all employees glove/mask with no exceptions.
I can tell you as a restaurant investor, I think this program really offers a peace of mind for those who do want to have a social life outside their home, venture to a restaurant they trust and know that will give them the best possible experience, but safety being the priority.
I encourage anyone to research this in their state and see if there’s A program implemented like this, being it will be a widespread program across the nation, but it might be named differently per your state whenever it Rolls out.
{Out of ~283 restaurants in my city, 38% of the restaurants, [mainly being smaller, locally owned establishments] actually qualify for the ‘restaurant association league’, and those are the restaurants in my opinion, that will thrive given consumers are extremely vigilant more than ever when dining out.}
So What’s my point?
Since the pandemic, a lot of restaurants have had to make adjustments and obviously guidelines have to be followed. But not all restaurants obviously care about the patrons, when they care more about their spreadsheets pushing numbers and not following safety guidelines. But like many of us, some consumers are leery of dining in and which restaurants to choose that actually are using systematic practices in terms of social distancing, masking, etc.
But now in my state, they just implemented a ‘restaurant Association league’ [R.A.L.] available online to see which restaurant has the highest safety ratings and which restaurants actually qualify (Also Pledge) to follow specific guidelines to protect consumers with their dine-in experience to the best of their ability with food safety handling guidelines and employee health safety.
It’s actually really unique, because these restaurants are rated based on their overall cleanliness, reviews from customers and the restaurant staff also have to follow guidelines of hyper sanitization, capacity limits, social distancing of 6 feet or more for tables and all employees glove/mask with no exceptions.
I can tell you as a restaurant investor, I think this program really offers a peace of mind for those who do want to have a social life outside their home, venture to a restaurant they trust and know that will give them the best possible experience, but safety being the priority.
I encourage anyone to research this in their state and see if there’s A program implemented like this, being it will be a widespread program across the nation, but it might be named differently per your state whenever it Rolls out.
{Out of ~283 restaurants in my city, 38% of the restaurants, [mainly being smaller, locally owned establishments] actually qualify for the ‘restaurant association league’, and those are the restaurants in my opinion, that will thrive given consumers are extremely vigilant more than ever when dining out.}
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gnasher729
Suspended
Common sense. You can't spread an illness that you haven't got. You can spread an illness that you've got with no symptoms. But not if you haven't got it. Which is what the vaccine is there for.
gnasher729
Suspended
In the UK, when they started they were given strict orders that vaccines were only to be used for the intended person and nobody else. If someone didn't turn up, that vaccine would be wasted. Now every place doing vaccinations tries to have a list of people whose turn it isn't yet, but who can come on short notice, and they pass out every leftover vaccines they have. Common sense, better giving the vaccine to a healthy twenty year old than wasting it.
gnasher729
Suspended
What all the vaccines do is create something in your body that looks exactly like a Covid virus, and then your body does things to fight anything that looks like a Covid virus - including a real Covid virus obviously. There are three phases: 1. Your white blood cells detect something that doesn't belong there, and trigger the creation of antibodies. 2. When antibodies are created, they detect anything that looks like Covid and mark it. 3. There are cells in your body all the time that destroy anything marked by an antibody. Now _how_ the things looking like Covid came into your body doesn't matter, what matters is how much and how similar to the real thing. And of course Covid itself will trigger the exact same response. And no matter what is more stable, it will be destroyed by your antibodies, so it will disappear from your body.
We know that your white blood cells remember some viruses forever, and others for a shorter time, with no idea why. The antibody creation will stop at some time, but as long as the white blood cells are still prepared, they will act an awful lot faster. The second vaccine shows the white blood cells not only "there is something that doesn't belong", it shows them "there is something that doesn't belong, and it has come back", and that gives a much stronger and longer lasting reaction.
How long does it work? Nobody knows. We will notice when it stops working. There's also the problem of variants that look different, they might require a new vaccine. On the other hand, if everyone is vaccinated, we might get variants that look different, but are less infectious. So they would have a chance in a vaccinated population, but would be less dangerous even though the vaccine doesn't work.
decafjava
macrumors 603
Thank you @gnasher729 good to see reliable info posted. Getting my first shot on Monday. Worried about my mom who lives in Canada as the vaccination has been poorly organised it seems. One friend, a dental hygenist says they are not considered at risk like other medical personnel. WTF??
gnasher729
Suspended
If the vaccine doesn't work for you then you have no protection, no side effects.
If it works, then you have protection, some have side effects, others don't.
So having side effects is a good sign, but not having any isn't bad.
What does your post have to do with what I said?
where did I state anything about the contents of the vaccine.
Guess you posted this without reading any further. Since I got both my vaccines. But continue to preach at people. 🤣
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yaxomoxay
macrumors 604
My only guess is that the initial policy was to prevent misuse of doses by staff which could’ve lead to total chaos.
Not really, there is no authorative long-term study on protection given (which is what you posted) and the available short-term studies all indicate that protection is not 100%, actually varying between 60% & 80%.
Don’t confuse protection for immunity...it’s suppose to have 90% efficacy against having moderate to severe symptoms. Not protection against the virus. Very different things!
Well in Australia i'm hoping it will end in in October when now there is already stupid tasks of lifting state boarder restrictions after vaccines
To me, more are infected overseas, therefore should have a longer run of staying safe.. If Australia opens up their international boarders instead, we will get infected from travelers left, right, and center who just want to "come home" and who knows what variant they have now.
I dunno how long it would take for US to get back to normal, but no country in worse position should rush
Gregg2
macrumors 604
Apparently the widespread wearing of masks and other recommended measures for stopping the spread of COVID has resulted in the lowest infection rate of Influenza in memory. We might see recommendations for mask wearing in future flu seasons, since it seems to help immensely.
Falhófnir
macrumors 603
This is a good point, but eventually you’re going to have to start allowing international travel again, and COVID is unlikely to ever fully go away. Once everyone is vaccinated against the main/ original virus I don’t think it’s going to get much better than that, so whatever things are like by then is likely to be the state of things for the foreseeable future.
I’m hearing about a worse than usual flu season at the end of 2021 as so few people have been exposed to build up any immunity while the lockdown measures are in place... I get the feeling things are going to be wonky for quite a while yet whatever happens!
Gregg2
macrumors 604
a) Well, of course, that is speculation. The experts were warning us of a "double whammy" with COVID and flu last fall, and it did not come to pass. It was proven that their speculation, while sounding logical, was wrong. That may very well be the same result as the next flu season comes around.
b) I think you are absolutely correct that "normal" will not return any time soon, if ever. If there are places somewhere in the world that an overwhelming majority of people wear masks, practice distancing, etc. into the next flu season and the result is the same as for the last one, maybe 3 or 4 Americans will decide that all that stuff is a good thing. But, I won't get my hopes up. One thing that the COVID pandemic has taught us is that you can never underestimate the stupidity of independent-minded individuals.
philpalmiero
macrumors regular
satcomer
Suspended
Depends on State you live into! Some Twitter/News sites say the protection vaccine will NOT protect you from getting the virus! To me this sounds much like sensational or yellow journalism!