Do you wear a mask in stores?

[REWahoo]

The people who have bought and hoarded large quantities of masks are not helping the situation, IMHO, as it will be more difficult for health care facilities and those who really need the masks to have them. The more we approach this as a community issue rather than an individual issue, the better off we all will be.

+1

I have a few dust filter masks I use when mowing that are apparently useless in preventing catching the virus. In the unlikely event I have to leave the hunker house for some reason I may wear one simply to help me stop myself from touching my face.

 

[gerntz]

No. Since I'm not sick, why?

Their purpose is to keep the sick from infecting others + medical workers use them during operations to keep from risking the already ill from something they unknowingly have or breaking sterilization. Hence the name surgical mask.

I'd have a difficult time looking at myself in the mirror if a masks' shortage arose in the medical system & I was hoarding masks.

 

[qt333]

I have a couple on hand from the wildfire smoke days. Thinking wearing might help with social distancing.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

Once again, SURGICAL masks are designed to protect surgical patients, so they are made to block germs that the wearer breathes out, and they provide pretty much no protections for the wearer. RESPIRATOR masks actually do filter airborne particles, including infectious droplets, IF you get a good seal, which IMO isn't hard even if you haven't been trained in their use.

Please stop spreading misinformation about "masks", as they are not all the same, and so blanket statements about them are usually wrong.

 

[pacergal]

I don't have any, and I wouldn't wear one if I had one, unless I was sick and trying to protect others from my germs, which is what a surgical mask will do.

N95 will help decrease germs coming into you from others for short term, however, in my experience as a medical professional they are hot,itchy, and difficult to breath in after a while. And if you don't do the proper "donning and doffing" procedure, you risk infecting yourself anyway!
Save the masks for the medical professionals who need them and for sick patients.

 

[Chuckanut]

From what I have read it's far better to simply limit the time one is in close contact with other people. My guess is that if you buy a can of beans in the store, it is more likely that you may get infected from the last person who touched the can of beans than somebody in the aisle near you. The trick is to get in an out ASAP, with as little contact with others as you can manage. And, of course, when you get home, wash your hands.

 

[REWahoo]

The trick is to get in an out ASAP, with as little contact with others as you can manage. And, of course, when you get home, wash your hands.

...and don't touch your face.

 

[Freedom56]

(I wish nobody talked! Someone else said, "Excuse me", another "Thank you" to me.)

Surprisingly (to me), I didn't see not even one person wearing a mask shopping in the store.

Walk into a bank with your mask and see how many people "thank you".

Leave the masks for contractors who need them and health care workers to protect their patients.

 

[W2R]

I think the average person out there
A) missed the boat on surgical masks. I looked on amazon in late january and there was nothing except "ships from china in 6 weeks for $200" stuff.
B) wasn't aware of N95 masks until those were all gone too.

Now, this crowd has more DIY'ers, men, time to go shopping, etc., than the general population. By the time I saw someone mention N95's here they were all backordered on the sites I looked at.

So...mask, what mask? Couldn't wear one if I wanted to.

+1000

Same here. You can't buy them. So, not only have I not worn a mask, I have not seen even ONE person wearing a mask. They just aren't available for an affordable price.

My plan is to start staying home most of the time starting this week and at home I do not plan to use a mask (since I have none).

 

[sengsational]

I had a stock of both surgical masks I bought a long time ago for lawn mowing. Then, when N95 masks from 3M showed up in the hardware store some years back, I got a bunch for lawn mowing. My FIL also got N95 masks for lawn mowing and woodworking. I found them in his shop while cleaning up after he passed.

There is no community spread yet in my geography, so I have not worn them while out, but I plan to wear the N95 masks on my food acquisition missions as part of my overall protection plan. Given community transmission and a situation that I can't avoid where I'll be forced to sit near other people, I plan to bring a few surgical masks and hand them to people near me, especially those that are coughing or sneezing.

 

[Midpack]

I have a box of 30 N95’s I bought last Fall for spraying pesticides, herbicides, etc. - haven’t used any yet. But I guess we’ll have them if needed.

 

[FIREd]

I don't have masks and would not wear one to go to a store at this point if I had some.

 

[rodi]

My son wore one last week when he was at the doctors.

The only person I've seen in a mask is a friend who tends to be dramatic. (All caps in her texts). She started a thread on next door chiding people for not wearing masks...

I've seen checkers and librarians in nitrile gloves. That makes sense to me. (Was stockpiling at the library yesterday because the system is shutting down tomorrow and our local branch is always closed on Sundays. Forget tp - I need books.)

 

[tmm99]

My mom who lives in Tokyo told me that many people there are now buying masks made of fabric, or are making their own, and layering with gauze, as they have exhausted their stash of disposable masks and stores are out of disposable masks (as the virus has been going around for much longer there.) My mom told me that she's also low on surgical masks so she's washing hers and reusing them by adding layers of gauze inside.

In a city like Tokyo where people must travel by train which can become very crowded, it makes sense that just about everyone wears a mask on the trains, and if everyone wears a mask, it will definitely help to prevent the spread of the virus.

If I need to go grocery shopping where I live in Canada, I could go to a more expensive grocery store nearby. The prices are quite high IMO, but it's more spacious, with wider aisles and because the prices are high, I've never seen the store busy. And I can ring my own stuff through.

 

[aja8888]

No. Not in stores or anywhere else. Just no.

Ditto. Besides, I don't have any masks.

 

[Kwirk]

Masks, even surgical masks, appear to offer partial protection from infection. N95 masks worn properly are more effective. The same masks that catch some virus particles on the way out can catch particles on the way in.



However, I've given my small stash of masks (from Ebola days) to my RN daughter because her hospital has been unable to provide an adequate supply. (Hopefully, her youth will give her more protection.)



I'm not sure just how protective masks are if not worn with effective eye protection.


If, by some magic, enough masks are produced for the general population I'll happily wear one on brief shopping trips. I'll wear eye protection too. But I don't see that an adequate supply will be available anytime soon.

 

[Amethyst]

NPR had the tale of an anonymous listener who bought (pretty obviously stolen) masks for 10X the list price from a stranger who overheard her bemoaning the lack of masks for sale.
Stranger said, "Oh, I have a small stash at home, I can sell you a few..."

After the furtive sale went down (it was described as being exactly like a drug sale), stranger said, "I still have a couple boxes left, let me know if you need any more..."

I think the average person out there
A) missed the boat on surgical masks. I looked on amazon in late january and there was nothing except "ships from china in 6 weeks for $200" stuff.
B) wasn't aware of N95 masks until those were all gone too.

.

 

[Running_Man]

I know they say sick people should wear masks, but not healthy ones. But if that was the case, why do all the health professionals / greeters of quarantine people / etc. that are healthy wear masks?
.

For the same reason as doctor's wash their hands thoroughly before a surgery so that the doctor and or/nurses prevent the passage of germs from the surgeon's / nurse's nose and mouth into the patient's wound with is typically open. Surgeon's masks do little to stop germs from getting to a doctor or nurse other than by accidental splash.

 

[mystang52]

I'm immuno compromised so I always have a small # of masks at home (Curad brand) for when I attend a play or concert. Whether it helps or not, I feel better wearing one. The few times we've gone to supermarket in last few days I did not wear a mask...........coz only DW went in while I stayed in the car.

 

[tmm99]

This youtube video shows someone making a mask using an A/C filter.

 

[swakyaby]

I have not yet worn a mask in stores. I did notice one elderly man wearing a simple surgical mask in Costco last week, and one elderly woman wearing a surgical mask yesterday in a busy discount grocery store. I think if I were elderly, I would be concerned enough to wear a mask too, but the simple mask is not enough protection. It’s probably the only type of mask available to them.

I do have a few N95 masks and one N100 mask. I do have one scheduled domestic flight for late April, and I think I will be wearing one of these in the airport and most of the time in-flight. Interestingly, the N100 mask is more comfortable to wear whereas the N95 mask made me feel hot.

My 2 cents on the mask debate: when I heard the declaration by the authorities that masks do nothing to protect the wearer from the corona virus, so stop buying them, I felt it was intended to stop the hoarding and to prevent a shortage from affecting hospitals and other health care providers. But in actuality, it really only applies to simple surgical masks. In surgery, those masks are worn because the simple act of speaking without a mask during surgery can transmit droplets carrying bacteria into the surgical wound. When care is provided to an individual with a suspected serious contagious virus, the surgical masks are changed to N100 (or N95) masks and eye protection and hopefully full body covering, because these masks are airtight enough to provide superior protection to the wearer.

 

[street]

I live in a very rural remote area. If I wore a mask in a store here they might shoot me thinking I'm going to rob the joint. LOL

Seriously, no I wouldn't wear a mask or own one in my neck of the woods. I hope I don't get it but will deal with it when that occurs.

 

[redshift]

A friend called from a Costco in Hawaii 3 days ago to let me know they had boxes of 10 N95 masks for $15. One per customer...

I think the average person out there
A) missed the boat on surgical masks. I looked on amazon in late january and there was nothing except "ships from china in 6 weeks for $200" stuff.
B) wasn't aware of N95 masks until those were all gone too.

Now, this crowd has more DIY'ers, men, time to go shopping, etc., than the general population. By the time I saw someone mention N95's here they were all backordered on the sites I looked at.

So...mask, what mask? Couldn't wear one if I wanted to.

 

[Kwirk]

If SHTF I'm wondering if I can use my CPAP machine as a portable respirator (not ventilator) system. I have a battery, the machine is relatively light, and I have inline bacteria/virus filters. I can put it all in a backpack. The only catch, so far, is that I can't find any any actual specifications for the "bacteria virus" filters. Probably better than no mask in any case.



Combined with eye protection and gloves I'll be ready to go.

 

[fh2000]

I ordered 10 from ebay. I also ordered 10 from Walmart. They both arrived 2 days ago. Since they appear to come from China, I am putting them in 14 days 'quarantine' before I touch any.

I am still waiting for my Amazon order of 10 3M N95 masks after 1 1/2 month now. I doubt I will see them any time soon.