Why are these masks / face coverings so cheap - is something wrong with them?

[Aridane]

Went on to Amazon to see if I could get some disposable face coverings other than in medical blue? Loads of choice of colours - but they are shockingly cheap - eg these ones at £5.99, including postage, for x30.

www.amazon.co.uk/MyCozy-Disposable_Face_Masks-Protective_Cover-Woven_Fabric-Protection_Pads/dp/B08DNYTB6Y/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=coloured+disposable+face+masks&sprefix=coloured+disposabl&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1598166687&sr=8-3

And these aren’t the cheapest ones?

Is this to good to be true? Or has manufacturing just ramped up?

Well probably because they look like nothing more than a piece of tissue paper.

🤣🤣 just pop some Andrex across your mouth. Job done.

Looks like they come from China. They are often cheaper

They look really crap tbh

I know you didn't want blue but they do a pack of 25 for £5 in b&m

They don’t work anyway.
Virus size is smaller than the gap in threads.
Even n95 surgical mask is meant to be worn for no more than 2.5 hours.
Go maskless , it’s the only way.

Thanks for the input (and love the suggestion of using Andrew instead).

And of course I won’t go go fucking bare faced - apart from respecting the law, it’s not about protecting myself but protecting others!

ANDREX (not Andrew)

Do you need disposable ones?

I don’t get on with the lovely washable cotton ones 😢 (which would have been my preference (

in my local qd they have disposable ones. 5.99 for 10 or 99p for 1.

Do you mind my asking what was wrong with the cotton masks Aridane? I’ve had to buy quite a lot of reusable masks so depending on what about them you didn’t get on with I might be able to suggest a mask that Is Not That/Those Thing[s].

I got hot, sweaty and very quickly the mask became damp - in contrast with the surgical ones (which I don’t dispose of after single use but rotate).

But they were lovely in appearance!

Just use a silk scarf tied round your face, job done! I dug out all my silk scarves from the 1990's, they now serve a purpose.

(but would be delighted to get ones as comfortable as the surgical ones - which don’t bother me at all - but which are washable etc)

I think they're disposable that's why they're so cheap.

I think pretty much all the disposable masks for sale are made in China. I don't see anything inherently wrong with these, no-one is pretending they are surgical grade. You can get very cheap disposable masks in Home Bargains as well as Amazon, E Bay etc.

I have made lots of cotton masks in different styles. While they look nicer and obviously more environmentally friendly, I find they are less pleasant to breathe in than the disposables.
The pleated ones are better than the shaped ones especially if I fit a nose bar.
My compromise is to wear cloth for a quick trip to a shop or short medical appointment but if I might need to wear for more than an hour or so I wear disposable.

Vintagevixen I have a drawer full of silk scarves. How do you use them exactly - tied round bandit style? Isn't the fabric too thin?

Silk scarves will not protect you or anyone else - you need a triple layer of cloth which includes an absorbant layer and a waterproof one on the outside.

Re the original masks - my guess is that they don't meet the standards of proper surgical masks.

Why not buy cotton masks

Unless in certain settings it’s not necessary to wear a surgical mask which should be thrown away after use

Cotton masks are far more comfortable a minute to hand wash at the end of the day dry by the morning

I have sewn lots of face masks for friends and family and I wear the 2 layer duck bill style ones myself when shopping with a printed cotton outer layer and a Japanese cotton gauze inner layer.
It’s the most comfortable type to wear.
Use skin tape rather than metal to stick them to your nose if you wear glasses.
As long as you wear something over your mouth and nose, even a scarf, you’re keeping to the rules. You don’t really need a waterproof layer.

"Silk scarves will not protect you or anyone else - you need a triple layer of cloth which includes an absorbant layer and a waterproof one on the outside"

Which is why it is crazy there is no standard applied to the masks you can/cant wear to be legal.

But then from what I have seen when shopping at least 25% of people dont wear them - and unlike other countries we don't make them if they just say that wearing them distresses them or they are asthmatic etc with no evidence.

I know they don't protect you, but the evidence/RCT's on cloth masks is very weak to non existent anyway, so I wear them instead of paying money for something that also doesn't work. Tie them over nose and mouth, brief fulfilled.

They're fine, just a bit rough and scratchy. We have a pack that ends up getting used for haircuts and whatnot.

@Stompythedinosaur

Silk scarves will not protect you or anyone else - you need a triple layer of cloth which includes an absorbant layer and a waterproof one on the outside.

Re the original masks - my guess is that they don't meet the standards of proper surgical masks.

The law doesn't say that, though. It just says you need to wear a face covering. A silk scarf tied over your mouth and nose is fine for that purpose. So are cotton buffs or neck gators.

You don't need a surgical mask to go and do your weekly shop. Just a covering for your mouth and nose.

Am not sure how much switching up style of cotton mask would help, as which people prefer is so personal, but I’m afraid Hot And Sweaty tends to come with most masks (including disposables) - & actually tends to mean they fit. Not wanting to sound rude, but were you wearing them in the really hot spell at all? I’d to change masks when technically there was no need (ie time-wise) one hospital appointment during the heatwave; & the next day when it broke was fine beyond the 4h limit (said mask has a longer limit [if not damp] set by manufacturer due to type of filter it has).

That aside, wonder if the Vistaprint masks might suit you as they’re a different feel to them. (Well, mine is, they’ve now got an integrated filter.) Possibly slightly out there as choices go, but if you want something super basic, there’s a dancewear company that make them from leotard material - they’re incredibly soft & really breathable (while passing the match test).