To think I can't be the only one who has never bought a mask?!!

[gagaoolaalaa]

Anyone else never bought a mask?? 🤣it has been nearly a year and I have never had to buy one.

ps: I know a microbiology lab where neither cloth nor medical masks are allowed. I can't remember exactly why, but something to do with other safety measures they need to follow. Cat 2? They work well spaced out on the benches.

What an utter fool you sound. Boasting about getting free masks. The rest of us buy them to protect ourselves or our vulnerable others. Why would you want to laugh at people who take this seriously?
I have a lot of friends and family who work in the NHS and are scared for their lives, but carrying on serving.
Shame on you

You aren't. My hospital trust gave us all 2 cloth ones for personal use and obviously provide disposable ones for work each day.

@Catty1720 to be honest no they don't unless they have a filter of some sort.

Medical grade masks should be worn where possible all health care workers should wear them,You should especially wear them if you are ill in any way (and/or waiting for a covid test I suppose) and if you are around someone who is immunocompromised.

Homemade/ fabric masks are alright if you are out in public and keeping distance and feeling well/know you are covid negative

FYI you can wash disposable ones and reuse them which is what I do as they're much comfier than fabric ones. It's been proven to still work

The amount of fabric masks I've bought and the kids have lost is unbelievable.
I also made some three layered ones when lockdown first started in march. They're quite ragged now so sewing some more in the half term break although I have read that only medical grade masks are properly effective. I double up when I'm at the supermarket and the kids don't go anywhere so they're ok until schools reopen

Good for you op if your work are looking out for their employees and allowing you to take home for personal use.

@lljkk is it a pharmaceutical/food industry micro lab?? Because even pre covid we wore masks for certain procedures. It has always been that way! A BSL2 lab will require a high level of PPE (masks and face shields included) due to the risk involved with the agents and microbes they work with

Fabric ones are fine for general use. Medical grade masks obviously need to be used by those in close contact with people. In supermarkets etc fabric masks are fine. There were pictograms showing the effectiveness of fabric masks and medical grade masks and the fabric masks were fine for general use. My fabric ones are 3 layers of different fabrics.
OP what exactly is your job and qualifications? Are you happy to be making people fearful about their fabric masks because you get unlimited free medical grade ones?

What is the actual fucking point of this thread? Can anyone explain?

@CrotchBurn if it's a disposable medical mask...no you cannot. The whole point of them is that they are sterile with inbuilt filters that have been used essentially. Some scientists are saying that maybe if you heat them to a certain temp and leave them out to air for 7 days then it's possible to reuse them but their efficacy would not be the same.

@gagaoolaalaa
Yes, you can.

@Indecisive12 to be honest I thought most people knew their home made masks were not as effective as a medical mask!? Is that not common knowledge?

I am a lab analyst/microbiologist I have a biochemistry degree and a masters in pharmaceutical Sciences.

@CrotchBurn yes you can... but that does not mean it will work the same. You can wash it all you want but ultimately they are designed for single use.

[quote gagaoolaalaa]@Markies I'm not boasting (what an odd thing to say) I have just realised that I have never actually purchased a mask...that's all. Bloody hell can a person not start a simple conversation in here?[/quote]
I mean you can, but it’s a really weird conversation to start. Even for Mumsnet!

Yes but you’ve been saying they aren’t effective (implying at all)!

Well I have a PhD in life and I'm saying they're just as effective washed

I didn’t know fabric masks weren’t as good I just thought we weren’t suppose to use medical ones as they are for key workers I think I’ll double up from now on

This thread is the Mumsnet version of clickbait.

You have used a purposely misleading title (I read it and assumed you'd not bothered buying a mask because you're one of the dickwads people who outright refuse to wear one.)

But then you open the thread, expecting a full-blown Mumsnet bun fight only to see that you actually DO wear a mask but get them for free and you had mislead us completely.

What an anticlimax!

@Indecisive12 they aren't really... if you sneeze with a medical grade mask on. Then nothing really gets through. If you sneeze with a linen, cotton whatever mask on yes they stop most particles but not all.
And actually some fabrics (I think fleece) have been found to actually exacerbate the issue as the molecules clump together and are therefore suspended in the air for longer than smaller particles.

[quote gagaoolaalaa]@Indecisive12 they aren't really... if you sneeze with a medical grade mask on. Then nothing really gets through. If you sneeze with a linen, cotton whatever mask on yes they stop most particles but not all.
And actually some fabrics (I think fleece) have been found to actually exacerbate the issue as the molecules clump together and are therefore suspended in the air for longer than smaller particles. [/quote]
So a fabric one reduces the risk just not as much as a medical grade one.

Weird thread. Do you buy your own toilet roll or get that free from work too?

You have used a purposely misleading title (I read it and assumed you'd not bothered buying a mask because you're one of the dickwads people who outright refuse to wear one.)

To be fair I didn’t read that - I understood what the OP meant, but couldn’t quite understand why they thought it was worth typing - or why they added a laughing face as though it was funny or incredulous... I still don’t. It’s just shit banter I suppose. So shit it actually turned out a bit entertaining - makes me wonder what other weird conversation starters OP entertains her work colleagues with. ‘I’m having a cheese sandwich for lunch today - surely I can’t be the only person who eats cheese!!!!! 🤣 (starts laughing uncontrollably)’...

@Indecisive12 slightly I suppose, but once a particle is in the air it's a risk nonetheless and depending on how close you are to someone else and taking into account the other variables in the room such as temperature, air flow etc then there is every chance that if there is a virus particle there it could infect another person. If you wear a surgical mask (correctly) then the risk is eliminated. I know which I would prefer.