From Bona Fide Mask: DUE TO AN INCREASE IN COVID-19 CASES WE ARE NOW OFFERING FREE DOMESTIC SHIPPING ON ALL KN95 FDA AUTHORIZED MASK ORDERS THRU 7/19/20! ALL ORDERS SHIP FROM OUR WAREHOUSE IN NEW YORK!
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Hey guys don't want to burst your bubble, however, what you are talking about is not a filtration test, but one that has been propagated by social media. You have sadly been misinformed. The only actual liquid barrier test that is performed on respirator masks is for a small classification known as Surgical N95's, which are considered medical devices by the FDA. Also, liquid barrier protection is rated by ASTM and not NIOSH. Your standard N95 from 3m or Honeywell is not designed for liquid barrier protection and the ability of it to hold water has zero impact on filtration. I emailed Powecom after seeing some of these posts just to be sure and recieved the following back:
IT IS NOT scientific to test qualified KN95 masks by pouring water into them. The dripping test is just a rumor. Firstly, water will destroy the protection ability of the melt blown filtering layer, that means: Water will destroy the effectiveness of the face mask; Secondly, too much water has weight (universal force[Laugh]) , so too much water will drip. Also, : The first layer of nonwoven material can let O2 (= oxygen ) pass through the face mask. That is why, the 1st Layer of face mask cannot 100% block water, especially when there is too much (for example, a cup of Water , too much water !!) pour in the face mask. This is not a scientific test and should not be used. Below are links from actual testing reports from the NPPTL that may be helpful Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.KN95GB262699.2898.962020-211.1pdf icon [cdc.gov] Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.KN95GB262699.5698.182020-303.1pdf icon [cdc.gov] Just want to make sure you guys have all the information. N95's are not for liquid barrier protection and neither are KN95's. The only liquid barrier protection masks are real ASTM surgical masks and Surgical N95's, which right now should be reserved ONLY for healthcare professionals. |
Statement for the Medical Device Respirator recalls in Canada
Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd hereby declare that the following two importers are not our purchasers.We have not found any information about the relevant companies in the sales records. Our company has an export license. All exports in our company's name are genuine.
There are many fake products on the market. The products that fail to pass the inspection in Canada are not exported by our company. Obviously these are fake.
Our main task in February, March and April is to provide the Chinese government with a large number of high-quality and qualified masks.We've been on the EUA list since April 3 . In fact ,CDC has always tested the quality of all respirators,in order to ensure that all the respirators imported to the United States are safe and up to standard. The following four test reports were issued by NPPTL and can be read on CDC website: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/R...SULTS.HTML
Government of Canada has issued a RECALL on these products.
Health Canada has determined that certain respirators that do not meet performance standards may pose a health and safety risk to users when used in a setting that requires 95% filtration (such as a health care settings).
https://healthycanadian
Useful links regarding mask reuse and cleaning:
USA today has a good simple article about mask cleaning, including N95 (same as KN95):
https://www.usatoday.co
Official recommendation from CDC :
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/...xtuse.html
There's a dedicated website about disinfecting N95, contributed by renown researchers and professionals:
https://www.n95decon.or
https://www.n95decon.or
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Government of Canada has issued a RECALL on these products.
Health Canada has determined that certain respirators that do not meet performance standards may pose a health and safety risk to users when used in a setting that requires 95% filtration (such as a health care settings).
https://healthycanadian
I'm Canadian, so have been checking this list periodically but not recently. These were added to the list at the end of May for FAILING standards.
Thanks to masterstanf2k for the heads-up.
That's why it is important even if everyone wear face mask, still need to keep 6 feet of distance.
As for protecting you, it is also related to air leakage. If you are in a high risk area that the air already contain a lot of Covid-19 droplet (like in hospital or people just don't care enough to wear facemask and you can't keep social distance). Or in door area with lot of people and very poor ventilation, etc. I think some website mentioned KN95 allow up to 10% of air leakage. And good surgical mask probably on average 30% leakage. While really bad cloth mask could have 90% leakage.
Now during inhale, depend if you are using KN95, good surgical mask or cloth mask, you will breath in various amount of Covid-19 droplet already in the air from a high risk area because of air leakage of the face mask. Face mask will still protect you and reduce the amount of Covid-19 droplet you breath in but not 100% because of air leakage. That's why in indoor area, N95 > KN95 > good surgical mask (USA standard ASTM F2100) > medical 3-ply mask > other 3-ply mask > cloth face mask , for protecting you from others.
In the end though, they are better then the blue ones and face coverings
In the end though, they are better then the blue ones and face coverings
That's why it is important even if everyone wear face mask, still need to keep 6 feet of distance.
As for protecting you, it is also related to air leakage. If you are in a high risk area that the air already contain a lot of Covid-19 droplet (like in hospital or people just don't care enough to wear facemask and you can't keep social distance). Or in door area with lot of people and very poor ventilation, etc. I think some website mentioned KN95 allow up to 10% of air leakage. And good surgical mask probably on average 30% leakage. While really bad cloth mask could have 90% leakage.
Now during inhale, depend if you are using KN95, good surgical mask or cloth mask, you will breath in various amount of Covid-19 droplet already in the air from a high risk area because of air leakage of the face mask. Face mask will still protect you and reduce the amount of Covid-19 droplet you breath in but not 100% because of air leakage. That's why in indoor area, N95 > KN95 > good surgical mask (USA standard ASTM F2100) > medical 3-ply mask > other 3-ply mask > cloth face mask , for protecting you from others.
And the study they do, it show their method pass the N95 test.
https://medium.com/@fixthemask/la...59dbb926a3
And since N95 not supposed to have much leakage and KN95 allow up to 10% of leakage, then the www.fixthemask.
Need to remember N95 usually not as comfortable as KN95 between of tighter fit to avoid air leakage. So using extra rubber bands or rubber sheet will make surgical mask tighter and less comfortable than just surgical mask by itself. May be use it only in high risk area for shorter amount of time.
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on the other hand, there are reddit threads in support of this seller: https://www.reddit.com/r/Masks4Al...uthorized/ [reddit.com] and https://www.reddit.com/r/Masks4Al...urce=share [reddit.com]
And the study they do, it show their method pass the N95 test.
https://medium.com/@fixthemask/la...59dbb926a3 [medium.com]
And since N95 not supposed to have much leakage and KN95 allow up to 10% of leakage, then the www.fixthemask.com [fixthemask.com] method that pass the N95 method may be better than KN95(?)
Need to remember N95 usually not as comfortable as KN95 between of tighter fit to avoid air leakage. So using extra rubber bands or rubber sheet will make surgical mask tighter and less comfortable than just surgical mask by itself. May be use it only in high risk area for shorter amount of time.
Their rubber bands option may not be practical because it is to harsh for ears. Don't think anyone could endure that. Rubber sheet option alone doesn't always work as desired and it needs cushions to achieve N95 level seal. Still those are good ideas and can help people in need.
on the other hand, there are reddit threads in support of this seller: https://www.reddit.com/r/Masks4Al...utho
FYI--Massachusetts also had test results for Powecoms in April and the numbers were in the low 90s. At this point, with no other viable options, I'm happy to have something that is at least that good...and maybe better based on the other results on the CDC NPPTL assessment site.
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/r...sults.html
Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.
shows up under both sections
Good: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/r...ed-508.pdf
Bad: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/r...ed-508.pdf
They also requested a response from Powecom, which they've shared. I've linked to it below.
As you may know, we are the premier distributor for the Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co. Ltd. (Powecom) in the USA so we have a direct relationship with the factory and also purchase directly from them. On May 10th of this year Powecom added the anti-fake sticker to their bags to combat all the fraudulent products in the marketplace. Powecom stated that the masks that are in the test that in your link are fakes. You can tell the difference by the perforations on the masks, especially the ones you see on the inside of the masks for the nose piece. The ones that tested poorly do not have the same perforations as the genuine Powecom KN95 mask. They also said that the 2 companies in Canada that are listed on the site are not their distributors and they do not know the 2 companies. Powecom is a well known company and prides itself on their quality. Genuine Powecom masks have always tested well.
As you can see in the below links the genuine Powecom masks have always tested amazingly well with awesome results.
Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.
Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.
Guangzhou Powecom Labor Insurance Supplies Co., Ltd.
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/r...sults.html
International Assessment Results | NPPTL | NIOSH | CDC [cdc.gov]
International Assessment Results – Not NIOSH-approved. NPPTL has completed International Assessments for the products listed below. NPPTL makes no representation as to the authenticity of the samples received and assessed. As part of its standard respirator approval process for NIOSH-approved respirators, NPPTL conducts a comprehensive ...
www.cdc.gov [cdc.gov]
Yes, It is such a shame that there are some bad actors out there selling fraudulent products, but please feel confident that we are only selling genuine high-quality FDA Appendix A Authorized Powecom KN95 masks. We established the relation with Powecom to help both companies bring ONLY their high-quality genuine KN95 masks to the public.
It is most important to us that you are comfortable and confident in our products and our company. We welcome any questions and comments.
I hope this was helpful and please know that you can trust us and Powecom.
...
Yes, It is such a shame that there are some bad actors out there selling fraudulent products, but please feel confident that we are only selling genuine high-quality FDA Appendix A Authorized Powecom KN95 masks. We established the relation with Powecom to help both companies bring ONLY their high-quality genuine KN95 masks to the public.
It is most important to us that you are comfortable and confident in our products and our company. We welcome any questions and comments.
I hope this was helpful and please know that you can trust us and Powecom.
Please have an awesome weekend and thank you for giving us the opportunity to address this.
Thank you!
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They also requested a response from Powecom, which they've shared. I've linked to it below.
Statement from Powecom is attached to this post
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