I make a lot of dust in my woodworking shop and am careful to ALWAYS wear a dust mask. Once you develop a wood allergy, it never goes away so I am very careful to use this mask.
First, if you are going to wear a mask all the time, it has to be comfortable. The #8511 is soft and with the adjustable nose-fit feature, it conforms snugly to the contours of my face. The two elastic straps provide snug but not over-tight contact and, with a little care, I get a close enough fit so that my exhalations do not fog up my safety glasses. The masks are durable and I typically can wear one all day, every day for several weeks (as long as I don't sneeze while wearing it!).
The masks appear to effectively remove even fine sanding dust as the inside remains clean and I have developed no allergies after many years of usage.
Thanks for another fine product 3M!
ROD 3M 8511 Particulate Sanding Respirator N95 with Valve, 10-Pack
I purchased the respirator for general use around the house. Recently I used one of the masks while trimming a tall privet hedge. The hedge is usually loaded with pollen,dust,etc.. The mask kept out the dust and the vent prevented my glasses from fogging. This is a good general use mask for average jobs around the home.
This is a great mask for cleaning and other household chores. I've used this mask in dusty environments. It was also useful when my neighbors were remodeling their house and the dust was coming into our house. These masks are also good for wildfire ash. The valve makes this mask much easier to breathe through. The metal band for the nose is very sturdy. The only problem I had was that the mask was a little large for my face.
During construction demolition it's important to protect your lungs from inhaling dust. I do a lot of demo and found the 3M 8511 Particle Sanding Respirator to be the best dust mask for the job. The straps remain firmly attached and the one way valve helps with exhalation and to keep glasses from fogging up. Once you pinch the metal nose clip you achieve a solid seal that keeps dust out. If you're working in extremely dusty conditions be sure to change masks once a day. Watch the Amazon site and pick up on deals of 3 or 4 10 packs of these masks. They are very affordable.
I've tried the Moldex - 2300 N95 Respirator and had about 20% of the straps snap off as I tried to pull it over my head for the first time. Don't waste your money with the Moldex respirators.
9-22-09 Just reordered another 30 masks that will make a total of 80. Still very satisfied and wouldn't order any other brand.
Good construction, the exhalation valve works as advertised to reduce condensation from respiration. My only complain is that the respirator is a little too big for my medium size face, thus it is uncomfortable to wear glasses with the respirator.
Four stars because of the oversize issue, I wish there were a smaller size for 3M 8511, that would be perfect for me and I would give five stars.
Like many a cheap turkey, I used the ulta-cheap dust masks when chopping leaves, sanding, or what have you. They sort of worked, caused my glasses to fog in 2.4 seconds, and afterwards I'd hack up dust and gunk a bit. After one particularly vile session of hacking and coughing, I thought that perhaps my lungs might be worth spending another $1.10 per mask.
Wow. The difference between these and the charlie-cheapos is huge. I wore one of these while leaves with the leaf blower until my clothes were brown with dust. It was about 3 hours of work, and as I say by the end I was just brown and covered with dust. Normally I'd spend the rest of the day wheezing and hacking and spitting, but with this mask I didn't cough once. Not once. No wheezing, no hacking, no nothing.
The valve makes it much easier to breathe and greatly reduces the fogging of your glasses. I have a massive head (98 percentile my son's pediatrician told me after realizing that perhaps there's a genetic component to my kid's big melon) and I didn't feel the straps are too tight. They are snug, but you need that for a good seal around your mouth and nose.
This is a great product. Buy it. Your lungs and sinuses will thank you. - Respirator - Masks - Dust - 3m'
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