I have been reading that the "most important thing" in selecting a respirator is fit. What I can't find is how a regular guy can get fit tested. The only thing I see is paying to have a technician come out and test your whole company. Does Home Depot have homeowner days or something like that?
Half face respirator fit test
- Thread starter jhendric
- Start date
Dave455
Well-known member
Take off the filters, put your hands over the holes where the filters fit, and breathe in. If the respirator pulls tight to your face it’s a good fit!
And have everyone shave their beards
cavalry
Well-known member
The above post is accurate, I usually can get a good seal without removing the filters. I also move my chin around and shake my head a bit before checking to make sure its seated properly.
If you have facial hair the seal will be lacking.
If you have facial hair the seal will be lacking.
This is the home test, but you still have to buy the respirator(s) to try it.
An industrial safety store might (will) be more helpful than Home Depot, but you still have the problem of spending money to find the right size.
Dave455
Well-known member
Sadly, respirators with face seals don’t work properly with beards.
You may choose one, or the other…
We had to go to a Safety Company site and get fit tested. You had to demonstarte bending over with the mask on for so many seconds or minutes, ect while they are taking readings. They used to require a doctor sign off also, they sent them the results which was my gripe about it as I didnt know the doc to make sure it doesnt do you stress. They would give us a card and the sign off was good for a year.
inphx
Well-known member
Where are you located? Through the NIEHS worker training program there is likely a local service provider and it may be free or subsidized. Please pm me and i will introduce the correct local party.
Blackmarket
Well-known member
Just had a trainer come in to our workplace for a different type of training, but he got off topic and this came up. He said very rarely has he seen that people will use a size large respirator and it fit well. Most were size medium. May or may not help you in choosing.
Skiff Builder
Well-known member
Place palm over exhaust valve and exhale. No air should come out anywhere.
we do the fit test once a year or so. just a small machine the checks the air while your going through a range of motions and speaking while wearing the respirator. it just detetmines if the seal is sufficient according to the machine. plugging the ports with a hand will do same thing.
if homedepot or online stores dont have a no return policy on respirators then just buy a medium and large then return the one you dont want
if homedepot or online stores dont have a no return policy on respirators then just buy a medium and large then return the one you dont want
kd3pc
Well-known member
often some well placed vaseline will allow a better fit for those who have a beard.
Another way to know if it fits is to have a bold perfume and see if you get the scent at all....tight seal will not pass smell. This is where the saying "passed the smell test" came from.
paulsomlo
Well-known member
That would be true for organic vapor filters, but probably not for particulate filters.
JoshGuitar
Member
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2006
- Messages
- 13
I've personally performed fit testing at work for hundreds of people. There's quantitative fit testing like corn chip described, and qualitative, which kd3pc described a simple version of. And as paulsomio mentioned, the smell test only works if the filter you're using will filter what you're using to "test". Most of what you'd encounter in a home shop would fall under exposures where qualitative fit testing is sufficient, even by OSHA standards.
The qualitative fit test procedure laid out in the OSHA standard has you go through a series of steps like breathing normally for a minute, deep breathing for a minute, reading out loud, moving your head around, etc., to simulate things you do while working that could break the seal. You do this while the person testing you maintains a concentration of a fit test solution (sweet stuff, bitter stuff, irritant smoke, etc.) that you'll be able to smell or taste if you don't have a good seal.
For home shop purposes, spraying something smelly but harmless that your respirator filters will remove, while moving around and talking, will get you "close enough" to a real fit test while not being OSHA approved. If you want to go the extra mile (and have a helper), the qualitative fit test kits are a couple hundred dollars and the procedure is laid out at https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.134AppA . There are instructional videos on youtube, and it's really not rocket science. Even doing it "professionally" requires no particular certifications or anything.
Or if you're not the DIY type (then why are you on this site?
), a lot of the places that do medical evaluations for respirator use also do fit testing...although I have no clue if they'll just fit test a random person if it's not for work.
The qualitative fit test procedure laid out in the OSHA standard has you go through a series of steps like breathing normally for a minute, deep breathing for a minute, reading out loud, moving your head around, etc., to simulate things you do while working that could break the seal. You do this while the person testing you maintains a concentration of a fit test solution (sweet stuff, bitter stuff, irritant smoke, etc.) that you'll be able to smell or taste if you don't have a good seal.
For home shop purposes, spraying something smelly but harmless that your respirator filters will remove, while moving around and talking, will get you "close enough" to a real fit test while not being OSHA approved. If you want to go the extra mile (and have a helper), the qualitative fit test kits are a couple hundred dollars and the procedure is laid out at https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.134AppA . There are instructional videos on youtube, and it's really not rocket science. Even doing it "professionally" requires no particular certifications or anything.
Or if you're not the DIY type (then why are you on this site?
), a lot of the places that do medical evaluations for respirator use also do fit testing...although I have no clue if they'll just fit test a random person if it's not for work.There is a difference between a seal/fit check and a fit test.
Seal/fit check:
An "at home" fit test solution would be something like this:
Or you could call your local health or emergency preparedness departments and see if they would do it for you or an industrial supply store.
Seal/fit check:
An "at home" fit test solution would be something like this:
Or you could call your local health or emergency preparedness departments and see if they would do it for you or an industrial supply store.
bwringer
Well-known member
98ssuck
Well-known member
We have an industrial hygiene department that does annual fit tests.
Expect to pay industrial prices to have a private company to do this for you.
Expect to pay industrial prices to have a private company to do this for you.
Hey guys, sorry for posting and ghosting, I got sidtracked with work. Lots of good advice here. I have 2 very old masks that fit but the material that creates the seal is starting to crack, thus the reason for this post. I'll probably just bring one of those in with me and match the size. Then I'll try the tests recommended here.