Thread: Do Powered Face Masks Steam Up ?

I can comment on the Triton unit, have had it for about 5 years

Originally Posted by steamingbill

Can anyone comment on unexpected issues ?

I don't think any of them put out anywhere near enough air, I sweat really easily and there is just not enough air to help with this so I end up feeling like a drowned rat after about half an hour of use.

do they steam up ?

It depends on the level of physical exertion and the temperature.
Chainsaw milling on a cold day - yes it fogs up quite a bit
Cutting up silica bricks outside the shed on a cold day, yes a little.
Turning on a warm day, its fine.

does the extra weight hurt your neck or head ? best to have battery and air filters on belt ?

The Triton has the battery and filters on the belt so no neck issues - I find them a bit claustrophobic so I take it off as soon as I can and probably sooner than I should

is the noise an absolute pain ?

No, its very quiet

do your eyeballs dry up ? do your ears pop ?

No and No

are there standards they should be stamped as complying to ?

Only on the filters - look for something like P2 or P3

I am glad I no longer have to use it inside the shed I still use it a fair bit outside the shed.
I've stopped using it with my chainsaw mills, because the muffs are not that good and I mainly mill green wood.
However it comes in really handy when tackling wasps nests, cutting up silica bricks for my forge, installing insulation in my shed before I had the dust extraction going, and cutting up concrete amnd limestone blocks for my shed retaining wall.

I am a relatively recent purchaser of a Trend Airshield Pro. I'm not sure if you include the airshield as a 'powered facemask' but I will answer for it anyway.

Originally Posted by steamingbill

do they steam up ?

Not in normal woodworking activities. Perhaps with very heavy work ?

Originally Posted by steamingbill

does the extra weight hurt your neck or head ? best to have battery and air filters on belt ?

Belt is better. I used one of the 3M ones for a while, with the battery on the belt. It was more comfortable but I frequently caught the cable on something - eventually ripping the cable right out of both ends. The Trend has battery and motor on the head set. The weight was initially a surprise and disappointment, but I'm used to it now and don't find it an issue - I've probably trained myself not to bend forward quickly when wearing it.

Originally Posted by steamingbill

is the noise an absolute pain ?

At first, yes. Now I scarcely notice it. Fairly typical thing with noise. There are lingering discomforts, noise isn't one of them.

Originally Posted by steamingbill

do your eyeballs dry up ? do your ears pop ?

Nope

Originally Posted by steamingbill

are there standards they should be stamped as complying to ?

Not best person to advise

Originally Posted by steamingbill

Any traps associated with powered face masks for the unwary buyer ? Can anyone comment on unexpected issues ?

+

Originally Posted by steamingbill

Anybody out there bought a powered facemask only to find they have a new set of problems rather than an answer to a previous problem ?

Main issue is an unexpected one - I didn't realise that they stick up so high, so I constantly bang my head on a low concrete beam and anything else in my rather low shed. A few days ago I hit my head so hard on the garage door opener that it triggered it on and shut the garage door on me!
Air supply is adequate for most woodworking tasks but would not suit heavy work.
Also, the air blowing over your face is very cold in winter.
I found that I had to apply extra hand-made padding to the headbands - just dense rubber sheeting wrapped around the plastic straps. This has the effect of softening the pressure points against the head, and also probably (not real sure about this) reduces noise by reducing bone conductivity.
Generally, I found wearing it difficult at first. It took about 20 hours wear to largely get used to it, though there is still discomfort. I still have to take it off for about 3 mins every hour - this is largely because of the aforementioned pressure points. Anyway, I wear it because I believe I have no real chance of making my shed dust-proof, so its just not optional.

If you are a skin-head then you will find that the air blowing on your dome may give you a headache from the cold.
regards, Ned

Originally Posted by steamingbill

Anybody out there bought a powered facemask only to find they have a new set of problems rather than an answer to a previous problem ?

It's been said before but is worth repeating. If you wear the pump and battery behind your back remember it will not filter a fart.

Originally Posted by BobL

It's been said before but is worth repeating. If you wear the pump and battery behind your back remember it will not filter a fart.

Self inflicted pain?

I live in Townsville in the tropics and also have problems with dust causing me some nasty medical issues. I chose the Trend / Purelite Airshield older model and have been using them both for over 6 years with no difficulties with fogging up. I also sweat easily so not real issues there either. It does have Aust standards approval for the visor as "low impact" and I can't remember off hand the filter rating but it certainly does dramatically reduce the issues I was having. I modified the battery pack install by making an aux pack that uses standard "AA" nicad's or nimh's and a spiral lead to a 3 x "AA" box that fits into a shirt sleeve pocket taking some of the weight out of the helmet and giving much longer battery life etc. Requires a very minor mod to the helmet for lead entry into battery compartment female plug. The additional power lead does not present any additional hazards as far as entanglement as it is close fitting.

I use a Racal positive pressure unit with the belt mounted running gear. This mask has served me well for about ten years now. Have had to replace the visor a few times and the battery but other than that no drama. I have always had trouble with ordinary face masks fogging my glasses but not a problem in the "bubble". Noise isnt a problem, quite comfortable and very pleasant in hot weather. Avoid baked beans immediately prior to
use, or position back pack strategically.

Many thanks for all of the replies and thoughts.

Looks like nobody has any regrets with using these things - some issues mentioned above, particularly the first response, but nobody is saying "Nah ! dont use them they are terrible"

Bill

Originally Posted by steamingbill

Many thanks for all of the replies and thoughts.

Looks like nobody has any regrets with using these things - some issues mentioned above, particularly the first response, but nobody is saying "Nah ! dont use them they are terrible"

Bill

Thats probably because they are still fairly rare to see along with facshields at participation style events so who knows how many people really use them. Cost is a major deterent.

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

Thats probably because they are still fairly rare to see along with facshields at participation style events so who knows how many people really use them. Cost is a major deterent.

When I look at how long mine has been going and I divide price by time, I dont know how they do em so cheap.
Most of the old tradesmen that I did my time under died from cancer and mainly respiratory. There were a few exceptions but the trend was pretty obvious.

Originally Posted by rustynail

When I look at how long mine has been going and I divide price by time, I dont know how they do em so cheap.
Most of the old tradesmen that I did my time under died from cancer and mainly respiratory. There were a few exceptions but the trend was pretty obvious.

Very true, I have figured the initial high purchase price divided by time (amortised) and reduction in medical bills, versus losses incurred from pain & discomfort, time away from the lathe etc its dirt cheap protection. Same goes for quality medium / high impact face shields & safety glasses.

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

Thats probably because they are still fairly rare to see along with facshields at participation style events so who knows how many people really use them. Cost is a major deterent.

This is a general problem for DIY PPE use especially with something like invisible dust where the risk is not immediately obvious and there is no supervisory threat involved. When a survey of DIY injuries was done in the mid 1990s only about 10% of DIYers had PPE suitable to the task that caused the injury, and a significantly smaller fraction actually used their PPE. With the big push on PPE at the workplace and improved availability at big hardware stores etc, I'd like to think that things have improve somewhat but I'm not sure that is the case.

Some DIY'ers just forget to use PPE but even for those that think about it momentarily it's too easy to say, "Oh this is just a 2" cut so I won't bother with a face shield for this one. A similar thing happened with seat belts where they were initially only being used for longer trips without realizing that the majority of accidents happen within a short distance of home. The same goes for PPE use, with many accidents happen during brief usage period usually when users are in a hurry - same applies in the workplace.

Dust is different to risks like sharp blades because nothing happens immediately and so DIY'ers think they can get away with short term exposure and there is some truth is that, which is probably why why masks are not always worn or DCs turned on. What DIY'ers don't seem to understand is that each event is potentially cumulative and cannot be ignored in the long run.

This is why automated engineering solutions are usually superior to PPE use, something like a DC that comes on automatically with tool/machine would be a better way to deal with dust than use PPE use.