It's Time to Upgrade. (Again.)

Information on gas masks.

Grandfailure

Five years ago, I never thought I’d be shopping for gas masks to protect my family from industrial accidents on top of everything else.

And yet, here we are.

We live in a world where it’s becoming dangerous just to breathe. The threats we face now include industrial accidents like the one that recently happened in Atlanta, exposing hundreds of thousands to chlorine gas. An N95 mask is no longer enough. Most of us will continue wearing those as a default choice, but now it’s time to think about adding a backup respirator with vapor cartridges. If you’re going with a half-face respirator, add safety goggles with a snug fit.

For perspective, chlorine gas was a weapon used in WWI. Winds are now spreading that massive chemical cloud all over the metro region, prompting shelter-in-place warnings throughout the city and surrounding suburbs. It’s not an exaggeration to say that residents of the Atlanta area, where I grew up, are now essentially under a chemical attack, thanks to corporate deregulation and mismanagement. Despite official assurances, meteorologists continue to point out that the air across the city remains unsafe. It’s all coming to a city near you.

The Atlanta disaster marks the fifth time in a single month that an industrial accident has put an entire city at risk. Even when there’s not an emergency, air pollution now directly kills 8.1 million people a year, including 2,000 children every single day. New studies have also found that wildfire smoke contains carbon monoxide, benzene, cyanide, and other chemicals that cause direct heart and lung damage, leading to chronic health problems for survivors. As the last few years have shown, everyone everywhere now faces that threat, not just one coast.

Many professionals recommend a half-face or full-face respirator with appropriate cartridges to protect yourself from organic and acid gases. Some of these cartridges also filter out particulates.

A thread by Erin Sanders provides a good overview.

There’s another thread here.

A CDC study found that the most common gases you’ll face during an industrial accident include carbon monoxide, ammonia, chlorine, hydrochloric acid, and sulfuric acid. We recently bought 3M’s 6502QL half-face respirator with a set of P100 60926 multi-gas cartridges. Others have recommended the 3M secure click system. Here’s their guide. According to this guide by 3M, gas and vapor cartridges generally last for six months after they’re opened. One set of cartridges should get you through most emergencies. It doesn’t hurt to have a backup.

The masks themselves usually come in three different sizes.

The small provides a decent fit for our six-year-old.

Many companies like Draeger also make respirators.

Here’s their guide.

I wouldn’t get them from just any prepper site. I’d get them from a company that has an established reputation for making industrial-grade respirators.

Our governments should be shipping massive quantities of these masks and cartridges to Atlanta. Instead, they’re doing nothing.

It makes sense to get a mask for yourself, your family, and even some of your neighbors if you can. It makes even more sense to be sending these masks and cartridges to Atlanta. This is yet another expense individuals will take on, assuming they can even afford it.

Shouldn’t we get a tax break or something?

Jeez…