Melodi
Disaster Cat
I put this on the main preparations thread but I wanted to put it here too because it will be easier to find and other people might want to add things like homemade patterns for period/incontinence pads, herbal poultice holders, hot water bottle covers and just about anything crafty that can be useful for medical/herbal purposes.
OK I will do this as its own thread if required by here goes:
For the homemade masks - the idea (per Nightwolf) is to "saturate" the homemade mask (made of several layers of breathable but firmly woven fabric, like cotton) with salt.
That means:
Boil your water and keep adding salt to it until your spoon comes out with salt crystals on it and/or you just can't get anymore salt in without making mud.
Now take the mask and shape it if you can (I'm not sure how that works I haven't tried it) and/or just hang it up to dry in as clean an area as you can manage (or outside in the sun if you've got that option).
These are best worn OVER A simple surgical mask (double protection) but can work on their own - they work because the salt absorbs and crystalizes droplets - of course, they need to be washed and reboiled after you go out in public, or if someone coughs/sneezes on you at home.
If you are wearing these masks on their own, the mask (or the under-mask) must be as sealed as possible using surgical tape or even petroleum jelly) and secured firmly to the head.
Homemade FACE SHIELDS (not masks shields) can be made just as you saw in China by cutting the bottom off of a full-sized plastic water bottle.
These will protect the face for people wearing glasses or who do not have goggles, they are NOT a mask, they will NOT protect from infecting the mouth and nose but they will keep your eyes safe.
Here are the videos my engineering housemate made as a guide when she made our masks, note if you use the ear holders as she did (instead of long ties) be sure to have shoelaces or another tie to have them attach more firmly to the head especially if you don't have an under mask/regular surgical mask underneath.
(provided by my Engineer housemate but she didn't make the videos, she couldn't find the one from Thailand that said these were N95 equivalents, probably because it was taken down again as Nightwolf couldn't find it again either - it probably is only that high a rating with the salt and over a regular mask but I'm guessing)
This is the tutorial I followed
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SB2xyo-uSSU
Here is one in child-size
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE3zfvHfJns
Melodi's Housemates cut out patterns:
OK I will do this as its own thread if required by here goes:
For the homemade masks - the idea (per Nightwolf) is to "saturate" the homemade mask (made of several layers of breathable but firmly woven fabric, like cotton) with salt.
That means:
Boil your water and keep adding salt to it until your spoon comes out with salt crystals on it and/or you just can't get anymore salt in without making mud.
Now take the mask and shape it if you can (I'm not sure how that works I haven't tried it) and/or just hang it up to dry in as clean an area as you can manage (or outside in the sun if you've got that option).
These are best worn OVER A simple surgical mask (double protection) but can work on their own - they work because the salt absorbs and crystalizes droplets - of course, they need to be washed and reboiled after you go out in public, or if someone coughs/sneezes on you at home.
If you are wearing these masks on their own, the mask (or the under-mask) must be as sealed as possible using surgical tape or even petroleum jelly) and secured firmly to the head.
Homemade FACE SHIELDS (not masks shields) can be made just as you saw in China by cutting the bottom off of a full-sized plastic water bottle.
These will protect the face for people wearing glasses or who do not have goggles, they are NOT a mask, they will NOT protect from infecting the mouth and nose but they will keep your eyes safe.
Here are the videos my engineering housemate made as a guide when she made our masks, note if you use the ear holders as she did (instead of long ties) be sure to have shoelaces or another tie to have them attach more firmly to the head especially if you don't have an under mask/regular surgical mask underneath.
(provided by my Engineer housemate but she didn't make the videos, she couldn't find the one from Thailand that said these were N95 equivalents, probably because it was taken down again as Nightwolf couldn't find it again either - it probably is only that high a rating with the salt and over a regular mask but I'm guessing)
This is the tutorial I followed
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SB2xyo-uSSU
Here is one in child-size
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE3zfvHfJns
Melodi's Housemates cut out patterns: