It was definitely hard to find the good stuff at first - and I was much more reclusive as a result too - but yeah, things have changed.
I wish people wouldn't respond to changes in policy/advice as evidence of "lying" before, as much of it has just been learning more. (Though the "we're gonna tell people they're ineffective because we want to reserve them for professionals" thing was a huge unforced error, IMO.)
https://accumed.com/30-pack-fda-cleared-niosh-n95-surgical-r...
These straps kinda suck though. I recommend carrying a few extras somewhere since the straps may snap throughout the day. I'm still looking for a better mask. For all of its faults, this one is available today and at the promised $1 price too.
The BNX duckbill masks used to be $1 per. But they seem sold out. Keep an eye on them just in case they come back into stock. https://bnx.com/products/bnx-50-pack-n95-mask-respirator-nio...
The Kimtech 53358 Duckbill WAS $1 each just a month ago. But their prices suddenly skyrocketed to $1.50ish from most sources. EDIT: If you buy 300 of them, you should get close to the $1/each price, but I want to "test" them before dropping $300 buckaroos on it...
EDIT: WB Mason is selling the Kimtech Duckbills at $50 per 50-pack, so that's $1 each: https://www.wbmason.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ItemDesc=Kimtech-...
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I'm not sure how much I trust Amazon's supply chain for proper N95 / NIOSH approved products. A lot of Amazon's stuff are 3rd party shippers and/or 3rd party suppliers instead of official sources, and comingling is an issue.
If its $1.50 from a proper medical store, then the $0.80 price at Amazon is probably too good to be true. If we're paying extra for the N95 rating, I'm willing to pay extra for proper supply chain.
Home Depot sells this 20 pack for $24 from 3M. That’s $1.20 each.
The told me I can gladly travel 30 min back to the store and wait in line for a refund. No thanks.
Going for full N95 means that the strap goes all the way around my head and is way more comfortable for extended use (ex: airplane rides or whatnot)
I'll admit I've tried the plastic & velcro ones and didn't like them - but I also don't wear them for hours at a time but just for quick trips so found them annoying to put on and off.
Where I live, N95 masks are mandatory in public transport since February, and it's really uncomfortable to be in an non-airconditioned metro car which is full to the brim, with water running down the windows from condensation. That's totally acceptable with surgical masks, but there's a face melting heat under any N95 mask in this condition :-D
Of course I wear them as mandated, but I really hope we can switch back to the more practical surgical masks soon, with enough vaccinations :-)
(Or that there is an early onset of winter :-D)
I'm not sure if people remember: but there was a shortage of masks of all kinds in March 2020. Cloth masks were the only thing we could get, and we all knew they were kind of crap (a lot of us were using coffee filters stapled onto the masks to increase its effectiveness).
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Now that the N95 shortage is over (at least, I'm buying N95 duckbills at $1 each these days), I think its time to seriously consider using N95 in the public. At least in America, where we seem to have suddenly a huge influx of N95 availability this year.