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by mcsb4 2276 days ago
Homemade masks made of a double layer of tea towel cloth are not only protecting others but also protect yourself nearly as effectively as N95 masks.

The original research was made by PHE - Public Health England and the results are:

B atrophaeus - ~1um :

Surgical mask 96.35% filtering

Double layer tea towel 96.71% filtering

Bacteriophage MS2 - 23nm :

Surgical mask 89.52% filtering

Tea towel one layer 72.46% filtering

The full paper is on researchgate, title: "Testing the Efficacy of Homemade Masks: Would They Protect in an Influenza Pandemic?"

Also every super market should have the use of hand sanitizer obligatory at the entrance.

There is a pretty good video for simulations of the epidemic spreading [1] - it is not going to stop until we either have a vaccine or ~60% of the population have antibodies. So the choice is to sit the next 12-18months at home or we fight the transmission of the virus.

Masks cost nothing compared to the economic disaster that we are running into. The virus spreads via mouth and nose and secondary via the hands. So just stop it at the source.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxAaO2rsdIs

1 comments

[deleted]
The virus is generally contained within a much larger droplet that is expelled when a person speaks, coughs, or sneezes. So the 120nm number is not necessarily relevant.
As I wrote:

Bacteriophage MS2 - 23nm :

Surgical mask 89.52% filtering

Tea towel one layer 72.46% filtering

-> Thus still ~70% filtering of 23nm particles for the one layered towel. They didn't put the number for a two layered towel in there, I wonder if it did beat the surgical mask.

>As I wrote:

>Bacteriophage MS2 - 23nm :

oops, misread the units!