u/iso_inane

I don't have any redimasks, but i have a pain in my gums and i may need to go to the dentist soon. Do you think taping another mask on the area around my nose using double sided tape would help? all i have at home are 3m aura, a kn95 bifold, and wellbefore kn95s (regular and pro). Do i need to cut the mask to fit just over my nose before taping?

I've never done the hack before, but I assume its worn under a cloth mask over both nose and mouth that you remove once youre in the chair. I cant imagine people are walking in with a mask only over their noses (I am severely socially anxious, i know this may not matter to other people)

I am sorry if i spelled redimask/readimask wrong

As i was finishing taping the shroud i ran out of aluminum tape so majority of the border of the shroud isnt taped down, only the bottom. Can i still run it and will it work or should i wait until i get more tape?

this is my first CR box and i built it with a 20 inch box fan, the filters, cardboard shroud and the aluminum tape. i dont know anything and i am learning. thanks in advance for ur patience with me

i tried to build this in one night after a long day and oh man the fact i ran oit of tape and its not finished AND im so sleepy sucks

EDIT to add: what do i do with the second filter. how do i store it. should it be covered up. thanks for answering and sorry for any typos i am dangerously tired

hi guys. i live with family and i mask outside of my room. I've even started brushing my teeth and washing my face in my room, and masking in the shower. my folks go to a lot of gatherings and theres usually a visitor over every other day. when i learned about how covid lingers in the air it made me want to start masking at home again. ive been masking again for about a year or 2 in kn95s in public. now ive just been a lot more consistent with it.

my room is pretty small, and i usually have the window cracked or open all the way (depending on if rain), and a fan going. i never open my room door for long anymore. i used to keep it open to bring in more air circulation every now and then, but i stopped bc of being more covid conscious.

Now, I've been masking wearing kn95 (mainly from well before but also breatheteq) and ive never done a fit test in them. i cant afford the quantitative test (most likely never will unless i get rich) so i was going to buy the supplies to do a diy qualitative test with the bitter solution and a nanomister sprayer. i dont know how well my masks fit me, and i wear them everywhere in shared public spaces and sometimes outside if a lot of people are around. but i dont know how well they work since ive never tested.

However since im now realizing keeping a shitty fan blowing in one corner and my window cracked is probably not doing that much to move the air in my room, especially bc i never keep my door open.

So i wanted to build a CR box to help clean the air. i don't make a lot of money and have other expenses each week. so i cant buy both the CR box and the qualitative fit testing materials at the same time. i need to get one before i get the other.

if you were in my situation, which would you prioritize getting first?

i also suspect there is mold in the house, which is a big reason i wanted to get an air purifier as well. my folks dont care and wont listen to my concerns so im trying to do what i can to protect the space in my room itself. i havent seen mold in here but ive seen it in the basement. my room is upstairs away from it but our laundry is washed and hung in the basement. not sure if mold spores can travel on them or even through out the house in general. Yea its distressing and theres a million other reasons why i dont feel safe here and am trying to save money so i can move out asap

Ugh. and im actually feeling sick today even tho i mask everywhere and its bumming me out that it might be bc of either the air in my room or my masks not fitting right. or maybe bc last work shift i ate inside (alone) because it was raining outside and i was going to faint. could be either of those i guess. I cant afford to buy covid tests either so idk what im sick with.

Months ago, i noticed a girl with cool hair at the train station. she would get on and off the train at the same cities as me. I never said hi, because i knew the moment i did, i would have an unskippable small talk cut scene whenever i saw her, whether i had energy or not.

One day i go to the store down the st from my job, she's on the register. She gushes about how cool i dress and how she always wanted to say hi but was too shy. It didnt bother me, it was pleasant and kind conversation. I thought i learned her name, but i forgot it. Every time i saw her at the train station afterwards, i would confidently say "Hi [wrong name]." One day she came up to me and said , "Hi i just wanted you to know, my name is [correct] not [wrong], its okay tho!" From there her coworker walked up to us and suddenly we 3 got on the train together, sitting together and chatting. a few weeks of this go by. she makes a racist joke. i text her saying i enjoy sitting on the train alone to destress before work, please dont take it the wrong way, but can we please just keep our greetings as a passerby thing instead of an invitation to sit on the train together? that was the best way i could manage, texting is easier but its scary waiting for the reply. she was completely fine with that and is still friendly towards me, greeting me and keeping it moving

Her coworker however, i really enjoyed their company, at first. whenever i saw them, they would chat with me and sit with me when the train pulled up.

but even though i think they are a cool person, i really dont like the expectation to sit with someone and have half n hour of small talk when i have to regulate my emotions and mentally prepare for an already highly social day at work. I dont enjoy constant socializing, and i struggle with feelings of shame when they talk about certain things i cant relate to. i tried offering to talk about my book i brought with me (which i really wanted to read) and they just stared at me and waited for me to stop talking

Its hard because some days i cant tell if i really do enjoy the conversations, since i am still unlearning people pleasing behavior, i will sometimes leave a highly energetic friendly even funny conversation, and think it went well. then days later i realize i was ignoring my own desires of resting, being nonverbal, having 0 expectations to laugh or listen, and not be perceived by someone staring at me as i want to sit in stillness and look out the window and daydream.

the other day i saw them get on the train, and i walked past their seat and sat in the same car. i was able to enjoy a quiet train ride in pure bliss, reading. i got up at our stop, they got up and went over to stand with me, happily saying "omg we were sitting right near each other and we didnt know the entire time" and i wanted to say "actually i saw you, but i wanted to read." but i stopped myself bc they were so friendly and excited and it sounded harsh.

theres not rlly anything inherently wrong with socializing on the train. but i am a person who prefers to be alone unless its a hangout somewhere. i really dont like when i see people ik on the train and they sit and talk to me. i am really tired of denying how i really feel in the name of people pleasing/appearing normal

How do i go about this? do you think its reasonable to text them the same thing i texted the other person? im worried that if i try to do it in person when i see them, ill be too anxious to go through with saying i want to sit alone. i rlly dont know how to handle this. its making me want to hide at the train station but hiding has never helped me.

I was using Well before kn95 3D masks (the pro version fits me better but it seems to go out of stock alot), and the nose seal is absolutely terrible for me. I can feel lots of air coming in when i breathe. For a while i was using double sided mask tape (i think Mask Tite is the brand?) and even tho it helped a lot it was a wildly uncomfortable experience. I work in food service and all the running around at work and then trying to run outside in the heat to catch public transit made my mask tape get gooey after a few uses. The feeling of that tacky gooey residue on my face made me want to scream but I had to play it cool until I got home. I also need to remove my mask alot thru out the day to drink water/eat. So it was pretty awful feeling my mask peel slowly off my skin like a sticker, and also made me way more anxious removing it in front of people.

Someone suggested buying 3m microfoam medical tape since the foam is slightly tacky and it adheres to skin pretty well. I bought two rolls from medical monks and just put some onto my masks. Let me tell you, the ability to don and doff my mask without having to deal with that awful peeling away sensation of tape is just pure bliss. It also helps the mask stay in place snug against my nose and not slip around, just like using the tape.

I'm really thankful for this hack and wanted to share in case anyone else isn't aware. I also folded and stapled the bottom of the mask to help it fit more snug at my chin. I normally only put tape at the top of my masks because i lift up the bottom to drink water thru a straw alot and i like it to be easily removable with nothing in the way. But im gonna try to put the foam tape on the bottom as well to see if that helps any.

Just wanted to share my experience in case this helps anyone. I have yet to do a fit test. (Definitely need to, but as of right now this is my setup) i am much more comfortable and the fit feels a lot more secure than without the foam.

I only included brand names, and website names in case people were wondering exactly what product im using and where to buy it

EDITED to fix typos

I haven't fit tested yet. I know its very important, but i also wondered what to do if it turns out the 20+ KN95 3D masks i have in my possession arent effective? I read here that even if they arent as effective if the seal isnt perfect, its still better than nothing. I also use mask tape and other things to make the fit better, like putting a headstrap through the ear loops and wearing it around my head that way.

What did you guys do with your masks when you found out they didnt ace the seal test? And how did you know which ones to buy that would?

I am low income, so the idea of not using the masks I already have, and buying a fit test, and buying a bunch of masks (i dont even know if you can buy less than 10 at a time) to try out to see if the seals are better seems stressful to me financially.

I'm also neurodivergent and pretty comfortable and confident in my current masks, so possibly having to change them is hard to cope with.