Back to school mask?
August 2, 2021 9:51 AM Subscribe
I need to stock up on masks for my elementary-aged kids who will be back in school in the fall for the first time since March 2020 (that is to say, they have not regularly worn maks all day yet in a social setting). Parents of kids who have optimized the tradeoff between cost/comfort/safety for your kids, what have you found works best? I'm looking for both styles and specific places to buy.
Just my 2 cents that wearing a surgical mask with a cloth mask over it was more comfortable than wearing a cloth mask alone.
If you go the cloth mask route I’d consider having one for morning and afternoon as they tend to get damp through the day and it will be more comfortable to put on a fresh one.
If your budget allows, kid sized kn95’s would be the best option though I understand that cost can add up.
posted by raccoon409 at 10:03 AM on August 2, 2021
If you go the cloth mask route I’d consider having one for morning and afternoon as they tend to get damp through the day and it will be more comfortable to put on a fresh one.
If your budget allows, kid sized kn95’s would be the best option though I understand that cost can add up.
posted by raccoon409 at 10:03 AM on August 2, 2021
+1 to Happy Masks, they are great. My 8-year-old wears a small, I wear a medium, and my husband wears a large. The adjustable ear strings are what really optimize the fit. My family wore them last week outside due to forest fire smoke, and when we took them off to eat it was shocking how big of a difference they made. My kid wore his outdoors for a half-day summer program with no problem. I notice some face sweat myself when I wear mine outside, but my child has no complaints. I will be buying more.
posted by Maarika at 10:24 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Maarika at 10:24 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
My 10-year-old double-masks with Masklab’s Korean Style Respirator mask underneath fabric masks I made her using a slight variation of this 3D face mask pattern. My daughter prefers this style since it curves away from her face. Doubling up amplifies this effect, which makes it more comfortable, as raccoon409 says.
posted by kittydelsol at 10:37 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by kittydelsol at 10:37 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
I spent a lot of time researching this in the spring and here's what I found:
At behealthyusa.net they have an option to buy a mix and match of kids' KN94s and you can see which kind fits your kids well. The great thing about a well-fitted KN94 is that it's light and breathable; it's also possible to set them aside for a few days and reuse them.
As a good second option, the "mask nerd" on Youtube says that a high-quality, well-fitted surgical mask also rates in the 90s for protection. So you can double-mask with 1. a mask from armbrustusa.com and 2. a light, well-fitting children's cloth mask, meant only as a way to hold the surgical mask to the face. (This is the preference at my house.)
You can also "soup up" the fit whichever mask you get with ear savers and stick-on extra nose wires.
(Also beware: the multi-vendor sites (ebay, Etsy, Amazon) are full of fake masks, particularly fake N95s. From what I remember from the mask nerd channel, the only good places to buy N95s are hardware stores, and I don't think they usually sell children's sizes. So I'd stick with Korean masks from behealthyusa/Masklab or surgical masks if I were you.)
posted by hungrytiger at 10:40 AM on August 2, 2021
At behealthyusa.net they have an option to buy a mix and match of kids' KN94s and you can see which kind fits your kids well. The great thing about a well-fitted KN94 is that it's light and breathable; it's also possible to set them aside for a few days and reuse them.
As a good second option, the "mask nerd" on Youtube says that a high-quality, well-fitted surgical mask also rates in the 90s for protection. So you can double-mask with 1. a mask from armbrustusa.com and 2. a light, well-fitting children's cloth mask, meant only as a way to hold the surgical mask to the face. (This is the preference at my house.)
You can also "soup up" the fit whichever mask you get with ear savers and stick-on extra nose wires.
(Also beware: the multi-vendor sites (ebay, Etsy, Amazon) are full of fake masks, particularly fake N95s. From what I remember from the mask nerd channel, the only good places to buy N95s are hardware stores, and I don't think they usually sell children's sizes. So I'd stick with Korean masks from behealthyusa/Masklab or surgical masks if I were you.)
posted by hungrytiger at 10:40 AM on August 2, 2021
After trying half a dozen varieties, we settled on the pleated, triple layer, cloth masks from Old Navy.
We have not used the KN95s, N95s, KF94, etc on our 10 yo. If you want to go that route I'd make sure to try them in advance. I can imagine they might be uncomfortable to wear all day. The best mask is the one your child will wear with consistency and comfort. A KN95 isn't going to help much if you feel driven to take it off for a mask break at every possible opportunity.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 11:13 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
We have not used the KN95s, N95s, KF94, etc on our 10 yo. If you want to go that route I'd make sure to try them in advance. I can imagine they might be uncomfortable to wear all day. The best mask is the one your child will wear with consistency and comfort. A KN95 isn't going to help much if you feel driven to take it off for a mask break at every possible opportunity.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 11:13 AM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
I have happy masks and origami-style masks bought from etsy with permanent polypropylene filters. So my son really loves the happy masks and finds them most comfortable. HOWEVER, I have some hesitation. I normally use the etsy ones. My problem with the happy masks is this: When I wear them, I can literally feel the breeze coming out/going in under my eyes. They fog up my sunglasses worse than any other mask I've used. I've contacted them about this and they gave me some suggestions for adjusting the fit, but nothing seems to help. So yeah, I've heard the filtration is great, but if it's so great that the air would rather travel around than through, then I'm worried that it's not doing it's job.
I will be watching this.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 11:16 AM on August 2, 2021 [2 favorites]
I will be watching this.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 11:16 AM on August 2, 2021 [2 favorites]
GIR reusable silicone masks with filter inserts. Great fit with nearly sealed edges (in my experience with the adult size); excellent filtration; my child wears all day and is consistently the only one in classroom photos with their nose consistently covered. They are somewhat hot for outdoor play in humid weather, but my kid still chooses theirs over cloth about 75% of the time even then. I do wrap a piece of medical tape over the back of the ear loops for comfort but it stays in place for a long time so it's not like I have to keep redoing it.
posted by teremala at 1:36 PM on August 2, 2021
posted by teremala at 1:36 PM on August 2, 2021
I went through this last summer since my kids were among the lucky ones who were back to in-person school a year ago. I originally considered trying to figure out some super protective K95 type of thing for them but quickly realized that it was a LOT to ask of them to wear one of those for 6+ hours a day, especially considering the overall lower risk profile they have as young kids. Your risk tolerance may vary (and obviously Delta adds a new variable here) but we settled on a combo of homemade masks using this pattern (with tweaks to fit each kid's face closely) and the standard Target cloth mask seen here, which actually fit quite well. Each day they'd pack 3 clean masks in their backpacks but I'd say 95% of the time they used the same one all day.
I know things feel different now given the higher transmission rates with the Delta variant. But ultimately, you want your kid to actually wear the mask correctly, all day (primarily at times when you won't be there to correct them) and with my kids, I knew that was not going to happen with a respirator or silicone mask or anything else that wasn't fairly lightweight and comfortable.
For what it's worth, both kids made it through the entire school year without Covid, and though there were some cases in the school, all were individual events rather than clusters of infection that spread through contact in class.
posted by Jemstar at 2:07 PM on August 2, 2021
I know things feel different now given the higher transmission rates with the Delta variant. But ultimately, you want your kid to actually wear the mask correctly, all day (primarily at times when you won't be there to correct them) and with my kids, I knew that was not going to happen with a respirator or silicone mask or anything else that wasn't fairly lightweight and comfortable.
For what it's worth, both kids made it through the entire school year without Covid, and though there were some cases in the school, all were individual events rather than clusters of infection that spread through contact in class.
posted by Jemstar at 2:07 PM on August 2, 2021
We have also settled on Old Navy masks after trying many, many fancier varieties. The huge benefit is that they stay on her face all day.
posted by TurkishGolds at 2:36 PM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by TurkishGolds at 2:36 PM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
I bought cloth masks from several stores and Etsy shops and InStitchesbyKara were a clear winner. Unlike the Old Navy masks, they have nose wire and ear things to adjust and secure, and my two kids under 6 wore them comfortably all year. Plus loads of patterns to choose from and shipping has always been quick.
posted by Viola Swamp at 5:11 PM on August 2, 2021
posted by Viola Swamp at 5:11 PM on August 2, 2021
FWIW, there is no such thing as a true child’s N95. NIOSH standards are written for the workplace—they do not test or approve masks for children.
posted by mollymayhem at 6:12 PM on August 2, 2021
posted by mollymayhem at 6:12 PM on August 2, 2021
We were lucky enough that our 8 year old was in school all of last year. I bought some KN95 ones and he would NOT wear them, he said they smelled weird.
What ended up working best was the Target ones someone also linked here. The ones I have are 2 layer, with a filter pocket. I put filters in them from armbrustusa.com. I also bought some little rubber things on Amazon to make the ear straps adjustable. We also bought some lanyards because he loses everything and it seemed safer for when he was eating lunch (it would still be around his neck!).
I've also bought some of the kids surgical masks from armbrust, as well. While he complains about them for a sec, he gets used to them and they stay in place quite well. For camp, I've been putting 3 or so in a zip lock baggy incase he needs extras.
The good news is that his whole school (pre-K - 8) wore their masks all year and while there was maybe 3 cases in the school throughout the year, there was never in-school transmission.
posted by jdl at 6:57 PM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
What ended up working best was the Target ones someone also linked here. The ones I have are 2 layer, with a filter pocket. I put filters in them from armbrustusa.com. I also bought some little rubber things on Amazon to make the ear straps adjustable. We also bought some lanyards because he loses everything and it seemed safer for when he was eating lunch (it would still be around his neck!).
I've also bought some of the kids surgical masks from armbrust, as well. While he complains about them for a sec, he gets used to them and they stay in place quite well. For camp, I've been putting 3 or so in a zip lock baggy incase he needs extras.
The good news is that his whole school (pre-K - 8) wore their masks all year and while there was maybe 3 cases in the school throughout the year, there was never in-school transmission.
posted by jdl at 6:57 PM on August 2, 2021 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
I am sure that N95s, properly fitted, provide a higher level of protection. Another advantage of Happy Masks, however, is that they come in different sizes, which is very helpful for children. In my view, the mask that is comfortable and fits well is going to be better than one the kid hates or is constantly adjusting.
posted by dellsolace at 10:03 AM on August 2, 2021 [5 favorites]