Double mask, add a filter: How to up your PPE game without breaking the bank

With COVID-19 masks like the N95 in short supply and kids getting ready to resume in-class learning in Ontario, here are some tips for stepping up your PPE game on a budget.

Scouring Amazon, big box stores and your local group chat for bulk deals on N95 respirators isn’t the only effective way to mask up during the ongoing Omicron wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though respirators such as the N95 or KN95 models have emerged as top choices from epidemiologists because of their secure fit and effective filters, they’ve likewise become tough to find and can retail for at least a few dollars per mask.

But for deal hunters and Ontario parents looking to keep their kids safe ahead of the return to the classroom, there are other options for reducing the risk of COVID transmission that are recommended by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and medical experts — ones that might not break the bank.

The cloth masks that most Canadians have accumulated over the last 21 months of the pandemic are not useless — they just might need an extra layer or two.

Whether home-made or store-bought, masks made of at least two layers of tightly-woven fabric such as cotton can be effective at reducing transmission, but should ideally have a pocket in the middle of the layers to add in a filter, PHAC recommends.

You can buy filters for masks separately or make your own at home from filter fabric. Follow the manufacturer’s guidance on when to replace these filters, with most recommendations putting the frequency for swap-out as weekly.

Experts such as Dr. Peter Juni, the head of Ontario’s Science Advisory Table, have said that single-layer cloth masks are no longer considered effective at reducing transmission amid the rapid spread of the highly infectious Omicron variant.

“The issue here is if you have a single-layer, the ability to filtrate is absolutely minimal and doesn’t make a difference whatsoever,” he said last month.