Hi folks

I have been invited to write for a Brazilian blog which covers sustainability in urban areas, and I am going to be writing a few articles on biking.

One article will be on the use of pollution masks, especially as I have not seen any cyclists in São paulo wear them.

So I was hoping to collect one or two quotes by British cyclists.

My question (assuming you cycle in cities) is

– Do you wear a pollution mask when cycling in cities, and if so why or why not? Do you think they are a good thing?

Any short replies would be great.

Also, does anyone have, or would be able to photo, a filter having been used, to see how much dirt they collect?

Many thanks!

Simon

Interesting anecdote about Asian cultures, burd flu and SARS epidemics.

In asia it’s considdered polite to wear sugical masks when you’ve a cold/flue to stop it spreading (generaly not done to stop you catching it). However the pores in those masks are several times larger than bacteria or virus’, they’ve only there to stop you dribbling into whoever you’re cutting up!

Never worn one on a bike, never felt the need to in the UK except when following diesels, but they’re easily overtaken.

Do you wear a pollution mask when cycling in cities

No. (Edinburgh)

and if so why or why not?

Don’t feel that Edinburgh is congested/dirty enough.

Do you think they are a good thing?

Yes, where necessary.

they make my glasses steam up

Will pen some more later, if I get a moment, but for now…

Thanks for your replies, and also for that photo which I will use.

If anyone else wants to jot down some thoughts, it would be great.

Cheers

I had a Respro one years ago that I didn’t really get on with .The one way valves were a bit sticky and there was quite a bit of resistance when breathing heavily. I gave up after about 3 weeks and chucked it away. they may be better nowadays.

Cheers Carlosg

I guess the question is which is the best type of mask in terms of quality and comfort? Do they differ much? Which is the best?

The one way valves were a bit sticky

Replace the stock ones in the City/Techno mask with the valves from the Sportsta. Far better air flow, and better at clearing moisture as well.

Simon, I would recommend talking to Harry Cole, the man behind Respro. He knows a thing or two!

Strictly speaking, the only really effective anti-pollution tool is an aqualung! However, the Respro Techno filter, with the valves/mask from the Sportsta is the best at keeping a lot of the worst nastiness out. Hepa and Charcoal filtration.

.

I don’t wear them and if I thought the air was polluted enough to be a risk to cycling, I’d just drive. I remain to be convinced those masks are actually any good at filtering effectively i.e. preventing lung damage when the pollution is really bad.

Thanks agin for the comments. It’s interesting as I have been finding quite a few sites which discuss the issue. It seems that the Respiro masks are the best biking ones, but that they do not necessarily catch everything. It is not a clear-cut thing, and it would be great to see more decent research on this. Bottom line is that they do seem to work to some extent, but that medical and industrial filters work best, although maybe just for walking and not biking.

Commuters do wear masks to keep out traffic fumes, it’s to save them from having to share the same air as motorists.

I tried one in London when I was studying there. Found it very uncomfortable and restrictive of breathing. Anyhow, the activated charcoal will trap flat molecules like benzene and polycyclic aromatics – I got into the lab one morning after wearing one and it was my job to fill up the benzene still. Sort of put things into perspective that I wasn’t the target market.

Generally though I wouldn’t consider one – gut feeling is there’s nowhere near the pollution levels here to justify them (could be wrong)

First article published!

http://thecityfixbrasil.com/2012/06/06/como-o-prefeito-de-londres-esta-resolvendo-o-problema-de-poluicao-em-londres/

Do you wear a pollution mask when cycling in cities, and if so why or why not? Do you think they are a good thing?

I don’t, mostly because I live in quite possibly the least polluted capital city in Western europe so it seems pointless. If I lived in London still I’d wear one during warmer weather as I’ve had instances where it’s been hard to breathe on the main roads due to pollution in summer when I lived in north London and that was walking alongside them, not sitting in the traffic,

I commute into Central London from outside the M25, but just don’t feel the need, despite riding at a reasonable pace with the associated heavy breathing. I’ve never been particularly bothered by the pollution.

Used to ride into Portsmouth, never tried one, but was put off by the thought that it might be, as Garry_Lager says:

Found it very uncomfortable and restrictive of breathing.

Friend of mine always said the amount of fresh air you breath in when cycling would outweigh the effect of a filter mask anyway. Made sense to me.