Respro Mask - Initial impressions - Bangalore Bikers Club

Message from discussion Respro Mask - Initial impressions
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Date: Mon, 3 Nov 2008 22:56:37 -0800 (PST)
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Subject: Re: Respro Mask - Initial impressions
From: Nagaraj <Nagaraj_Puduko...@satyam.com>
To: Bangalore Bikers Club <Bangalore-bikers@googlegroups.com>
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My breathing pattern is 1. Nose in -Nose out.

On Nov 4, 11:36=A0am, "Rajat Agrawal" <rajatagra...@gmail.com> wrote:
> What is your breathing pattern?
> 1. Nose in - Nose out
> 2. Mouth in - Nose out
> 3. Nose in - Mouth out
> 4. Mouth in - Mouth out
>
> To me it seems that the amount of moisture released will increase from
> pattern 1 to pattern 4...
>
> -Rajat
>
> On Tue, Nov 4, 2008 at 11:22 AM, Nagaraj <Nagaraj_Puduko...@satyam.com>wr=
ote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > Totobobo Mask - what I like:
> > ---------------------------------------
> > 1. Simple and largely effective design. What I mean by that is, the
> > mask is not complicated but at the same time forms an very good seal
> > on your face and nose thereby cuttting out a lot of crap (essentially
> > sub micron particulate matter) which otherwise you would breathe.
> > There is no other mask made in India (A.F.A.I.K) which does this. =A0Th=
e
> > important thing is a mask should form a very tight seal for it to
> > start being useful. The filters on the totobobo mask do a very good
> > job. Claire mask in this regard is a piece of crap, essentially for me
> > it has no design at all. Probably it is the best known mask of Indian
> > make.
> > 2. totobobo is light weight so almost don't feel its weight on your
> > face.
> > 3. The breathing resistance you experience (versus say Respro) is very
> > little. Which means your efficiency of riding/breathing is largely not
> > affected by it.
> > 4. It is cheap (versus Respro), the filters are very cheap (versus
> > Respro). This is with a caveat, see more of my review to understand
> > what I mean by this.
> > 5. Last but not the least, Rohan (BOTS) will sell the filters when I
> > run out of my stock.
>
> > Totobobo mask - what I DON'T like
> > -------------------------------------------------
> > 1. It does not cut out the CO and other harmful exhaust gases because
> > it does not have a Dynamically Activiated Charcoal filter like Respro.
> > Francis correct me if I am wrong on this one.
> > 2. It takes a little bit of time (you need to ride with it a few
> > times) to get the fit right from the perspective of avoiding
> > condensation (big time) inside the mask. What I mean by this is, the
> > only way what you breathe out gets out of the mask is through the
> > boundary of the mask with your facial skin. This happens if you wear
> > the mask tight enough (but not too tight) so that the pressure built
> > up in the mask from your exhaust pushes the mask out just enough from
> > the skin so that the exhaust escapes out and hence water vapour (and
> > hence condesation) does not build up inside the mask. If you wear it a
> > little too loose, then you defeat the very purpose of wearing it.
> > 3. The filters get dirty (they turn black) with about 3 to 4 hours of
> > usage in Bangalore. This means =A0I am not sure if this can be used as =
a
> > signal to change the filters, so Francis your comments are welcome
> > here. Assuming it is a signal enough, then the filters need to be
> > changed probably once or even twice a week for regular commuters like
> > me.
> > 4. The ties on the mask which hold them onto your face are a little
> > flimsy and not very convenient to adjust to your face. A strap and a
> > velcro mechanism (like Respro) would have been far more effective. The
> > current ties as they are DO WORK, please don't get me wrong.
>
> > Respro mask - what I like and what I don't like.
> > -------------------------------------------------
> > 1. It does cut out the CO and other harmful exhaust gases (through a
> > DAC filter) in addition to the sub micron particulate matter.
> > 2. The design is very effective, it forms a tight seal as effectively
> > as the totobobo mask. This too is light weight but a tad heavier than
> > totobobo but not to the extent of being a bother. It has got a velcro
> > strap to keep it in place on your face which works VERY effectively
> > and also helps in forming the tight seal (which is so important).
> > 3. There are one way exhaust valves on the mask which let out the air
> > you breathe out (but don't allow air in when you breathe in); this
> > feature greatly helps in avoiding the condensation issue inside the
> > mask.
> > 4. The filters seem to last much longer, it has been around 15 riding
> > days i.e. 15 riding hours for me until now with my first set of Respro
> > filter and the filter hasn't turned black yet. So from a cost
> > perspective i need to do more to compare the cost of Respro filters
> > and totoboto filters to conclusively say which is cheaper.
> > 5. There is significant breathing resistance with Respro, if you want
> > to see the good side of this, then it is that you can increase the
> > training effectiveness (if you are training for a race or something
> > similar) with this:-), otherwise this is a pain.
> > 6. The discomfort or lack of comfort rather is a bit more with Respro
> > versus totobobo.
> > 7. As I mentioned earlier the initial cost of Respro is almost 4 times
> > that of totobobo. Mind you I am not talking about the repetitive
> > expenses of filters here, but just the initial cost of acquiring the
> > mask itself with a set of filters or a filter as the case may be.
>
> > So what is my final conculsion; I think both have a place, I intend to
> > use both. Having said that, totobobo is VALUE for MONEY undoudtedly.
> > Respro is a sophisticated design albeit expensive one. So take your
> > pick.
>
> > Cheers
> > Nagaraj
>
> > On Nov 3, 2:21 pm, totobobo <totobobom...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > Hi Nagaraj,
>
> > > Thanks for the useful review. I think it is long overdue for a fair
> > > and factual benchmark between different made of mask.
>
> > > Do you have further comment after using the mask for a month now?
>
> > > Best regards,
>
> > > Francis
>
> > > On Oct 2, 5:26 pm, Nagaraj <Nagaraj_Puduko...@satyam.com> wrote:
>
> > > > I finally received myrespromask yesterday. I ordered it a few days
> > > > ago from their website (www.respro.com). =A0It was shipped to me fr=
om
> > > > the UK. =A0The whole thing including shipping burnt a hole worth 33=
 UK
> > > > pound sterling on my credit card. There was no customs duty levied =
on
> > > > it by the Indian authorities. It was shipped to me via. Royal Mail.
> > > > The packaging was excellent. I ordered the techno model (blue colou=
r,
> > > > large size). I got to try it out this morning cycling for about 5 t=
o 6
> > > > km. =A0Here is my initial impression of it:-
>
> > > > 1. Just like the totobobo mask it forms a tight fit over the nose a=
nd
> > > > mouth. It is very easy to put on and take off. Very convenient. On
> > > > this front it does have a slight edge over the totobobo mask.
> > > > 2. It seems to be as effective as the totobobo mask in filtering ou=
t
> > > > the sub micron particulate matter in pollution. And in addition it =
has
> > > > two one way valves on it which ensure that as you breathe out, the
> > > > water vapour in the breath goes out without condensing inside or
> > > > without leaving a temporary cloudy layer on my spectacles. Because
> > > > these are one way valves, when you breathe in, they lock up and the
> > > > air passes only through the filter inside the mask.
> > > > 3. The filter has a Dynamically Activated Charcoal Cloth (DACC) in =
it
> > > > which adsorbs (note this is not absorption but adsorption) which is
> > > > supposed to protect you from gases like CO and other gases in typic=
al
> > > > vehicle exhausts. I was very keen on testing this aspect of the mas=
k
> > > > as the totobobo mask does not have this feature. With the totobobo
> > > > mask I can smell the exhaust quite clearly and they anyway do not
> > > > claim that it protects you against gases in the exhaust. =A0Totobob=
o
> > > > does claim that the mask filters out particulate matter (upto 94% i=
.e.
> > > > 1% less than the N95 NIOSH standard) upto 0.3 micron size (i.e.
> > > > anything greater than 0.3 micron size). =A0As I mentioned in my ear=
lier
> > > > review of the totobobo mask, the filters turned black for me with 2
> > > > hours of usage. BTW I got totobobo on their website and it was ship=
ped
> > > > to me from Singapore. Back toRespromask now. The acid test for it
> > > > was going behind a bus which just accelerated from a bus stop.
> > > > Obviously the bus spewed out a ton of exhaust at that point. I coul=
d
> > > > not smell the exhaust a bit. I just could not believe it. The damn
> > > > thing is very effective andrespro'sclaim, at least for me, seems
> > > > vindicated. I can't say the same about totobobo. Hats off and thank
> > > > yourespro.
> > > > 4. According torespro, the filter is expected to last for 30 hours =
at
> > > > a breathing rate of 30 liters per minute assuming WHO guidelines fo=
r
> > > > ambient levels of pollution. I don't know how many times is the
> > > > pollution in Bangalore compared to WHO standards. Surely that facto=
r
> > > > must be more than 1. I intend to use myresproand keep a record of m=
y
> > > > usage to see how long a filter lasts in the pollution levels we hav=
e
> > > > in Bangalore. BTW the replacement techno filter pack (2 filters in =
the
> > > > pack) will cost you 16.5 UK pound sterling including shipping to
> > > > India.
> > > > 5. I was of course sweaty inside the mask but surely a lot less tha=
n
> > > > the totobobo mask because of the one way exhaust valves.
>
> > > > I agreeresprois very expensive (4 times almost) compared to the
> > > > totobobo mask. I will post more about my feedback onresproafter I
> > > > use it for a few weeks.
>
> > > > Cheers
> > > > Nagaraj- Hide quoted text -
>
> > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -
>