A **respirator** is a type of mask that protects the wearer from dangerous atmospheres, in particular against inhaling them. A **full-face** respirator covers the face completely, and can also protect against getting dangerous stuff in the eyes or face. A **half-face** respirator covers only the mouth and nose. Another word for respirator is **gas mask** (especially used for full-face respirators, in a military context). If the reader wants to be pedantic, please imagine all uses of "respirator" in this article actually say "elastomeric respirator".

A full-face respirator can be converted into a [[visor]]. Popular respirators for use as visor include:

  * 3M 6800 (classic!)
  * [[honeywell_ru6500|Honeywell RU6500]] (snoot!)
  * MSA Millennium (drone!)

Some half-face respirator options:

  * 3M 6200 (cheap but basic)
  * 3M 6500QL (designed for easy donning and doffing)
  * MSA Advantage 900 (has exhaust filtering, good speech membrane)

====== Filters ======

Respirators tend to come with swappable filters, which can block different kinds of harmful substances. A respirator tends to come with proprietary connectors that mean one always has to buy filters from the manufacturer. There is one real standard: NATO 40mm screw connector (found especially on military gas masks, and breathplay equipment). And the 3M bayonet connector is quite common too.

Filters are specialized in what they filter out of the air. The naming scheme is complex and split over many different standards; [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_respirator_standards|Wikipedia is not very helpful here]]. If one needs a respirator for life and death situations, please find a better source. [>.<]

An inaccurate summary is that EN 143 defines P1 to P3 as particulate filters in increasing efficiency (this corresponds to filtering out viruses and other pathogens); EN 14387 defines a lot of different classes, of which A1-A3 are probably the most relevant for daily use: an activated carbon filter protects nicely against onion juice causing tears, and absorbs lots of annoying smells.

====== External links ======

  * [[https://docs.google.com/document/d/1urC9zg-xxX5bLHSpyEytGp96Q2AOounUM-DQGRmRzHA/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.kug61lpwr9e4|Lola’s Elasto Guide]] (half-face respirators for virus protection)
  * [[https://eevie.dev/choosing-a-face-mask.html|autumn: choosing a face mask]] (cloth masks and respirators for virus protection)
  * [[https://www.theverge.com/policy/868571/best-gas-masks|The Verge: Best gas masks]] (against government use of tear gas)