Respirator storage

[Don Burt]

The frit dust thread reminded me of a question I wanted to ask. Where do you store your respirator? It kind of wierds me out to put it in a sealed plastic storage bag that the manufacturer provides. It's not the most sanitary thing after I've worn it for a couple hours. And why seal it in a bag along with all the nastyness you've accumulated in the filters? I hang it on a hook in the studio, and when I think of it I clean the inside with alcohol on a cotton ball.

[Brad Walker]

We take the pink cartridges off the mask and put them in a plastic bag. I've read that if you don't do that the cartridges will not last as long because they pick up particles from the air.

[Greg Rawls]

Get a ziplock bag for a respirator. Particulate cartridges ("pink") just need to be kept clean for sanitation reasons. If you have a chemical cartridge (usually black for organic vapor), it is very important to keep it in a seal bag as the activated charcoal in the cartridge will readily pick up vapors and reduce cartridge life.