Stiftung Warentest has tested ten FFP2 masks. Only one mask passed all tests carried out without restriction. Masks from drugstores, hardware stores, online retailers and pharmacies were tested.
With FFP2 masks, we protect ourselves and the people around us when we wear them. The masks keep aerosols out that we exhale. Aerosols are a mixture of air and tiny drops. According to Stiftung Warentest, we emit 100 of the particles when we breathe, 200 when we speak and 20,000 when we sneeze.
Three tests for the FFP2 masks
Stiftung Warentest has tested ten FFP2 masks on ithow well they hold off aerosols, how well they fit, and whether they interfere with breathing.
To find out how many Aerosols filter the masks, the testers clamped it on a holder through which particles flow. The testers were then able to determine how many particles had penetrated the material. The filter effect was 99 percent for all masks, and for some even higher.
The Filter effect the FFP2 masks can be reduced by a poor fit. For ideal protection, the masks must lie close to the face. The problem, however, is that there are no standardized sizes, as is the case with clothing, but only one size that has to fit as many people as possible.
For the Fit test supported women and men of the professional fire brigade Stiftung Warentest. All mask models were worn by ten test persons; The testers made sure that different face types were represented.
To test the masks, the subjects had to go to a test chamber in which watery and harmless aerosols were buzzing around, and there they had to perform everyday movements: walking on a treadmill, talking, nodding and turning their heads. Thin hoses conducted the exhaled air to a measuring device with which the testers could measure how much test aerosol was in it. The better the mask fit at the edges, the less the test aerosol was in the exhaled air.
The ideal seat You can easily use your FFP2 mask recognize yourself: The mask inflates when you exhale and contracts when you inhale.
Whether a mask impaired breathing The testers tested with a test head to which a kind of artificial lung is connected. A sensor then determined the resistance that results from artificial exhalation.
The results of Stiftung Warentest
Of the The test winner is the 3M Aura 9320+ FFP2 mask. According to Stiftung Warentest, it offers:
- high breathing comfort,
- sat well with all ten test persons and
- is dense to aerosols.
Stiftung Warentest only recommends six masks limited. With three masks it is easy to breathe, but they do not fit well on all subjects. Here it is important that you pay attention to an ideal seat yourself:
- Univent Medical,
- Meisans,
- Xique.
Two masks finished poorly in the fit test:
- Obi’s Lux mask let too many particles through in five of the ten people
- the Xique mask on six of the ten people.
Three masks are being tested for breathing comfort failed:
- Altapharma from Rossmann,
- Hygisun and
- Mivolis of dm.
Since Stiftung Warentest advises against masks with poor breathing comfort and thus classifies the three masks as unsuitable, these masks were no longer tested for wearing comfort.
The Fear of harmful substances in FFP2 masks is unfounded. The masks have been tested for plasticizers, nickel, formaldehyde and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons). Stiftung Warentest has nothing to complain about with any of the models.
A poorly fitting FFP2 mask is no better than none
If an FFP2 mask doesn’t fit well, it will only protect as much as a medical mask or cloth mask. These masks each filter 30 percent of the aerosols in the breath. When two people then meet, this results in a total reduction in aerosols of around 50 percent. Stiftung Warentest calls this better than nothing, but considers a mask to be desirable that is 100 percent watertight.
Read more on Techzle.com:
- Can you clean and reuse FFP2 masks? What you need to know
- Mountains of rubbish from FFP2 masks: Company brings reusable alternative to market
- Dispose of the mask: This way it doesn’t become an environmental problem