Here's how you can sterilize your N95 mask using the microwave before reusing it
Masks, gloves and hand sanitizers have become an important part of our lives now. Aside from taking the house keys and the purse, we also have to grab our mask before we step out because not doing so could pose a major health risk to us and for those around us. Coronavirus has now become a part of our lives and we just have to learn how to live with it. Other than social distancing, masks are the only other way we can protect ourselves from this deadly and contagious virus. Now most of us have turned to use N95 masks which should ideally be used once but due to the lack of stock most of us end up using it more than once which makes it potentially dangerous for our health. These masks cannot be washed but they do need to be sterilized. You can sterilize your N95 masks by using heat incubation, UV light or maybe even hydrogen peroxide vaporization. But not all of us know how to it right and we can't afford to spend a lot of money on buying these sterilization products. Researchers have come up with an easy solution for us to do it at home with something as simple as a microwave.
Another important thing to keep in mind is that the recent research claims that COVID-19 could be airborne which means that it can spread via the aerosol droplets. Now, most masks can prevent transmission via the large particles and droplets but when it comes to the little particles or the aerosols only a good quality medical mask like the N95 mask can block them. Researchers say that only the N95 mask can prevent airborne transmission.
Now if you have a limited number of N95 masks and wish to sterilize them before reusing you can do so with the help of your microwave. Your microwave needs to be 1100 to 1500 watts. Take a glass bowl or container and fill it with 60 ml of water. Cover the bowl with a mesh or mesh fabric and secure it with a rubber band. You can keep your N95 mask on top of this and microwave it for up to 3 minutes. Researchers claim that you can sterilize a mask up to 20 times without any damage. Post that you will have to replace your mask and remember that it's never a good idea to reusing the same mask too many times.
