smog in pattaya

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Gaybutton
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Re: smog in pattaya

Post by Gaybutton »

Jun wrote:what chance is there of getting a corruption free crackdown on pollution in Thailand ?
Three guesses . . .
fountainhall

Re: smog in pattaya

Post by fountainhall »

Gaybutton wrote:Three guesses . . .
No! No! . . . But I can’t think of the third!! :?
fountainhall

Re: smog in pattaya

Post by fountainhall »

On a more serious note, in the last week I have seen quite a lot of people in Bangkok, Hong Kong and Taipei wearing cheap face masks. These may help you avoid getting a cold as others cough and sneeze around you, but they do precisely nothing to stop you breathing in the dangerous tiny particulates in a traffic-polluted atmosphere. They may make you feel better but they’re purely cosmetic.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... o-biologic
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Re: smog in pattaya

Post by Gaybutton »

fountainhall wrote:they do precisely nothing to stop you breathing in the dangerous tiny particulates
They're not even designed for that. Some may disagree with me, but in case no one noticed, doctors wear surgical masks to keep from emitting anything dangerous to the patient, not the other way around.

So, unless you're breathing out something that might make the pollution situation worse, those masks are useless.
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Re: smog in pattaya

Post by christianpfc »

It's not just cars. Look at all the food preparation, with boiling oil, or fat dripping onto burning charcoal, and all the belching/farting/sweating people that pollute the air.
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Re: smog in pattaya

Post by gerefan »

Gaybutton wrote:
fountainhall wrote:they do precisely nothing to stop you breathing in the dangerous tiny particulates
They're not even designed for that. Some may disagree with me, but in case no one noticed, doctors wear surgical masks to keep from emitting anything dangerous to the patient, not the other way around.

So, unless you're breathing out something that might make the pollution situation worse, those masks are useless.
I don’t think you drive a motorbike. I do.

I wear one of those masks on the bike and after a few days it’s black with dirt. That dirt is not going down my throat.
firecat69

Re: smog in pattaya

Post by firecat69 »

https://vimeo.com/75609272

https://kirktaylor.com/first-defense-na ... hark-tank/

If anyone watches Shark Tank this is one of the big world wide winners . Millions have already been made by both the inventor and the sharks.

Not sure if available in Thailand but can't be that hard to get even if on Amazon and you have to pay the exorbitant shipping charges.
Jun

Re: smog in pattaya

Post by Jun »

Except for the masks with a valve, any simple filter element will work both ways. Most of the masks I see with a valve have that valve for breathing out.
The key issue is what size particles these things actually filter out (the engineering part) and which are the most harmful (the biology).

I believe you need something that filters out to at least 2.5 micron. The large black stuff you see with the naked eye is probably above 50 micron.

With a quick google search, it's surprisingly difficult to get written specs for face masks from a respected brand like 3M. Also most of the mask reviews are written by dim witted journalists who never check or discuss such fundamentals.
fountainhall

Re: smog in pattaya

Post by fountainhall »

Following on Jun's post, a couple of decades ago I was staying in a hotel in Taipei when I noticed that there were face smoke masks available. It made me realise that in any accident involving fire a proper mask that permits up to 10 minutes or so of breathable air is almost essential to saving life. Since I was living on floor 35 of a high rise in Hong Kong at the time and was taking planes every few weeks, I searched the internet for the best unit I could purchase. The most highly recommended, by several fire authorities and others, was called Evac-U-8. This was contained in a canister rather like a slightly larger soft drink can. So I purchased a couple and made sure one was always at my side on a plane. When once I stupidly left it on a plane, I purchased another. And when their sell-by dates had been reached I bought two more.

These masks were not cheap but having them with me made me feel I'd have a better chance in the event of a serious fire. A few years later, suddenly they were withdrawn from sale. The company which made them went bust and purchasers were advised to obtain refunds from their local supplier. But the Hong Kong supplier had also gone bust! I still have no idea why, but assume that the guarantee of 18 minutes breathable air had been proved to be very wrong. I also assume sadly that there must have been a number of deaths.

So no matter how praised on the internet any protection unit like a smoke or pollution mask may be, even experts can be wrong - or even can be paid to promote a product they have not fully tested.
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