Reprinted with permission from our supplier PH7
When it comes to respiratory protection, most people think of dust masks or half and full face masks with interchangeable filters. But our favourite is the Powered Air Purifying Respirator (PAPR). It is a type of personal protective equipment (PPE) designed to provide respiratory protection for individuals in environments where there may be airborne contaminants that could be harmful to breathe.
The primary advantage of a PAPR over traditional respirators like N95 masks or half-face masks is that it provides a continuous flow of clean, filtered air to the user. This positive pressure helps to prevent the inward leakage of contaminants, making PAPRs particularly effective in environments where a high level of protection is required, and where individuals may have facial hair or other factors that make achieving a proper seal difficult with traditional respirators.
In summary, here’s why you should consider whether a PAPR system is suitable for you:
- Easy Breathing – The motorised fan pulls air through the filters into the head top or mask, so breathing is easy and the respirator can be worn for long periods without the user getting tired.
- Works with beards – Beards are cool, especially on men, but they don’t work well with close-fitting respirators that require a good face seal. PAPR units can be paired with loose-fitting head tops that don’t need to be fit tested. Great for all those workers sporting a bit of face fluff.
- Reduced risk of inward leakage – because the air inside the facepiece or head top is over-pressured compared to the air outside, the risk of inward leakage is reduced. The contaminants, whether particulars or gases, can’t get in against the outward flow of air. It’s like you trying to get into the lift when 10 people inside are trying to get out.
- Lots of head tops to choose from – PAPR systems can be paired with a wide range of masks, grinding shields, welding helmets and head tops. There’s something that will suit almost any job.
- Filter alarms – most PAPR systems come with a particulate filter alarm that takes the mystery out of when to change your filters. Some of the more advanced PAPR systems, like the CleanAIR Chemical 2F, will also let you set specific filter change-out alarms based on usage time for gas filters.
- Constant flow or breath responsive – these days you have the choice of constant flow PAPR which supplies continuous air to the breathing zone, great when working in hot environments, or breath responsive PAPR which only operates when you inhale, allowing for a much more compact design.
- Long battery life – Thanks to lithium-Ion batteries, battery life is now 9+ hours on most PAPR systems and some will do up to 14 hours. Now you no longer need to worry about the battery dying halfway through a shift.
If you want to find out whether a PAPR system is suitable for you, or see one in action, contact the team at. RIFFT SAFETY
