Interesting. I tried a dust mask before when riding my bike because I was annoyed by breathing car exhaust. I should not have been surprised by how much harder it made breathing in general in retrospect. Perhaps a mask with minimal filtering would be okay, but anything more makes breathing very difficult. Such masks are not designed for when you need more oxygen than normal, and such a mask might not even be possible. You might need something like a SCBA.
You’d probably need SCUBA to keep out carbon monoxide. A dust mask is hard to breathe thru because you have a small surface area that you have to force the air thru. A respirator has a “fractal-like” filter that gives the filter a much larger surface area.
Speaking as a SCUBA diver, the equipment is not designed to handle high airflow (such as you need when working hard on a bicycle), so even if the air tank itself wasn’t a problem you’d need, at a minimum, a heavily-adjusted second-stage (the one with the mouthpiece) regulator. Possibly a different regulator set altogether. On the other hand, one of the design considerations of a second-stage reg is that the purge valve needs to resist water pressure, including the pressure of swimming; air would generally not have that problem (and you probably wouldn’t have any need for a purge anyhow).
Even basic filter masks can cut down on particulate air pollution by a lot. I’ve spent some time in places with truly horrific air quality—the kind that makes LA seem clear and fresh-smelling—and a lot of people wear something over their face, even just a strip of cloth, when they go out (and sometimes also at night or even all the time). I don’t know how practical they’d be at filtering out anything likely to cause headaches in traffic, and they’re not terribly comfortable to wear, but it might be an option. Of course, in the US, the most common reason you see everyday people wearing something like that is if they’re sick and don’t wish to spread germs from their breath / sneezes, so people may be reluctant to shake your hand...
Interesting. I tried a dust mask before when riding my bike because I was annoyed by breathing car exhaust. I should not have been surprised by how much harder it made breathing in general in retrospect. Perhaps a mask with minimal filtering would be okay, but anything more makes breathing very difficult. Such masks are not designed for when you need more oxygen than normal, and such a mask might not even be possible. You might need something like a SCBA.
A quick google for “high flow dust mask” reveals several options in this exact niche, including designs especially for bikers and also ATV riders.
Thanks for highlighting that. I’ll have to try some of these out.
Edit: Respro seems to be the dominant brand.
You’d probably need SCUBA to keep out carbon monoxide. A dust mask is hard to breathe thru because you have a small surface area that you have to force the air thru. A respirator has a “fractal-like” filter that gives the filter a much larger surface area.
Speaking as a SCUBA diver, the equipment is not designed to handle high airflow (such as you need when working hard on a bicycle), so even if the air tank itself wasn’t a problem you’d need, at a minimum, a heavily-adjusted second-stage (the one with the mouthpiece) regulator. Possibly a different regulator set altogether. On the other hand, one of the design considerations of a second-stage reg is that the purge valve needs to resist water pressure, including the pressure of swimming; air would generally not have that problem (and you probably wouldn’t have any need for a purge anyhow).
Even basic filter masks can cut down on particulate air pollution by a lot. I’ve spent some time in places with truly horrific air quality—the kind that makes LA seem clear and fresh-smelling—and a lot of people wear something over their face, even just a strip of cloth, when they go out (and sometimes also at night or even all the time). I don’t know how practical they’d be at filtering out anything likely to cause headaches in traffic, and they’re not terribly comfortable to wear, but it might be an option. Of course, in the US, the most common reason you see everyday people wearing something like that is if they’re sick and don’t wish to spread germs from their breath / sneezes, so people may be reluctant to shake your hand...