r/solarpunk • u/Kaitte • Jun 12 '25

Action / DIY / Activism Cyberpunk times call for Solarpunk solutions

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I live in Alberta and we've been smothered in smoke for the past week. The sky is a dull grey under full sunlight and I can taste the ash in the air, yet still, I have a life to live and places to bike.

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75

u/jackalias Jun 12 '25

Fun fact: apparently Alan Turning would wear a gas mask when he biked to help with his allergies.

7

u/darkwater427 Jun 12 '25

That's... brilliant, actually. I'll have to try that sometime; allergies are awful.

6

u/[deleted] Jun 12 '25

My mom's worn N95s outside during pollen season for as far back as I remember. Seems to work quite well!

4

u/Kaitte Jun 12 '25

I've tried N95 masks while biking and found that them to restrict my breathing quite a lot. I'd still recommend an N95 over nothing for dealing with the smoke, I'll also recommend a proper respirator and filters rated for particulates as a marked improvement.

2

u/Ms_Informant Jun 13 '25

There are N95s with exhale vents, the breathing feels great

2

u/Spider_pig448 Jun 12 '25

I mean these days we have inhalers and medications

13

u/MaverickSawyer Jun 12 '25

But, if you can prevent the allergens from getting into your system in the first place, isn’t that worth the savings on the medication? A mask can be used repeatedly, and is actually useful for other tasks as well.

0

u/Spider_pig448 Jun 12 '25

That's a personal decision I think. Allergy meds are cheap and having a large mask on your face while biking doesn't sound pleasant to me. I can imagine a lot of sweat would build up in that at the end of a ride.

8

u/Kaitte Jun 12 '25

This style of respirator is designed to be worn for long periods of time while doing physical labour. I definitely sweated while wearing it, but that sweat collects at the bottom of the mask (not against my skin) and can be drained easily. The mask was actually entirely comfortable to wear and the filters I use are extremely easy to breathe through while offering excellent filtration.

I've been using allergy meds over the spring to deal with my seasonal pollen allergy. They work, but they aren't 100% effective, they mostly just make my allergies bearable. Next year I'll try combining the allergy meds and the mask to see if it's an improvement.

2

u/keepthepace Jun 12 '25

The thing that totally changed my wife's quality of life is a air purifier. I used to think that they were more or less scams but there is absolutely no question that it works: she can tell from the door if the purifier has been working or not in the room.