Corona Virus Panic

[Rzeppa]

I may have posted this upthread, I don't remember, but it has been updated regularly as new information becomes available, including yesterday with Friday's about face on mask-wearing. It is by far the most comprehensive FAQ on corona virus I have seen (and I have seen a LOT).

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...ensive-ars-technica-guide-to-the-coronavirus/

And a complete article on available data on mask wearing:

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/04/should-you-wear-a-face-mask-heres-all-the-data-we-have/

 

[bh4rnnr]

Just an update.

HR called today and told me i'm paid (with benefits) through the end of the month.

I was about ready to file unemployment (per my folks) but HR said to wait.

Glad to have this call and slow the gray hair a bit....

 

[Rzeppa]

More details in this thread for us business owners. Bottom line is, Trump will back stop businesses who keep their employees on their payroll and keep paying them and their benefits such as health insurance and paid time off when you might be sick from corona. Liberals hate this and won't mention that their own democratic house was the delay and weeks later final vote to put this into place while Trump signed it into law hours later. As we have been discussing in the thread linked, businesses who keep their employees on their payroll and keep paying their payroll expenses such as insurance premiums, will have those loans forgiven so they are basically grants. At the end of the day, taxpayers will have to repay this borrowed money somehow, but in the current crisis, the administration and both houses of our federal legislature worked really fast to help working stiffs pay their bills in the near term. Funds will be making their way into your bank account in less than 2 weeks from now if you filed a federal tax return last year or this year and IRS has your bank account info. If they don't, then it will be many more weeks for a paper check to make its way into your snail mail address due to the logistics of printing and mailing all those snail mail checks. They will start with those that made the least amount of money and week by week sending those paper checks out to those that made more money according to their tax returns for 2018 and 2019.

 

[nakman]

And a complete article on available data on mask wearing:

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/04/should-you-wear-a-face-mask-heres-all-the-data-we-have/

that is a good article, thanks Jeff. I have been pretty anti-mask myself but I guess if it could help one other person then it's worth doing right now... not sure how else to come to terms with this. I am still kind of snickering at the people inside their cars with masks on, and the folks out walking their dogs, but I have to go shopping tomorrow so I guess it's mask time.

I was out running today and got a few dirty looks from an older couple, obviously miffed I didn't have a mask on. But I'm not sure breathing hard through a cotton rag is going to do much for me, if they're so worried maybe they stay off the open space trail. Or OTOH I guess I should stay home... but I feel like I was there first, none of these people were out on the trails mid-day a few weeks ago.

 

[White Stripe]

So why isn't the US demanding China pay all these stimulus packages they have to make that is due to a disease China started? Not only started but then tried to cover up.

 

[DouglasVB]

Went to the local ENT doc who does hyperbaric medicine and treats SCUBA-related stuff yesterday for a sea sickness/dizziness problem I've been having for a few months (it took that long to get an appointment). They think I might have mal de debarquement which is not the interesting part of this story.

The office is one of the few places where I live that does head and neck work. It was basically empty except for people who had an acute condition. The receptionist was basically constantly on the phone telling people that they couldn't come in for their regular checkup unless it was an emergency situation (they do a lot of hearing aid work at that place). There was only one other person in the waiting room. Everyone was wearing masks and a few were wearing gloves.

The doctor was telling me about all the procedures they're following to be able to keep everyone as safe as possible. He also was telling me about why he was a half hour late to my appointment -- he had been dragged off his schedule just before my appointment to review a trial that was just thought up that morning or maybe the night before, and is supposed to start today for treating COVID-19 patients who are heading to a ventilator. He said they've been doing a lot of that lately to throw any idea they can at the wall and see what sticks to treat patients.

Another fun fact: this ENT doc was a commercial diver for several years before he went to medical school. No wonder he specialized in hyperbaric medicine and ENT stuff, and is one of the leading experts on the west coast on SCUBA medicine.

------

I hope everyone who's been chiming in on this thread and/or lurking and reading it is doing well. It's going to become increasingly important that we all regularly check in on each other and show each other some love. Even if this went away tomorrow and everything immediately went back to normal, many of us are going to have some mental trauma from this.

 

[Rzeppa]

I know some of you saw this on my business' FB page, but I'll share here direct as well. I was contacted by a surgical nurse at Denver Health (at first I thought it was UC Health) who asked if I could 3D print N95 masks, as they are rationing them, they only get 1 per day when they are supposed to use a fresh mask between each patient. I tried the design she sent me the link to and it was a horrible design, didn't work at all. I iterated in Solidworks most of that week with that approach, but it needed too much post-printing assembly. Then my nephew sent me a link to a different design that worked great, and I have been making them ever since. Turns out the Jeffco sheriffs are interested as well. I am making them in two sizes, 100% seems to work well for larger faces, and 90% mainly for women. They use a disposable filter material which is as close to N95 as you can get without actually having it certified by NIOSH. Since they're plastic, they can be sanitized and reused over and over. The user has to provide their own straps. I couldn't find any elastic anywhere (Walmart, Michaels, Hobby Lobby are all sold out, and Amazon was a month lead time). You can use shoelaces or similar though.

So far I have made about 100 masks and have been making them non stop for over a week now. I had 6 machines building them, but one is broken now and needs repair. I am donating them at no cost to the hospital. I am also purchasing the filters and donating them as well.

 

[bh4rnnr]

I know some of you saw this on my business' FB page, but I'll share here direct as well. I was contacted by a surgical nurse at Denver Health (at first I thought it was UC Health) who asked if I could 3D print N95 masks, as they are rationing them, they only get 1 per day when they are supposed to use a fresh mask between each patient. I tried the design she sent me the link to and it was a horrible design, didn't work at all. I iterated in Solidworks most of that week with that approach, but it needed too much post-printing assembly. Then my nephew sent me a link to a different design that worked great, and I have been making them ever since. Turns out the Jeffco sheriffs are interested as well. I am making them in two sizes, 100% seems to work well for larger faces, and 90% mainly for women. They use a disposable filter material which is as close to N95 as you can get without actually having it certified by NIOSH. Since they're plastic, they can be sanitized and reused over and over. The user has to provide their own straps. I couldn't find any elastic anywhere (Walmart, Michaels, Hobby Lobby are all sold out, and Amazon was a month lead time). You can use shoelaces or similar though.

So far I have made about 100 masks and have been making them non stop for over a week now. I had 6 machines building them, but one is broken now and needs repair. I am donating them at no cost to the hospital. I am also purchasing the filters and donating them as well.

Awesome Jeff!!

 

[4runner]

The company that I work for is at it again with a bio-containment system to help with the COVID19 panic.

https://www.facebook.com/4067813827...2207520000../2746399892135480/?type=3&theater

 

[J1000]

The 3D printed masks scare me. I have been 3D printing for years but even on high end machines the end result is quite porous. Most of the stuff I print would leak water, let alone air. @Rzeppa have to verified your masks are completely sealed? Alternatively, you could possibly use an acetone treatment to seal the surface.

 

[Rzeppa]

The 3D printed masks scare me. I have been 3D printing for years but even on high end machines the end result is quite porous. Most of the stuff I print would leak water, let alone air. @Rzeppa have to verified your masks are completely sealed? Alternatively, you could possibly use an acetone treatment to seal the surface.

Hey Jimmy, I am probably a lot more versed on the technology than most people, including those who happen to have 3D printers at home, school, or their workplace. It is ALL I have done for the past 7+ years. Certain 3D printing technologies can be porous. Particularly "high-end" SLS. There are no 3D printing technologies that result in porous builds that can use acetone for anything. I build a lot of stuff for plumbing and other waterproof applications, as well as pneumatic applications. I know this doesn't leak and is not porous.

Acetone is a solvent for ABS only but not PLA. I build with over 25 different materials, but am not building these from ABS. These masks are non-porous, they are waterproof and can be washed with ordinary warm water and dish soap or sterilized with >=70% IPA.

I am an engineer with over 4 decades experience (yeah I'm an old phart, got my first FJ40 in 1982), a lot of that in materials science and spent decades designing and manufacturing medical devices, running the quality assurance programs and obtaining FDA and overseas regulatory approvals for those medical devices.

Additionally, the designers of these masks (medical professionals) performed a controlled test, inoculating the surface of the mask with standard test bacteria, and did a standard A-B comparison of bacteria growth in a petri dish with unsanitized masks versus sanitized masks. View the test results here:

https://www.makethemasks.com/

So don't be scared. I know what I'm doing.

 

[J1000]

Very cool! Carry on then. Yes I exclusively print in ABS so I still have a lot to learn.

 

[gungriffin]

I know some of you saw this on my business' FB page, but I'll share here direct as well. I was contacted by a surgical nurse at Denver Health (at first I thought it was UC Health) who asked if I could 3D print N95 masks, as they are rationing them, they only get 1 per day when they are supposed to use a fresh mask between each patient. I tried the design she sent me the link to and it was a horrible design, didn't work at all. I iterated in Solidworks most of that week with that approach, but it needed too much post-printing assembly. Then my nephew sent me a link to a different design that worked great, and I have been making them ever since. Turns out the Jeffco sheriffs are interested as well. I am making them in two sizes, 100% seems to work well for larger faces, and 90% mainly for women. They use a disposable filter material which is as close to N95 as you can get without actually having it certified by NIOSH. Since they're plastic, they can be sanitized and reused over and over. The user has to provide their own straps. I couldn't find any elastic anywhere (Walmart, Michaels, Hobby Lobby are all sold out, and Amazon was a month lead time). You can use shoelaces or similar though.

So far I have made about 100 masks and have been making them non stop for over a week now. I had 6 machines building them, but one is broken now and needs repair. I am donating them at no cost to the hospital. I am also purchasing the filters and donating them as well.

That is a really cool design. What machines are you using to make these? Are they commercial or a home level of machine? How much does it cost in materials to produce something like that? I have heard about doing this, but seeing it makes a lot more sense.

Edit: I missed the link to your website in your sig. I was reading on your website and saw in your FAQ what machines you are using. Still really cool to see. Thanks for sharing.

 

[J1000]

Just looked at your photos again I also have a Taz 4. Will need to pick your brain sometime.

 

[Rzeppa]

Very cool! Carry on then. Yes I exclusively print in ABS so I still have a lot to learn.

ABS is kinda the old school in FDM, was the first FDM material used and still has its place. It's a difficult material to build with for a lot of geometries, but like I said still has it's place. Polyamide (nylon family) PET (polyethylene terephthalate, PETg is a subset of PET and lacks the glycol molecule which is a head scratcher as to why they would then add the "g", there's a wiki thing that explains what it is), TPU (thermoplastic Polyurethane, what I make Slee's parking sensor grommets from) are among many materials I can build from.

PLA (polylactic acid) is probably the most widely used FDM 3D printing material. It isn't super strong, and in fact is biodegradable (it is made from corn starch rather than petroleum), throw it in a landfill and it breaks down over a number of years. Thus it isn't suited to outdoor applications, and doesn't hold up to high heat, it has a T sub g (glass transition temperature) around 60°C so no good for under-hood applications in out Land Cruisers.

But it is most definitely non-porous and is waterproof, and doesn't warp nearly as readily as ABS in FDM 3D printing.

 

[Rzeppa]

Just looked at your photos again I also have a Taz 4. Will need to pick your brain sometime.

I was the very first Lulzbot reseller back in 2013. Long story I will put somewhere other than this Corona Virus panic thread. It involved a lot of donuts. They now have over 50 resellers globally. Since then I have sold many TAZs (3, 4, 5. 6, and now TAZ pro and Workhorse) and Mini and Mini 2s, and in my shop use what I sell and sell what I use. That particular TAZ 4 was deployed back in 2014 and is still in use today making those masks, among other builds for my customers.

Back on topic, who here in Rising Sun has a 3D printer that might be interested in helping in this wartime effort? In addition to face masks, there are applications for the headband of face shields. Most of my 3D printing associates seem to be working on the latter, while my nurse contact told me today that at Denver Health they are more concerned with mask shortages.

 

[satchel]

I was the very first Lulzbot reseller back in 2013. Long story I will put somewhere other than this Corona Virus panic thread. It involved a lot of donuts. They now have over 50 resellers globally. Since then I have sold many TAZs (3, 4, 5. 6, and now TAZ pro and Workhorse) and Mini and Mini 2s, and in my shop use what I sell and sell what I use. That particular TAZ 4 was deployed back in 2014 and is still in use today making those masks, among other builds for my customers.

Back on topic, who here in Rising Sun has a 3D printer that might be interested in helping in this wartime effort? In addition to face masks, there are applications for the headband of face shields. Most of my 3D printing associates seem to be working on the latter, while my nurse contact told me today that at Denver Health they are more concerned with mask shortages.

Got a printer (bcn3d), happy to help.

 

[J1000]

I'd volunteer but my 3D printer is already running full speed making parts for an open source ventilator design the AmboVent.

AmboVent.org

Basically all around the world where there are no ventilators family members are manually squeezing Ambu bags 24/7 for days at a time to keep their family members alive. This machine is very simple and just squeezes the Ambu with a robotic arm and pressure sensors. Less than $500 in parts.

 

[Inukshuk]

I am also purchasing the filters and donating them as well.

I have rolls of Polypropylene fabric purported to be the stuff N95s are made of. Happy to give you as much as you want if it can work for your filter medium.

 

[Rzeppa]

I'd volunteer but my 3D printer is already running full speed making parts for an open source ventilator design the AmboVent.

AmboVent.org

Basically all around the world where there are no ventilators family members are manually squeezing Ambu bags 24/7 for days at a time to keep their family members alive. This machine is very simple and just squeezes the Ambu with a robotic arm and pressure sensors. Less than $500 in parts.

How are these being distributed to those in need?