# Nuclear fallout mask **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 5, 2017, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583 "2017-09-05T19:18:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![legion60](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@legion60](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion60)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/1 "2017-09-05T19:18:52Z")
Can anyone recommend me a reasonably priced mask suitable for protection against moderate levels of radioactive fallout? Preferably not involving battery’s etc. Just strap it on and go. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/2 "2017-09-05T19:53:09Z")
Any dust mask you can get from Home Depot will protect you from most of it. Fallout is just dust. Specifically, dust that you really want to avoid getting in your lungs. So any mask designed to keep dust from getting in your lungs will work. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/3 "2017-09-05T19:58:42Z")
Depends on what “moderate levels” means. Cleanup workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant wear full face respirators; [this Japanese document (PDF)](http://www.meti.go.jp/earthquake/nuclear/pdf/120227_03v.pdf) talks about downgrading from 99.9% efficiency dust filters + charcoal filters to just 99.9% dust filters because the radioactive iodine was mostly gone. Which implies you probably want the charcoal filter to deal with fresh nuclear fallout. From the photo, the dust+charcoal mask looks like 3M 6700 respirators with [60921 cartridges](http://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Organic-Vapor-Cartridge-Filter-60921-P100-60-EA-Case?N=5002385+8709322+8711405+8720539+3294780264&rt=rud). Workers _near_ the plant wear NIOSH N95 equivalent dust masks. That’s the kind you can find at the hardware section of Walmart. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/4 "2017-09-05T20:02:15Z")
A good pair of goggles might well be in order. Need answer fast? ---
**Author:** ![legion60](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@legion60](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion60)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/5 "2017-09-05T21:02:01Z")
Not too fast. Maybe a week or 2. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/6 "2017-09-05T21:05:20Z")
> [@legion60](#): > > Can anyone recommend me a reasonably priced mask suitable for protection against moderate levels of radioactive fallout? Preferably not involving battery’s etc. Just strap it on and go. You want the optional bunny suit that goes with the mask, go playing in the gray snow with just the mask and your gonna be dead in six weeks regardless. ---
**Author:** ![legion60](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@legion60](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legion60)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/7 "2017-09-05T21:13:51Z")
I’m counting on it not being too bad in Europe. Maybe just a smidgen blowing in the wind for a while. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/8 "2017-09-05T23:19:33Z")
Is there something you know that the rest of us don’t? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/9 "2017-09-05T23:59:54Z")
Or are you going on a bike tour of Chernobyl? ---
**Author:** ![anomalous1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@anomalous1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anomalous1)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/10 "2017-09-07T00:41:20Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Is there something you know that the rest of us don’t? Curious about this as well. Go on amazon and order a (newer/recent model) surplus NATO NBC mask if you’re worried. Just make sure you get the real deal in filters that fit. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/11 "2017-09-07T01:45:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Is there something you know that the rest of us don’t? The OP probably watches the news. There has been a fair amount of nuclear saber rattling in the past few weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/12 "2017-09-07T02:09:55Z")
Man, and I thought a nuclear artillery shell or a nuclear hand grenade would be unwise, but a nuclear saber? ---
**Author:** ![Weisshund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba8739/32.png) [@Weisshund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weisshund)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/13 "2017-09-07T02:25:30Z")
> [@legion60](#): > > Can anyone recommend me a reasonably priced mask suitable for protection against moderate levels of radioactive fallout? Preferably not involving battery’s etc. Just strap it on and go. A MOP suit? Man i hate wearing them :mad: ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/14 "2017-09-07T03:00:04Z")
If you don’t have a MOP or bunny suit and don’t know and follow the full-body decon procedures, the mask isn’t going to do shit. You’ll still end up loaded with emitters and that’ll be that. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/15 "2017-09-07T03:11:43Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > The OP probably watches the news. There has been a fair amount of nuclear saber rattling in the past few weeks. In Europe? ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2017, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/16 "2017-09-07T12:32:49Z")
This is a scary, out of the blue question to read first thing in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![Rosvirein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Rosvirein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rosvirein)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2017, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/17 "2017-09-08T00:30:52Z")
> [@Weisshund](#): > > A MOP suit? > > Man i hate wearing them :mad: Nitpick: [MOPP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOPP), not [MOP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mop) ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2017, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-fallout-mask/795583/18 "2017-09-08T00:36:19Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Man, and I thought a nuclear artillery shell or a nuclear hand grenade would be unwise, but a nuclear saber? Is that like a light saber? May The Force be with you!