Best way to clean/sanitize homemade cloth face mask?

[sheryl]

What is BEST method?  CDC recommends cleaning at least once a day.

1.  Washing machine in HOT water or sanitizing setting;  dryer on HIGH HEAT in a delicates bag
2. Kitchen sink - fill with hot water and use dish soap.  Let soak for 5 min (this site forgot to mention rinse)
3. Oven - 158 degrees for 30 min
4.  And, I think I saw holding over boiling water OR put in boiling water.
5.  ??  I think I saw some method using bleach ???? this is not complete

1.   I'm not going to run my washing machine everyday for 2 masks.  Not going to contaminate my clothes by adding to another load.  Plus, I don't have a delicates bag AND I would think extremely hot water setting/sanitizing setting temp AND high heat on dryer will in a shorter time frame weaken fibers and it is a shortened amount of time for elastic to "stretch" out.  
2.  I like this method.  Maybe add a bit of bleach here and rinse.
3.  Oven - same as 1.   I just can't imagine elastic wearing down sooner rather than later.
4 and 5 - I'm not informed here.   Anyone care to enlighten me?

Thoughts?

I just picked up our cloth face masks from our alterations lady.   She did not expect money but I gave her a donation!  
 

[Laura Corin]

Viruses don't like soap. I would make sure it had soap contact for two minutes, like washing hands.

[stephanier.1765]

I think the washing machine, even cold water, is fine. It's really the soap counts. While I have dried mine, I don't always. Sometimes I just hang it off a dresser knob to air dry.

[ScoutTN]

We are just washing ours in the washing machine on hot and drying in the dryer. We are only out once a week, if that.

Edited April 21, 2020 by ScoutTN

[Pawz4me]

I see no reason to attempt to completely sanitize or sterilize a home made cloth mask. My goal is to make sure any C19 on them is deactivated. Given that washing our hands thoroughly supposedly cleanses them of the virus, I see no reason to think that a few minutes in the sink, with just a little scrubbing or vigorous swishing around, shouldn't work for a mask. I sent two home with DS24 and that's what I instructed him to do. The three of us here have seven masks between us, are only going out a few times a week, and I do a load of laundry at least every other day. So I put our masks in a lingerie bag and throw them in the washing machine. I have no concern at all about any C19 on the masks being able to contaminate other laundry, given that soap works very effectively to deactivate it. I also don't worry about using hot water (usually use cool or warm), and I hang them to dry. Again--my goal is to deactivate the virus, not to sterilize/sanitize the masks.

Edited April 21, 2020 by Pawz4me
typo

[sheryl]

Combined answer for all (geared to Pawz) - but, Pawz, I thought deactivating the virus would come about more naturally by sanitizing them (which is high heat).

[sheryl]

And, as Laura said, soap

[regentrude]

15 minutes ago, sheryl said:

1.   I'm not going to run my washing machine everyday for 2 masks.  Not going to contaminate my clothes by adding to another load.  

I am confused. How would the mask "contaminate" your clothes? Your own germs are on your own clothes anyway. Germs from strangers equally likely on your mask and your clothes - folks don't shed more germs on your mask than on your sweater or pants.

I'd put them in the normal wash or hand wash with soap. If it's good enough for getting germs off your hands, why wouldn't it be good enough for the mask?

Edited April 21, 2020 by regentrude

[sheryl]

I probably can't get the kitchen sink water as hot as sanitizing temp but I can get hot water or even boiled water AND use soap.  Method 2 is to let it sit for a while. 

[Pawz4me]

5 minutes ago, sheryl said:

Combined answer for all (geared to Pawz) - but, Pawz, I thought deactivating the virus would come about more naturally by sanitizing them (which is high heat).

I'm not sure what you mean by "naturally." I just want to deactivate the virus. Prolonged exposure to plain old soap and water (any temperature) do that, and they aren't nearly as destructive to the masks as hotter water, high heat (any source) or bleach.

I usually choose to do things the easiest but still effective way possible. 😉 

[mumto2]

I am throwing them into the laundry in lingerie bags which I already own.  I don’t always put them in the dryer. I do grab them and iron when the iron is out because I am making more.  In my house that works and personally the iron is easier than boiling. 

I think hand washing in soapy water is just fine.

Dh read to boil for 3 minutes.......this is my I am sure my mask has Covid on it.

My lazy idea is putting them out in the sun in a glass jar to preserve filters before washing..........of course that means I start needing filters.

I think whatever works for you is fine, remember your clothing was exposed to whatever your mask was which is why I haven’t had a problem letting soap and water do it’s thing.  But if you come home with the urge to up your laundry game after an outside encounter that is the time to boil your mask. Imo

 

[sbgrace]

Wouldn't just let it sit for a few days, if you went out infrequently enough or had a few masks to rotate, be good?

That is what I've been doing. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Hand wash and pour boiling kettle water over it for a final rinse, hang to dry.

[sheryl]

29 minutes ago, sbgrace said:

Wouldn't just let it sit for a few days, if you went out infrequently enough or had a few masks to rotate, be good?

That is what I've been doing. 

We have 1 cloth mask each!  

[sheryl]

12 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

Hand wash and pour boiling kettle water over it for a final rinse, hang to dry.

Now that's smart!  I like that! 

[BarbecueMom]

Regular laundry with all the other clothes.  I can go two weeks without being in public, so it doesn't need to be washed that often.  If I had to go out more than that, I'd probably hand wash to save it from the wear-and-tear of going through the washer/dryer all the time.

[ktgrok]

3 hours ago, sheryl said:

What is BEST method?  CDC recommends cleaning at least once a day.

1.  Washing machine in HOT water or sanitizing setting;  dryer on HIGH HEAT in a delicates bag
2. Kitchen sink - fill with hot water and use dish soap.  Let soak for 5 min (this site forgot to mention rinse)
3. Oven - 158 degrees for 30 min
4.  And, I think I saw holding over boiling water OR put in boiling water.
5.  ??  I think I saw some method using bleach ???? this is not complete

1.   I'm not going to run my washing machine everyday for 2 masks.  Not going to contaminate my clothes by adding to another load.  Plus, I don't have a delicates bag AND I would think extremely hot water setting/sanitizing setting temp AND high heat on dryer will in a shorter time frame weaken fibers and it is a shortened amount of time for elastic to "stretch" out.  
2.  I like this method.  Maybe add a bit of bleach here and rinse.
3.  Oven - same as 1.   I just can't imagine elastic wearing down sooner rather than later.
4 and 5 - I'm not informed here.   Anyone care to enlighten me?

Thoughts?

I just picked up our cloth face masks from our alterations lady.   She did not expect money but I gave her a donation!  
 

Um, the mask is no more germy than the clothes you wore at the same time you wore the mask. So washing it with your clothes doesn't contaminate them anymore than washing your shirt or pants you had on at the same time does. 

If you don't want to run a load of laundry everyday, and you need to wear it every day, and only have one, I'd handwash. Oh, and I wash mine wihtout a delicates bag, with no issue. That said, mine have replaceable straps made of t-shirt material, not sewn in elastic, so if they do wear out I will just cut more strips from an old undershirt. 

[ktgrok]

Serious question, do you plan to boil your shirt and pants when you come in? Probably not, right? So why the mask?

Soap breaks down the outer level of the virus and makes it unable to infect anything/anyone. Plus, it doesn't survive well on cloth to start with. 

[Pen]

Imo any hand wash with soap or machine washing with soap will do.  

Outside world clothes can all be washed together—as others said, as much virus from others is likely to be on my pants as on mymask.  

Lingerie/ delicates bag use not because mask is delicate, but to keep small items less likely to go down my filter or less problems of loose strings to tangle with other clothes (or around central post of washer if I still had that). 

 

My face shield and visor, shoes, things that can’t be washed,  I am spraying with 0.5% ish H2O2 

[rebcoola]

I put in the laundry and dry in the sun same as diapers.

[Tap]

I would just run my kitchen water as hot as possible, put some in the sink, and let the mask soak for 5 min or so with Dawn dish soap. Rinse with hot water. Since I have a hot water pot that gets to boiling, I would likely use that to rinse, because it heats water faster than the faucet. 

I have been washing all of our clothes in hot water lately and not rewearing clothes that have left the house. If I needed to wash a mask, I would just toss it in with any clothes that were being washed.  I wouldn't dry it, unless it had a nice fabric-grade elastic.  It will break down in the dryer. 

I have fabric masks and some disposable N95s. My N95s are from work, where we are given 1 new one daily (Pharmacy). Instead of tossing them, I save them, let them sit for a week+, and reuse them. I am out in an environment where people are close together, I generally wear the used N95. If I run out of N95, I will absolutely use the cloth and wash daily. My plan before seeing this list was to wash in the sink. My other pharmacy that I am not going to right now (I have 2 jobs) is requiring a medical or cloth mask. The instructions to wash them, were to do so by hand, or in the washing machine.  Nothing crazy, just some soap, a soak and a good hot rinse. 

ETA: the reason to not use boiling water to wash is so you can agitate them by hand to make sure the surface gets scrubbed. Regular water from a faucet should be hand temp safe. If you use boiling water to wash, you may need to use tongs to agitate them or leave them in long enough for the water to cool.

Edited April 21, 2020 by Tap

[prairiewindmomma]

If her mask is new like mine, the fabric may still be leaking dyes.  I'm not about to add it to my clothes (which I am washing on high heat). It's not worth it to do a separate load daily.

We resolved the problem by sewing a ton of masks for things like going on a walk. I wash weekly. The dirty masks are stored in a mesh laundry bag so it's easy to toss them in to wash. (Mine have long elastics that snag otherwise.)

 

[stephanier.1765]

I think a lot of the information about sterilizing is for the folks in the medical field. For us every day Joes, doing our every day thing, washing them in the washing machine is just fine.

[sheryl]

42 minutes ago, rebcoola said:

I put in the laundry and dry in the sun same as diapers.

I'm picturing this and smiling! 

[KungFuPanda]

I'm just tossing mine in the washing machine with my clothes then into the dryer.  I don't really have a reason to wear it daily, so this is less than weekly for me.  I'm only going out twice a month now.  If I didn't want to run the washing machine, I'd probaby just dump a boiling tea kettle over it and let it air dry overnight.  

 

[sheryl]

55 minutes ago, Tap said:

I would just run my kitchen water as hot as possible, put some in the sink, and let the mask soak for 5 min or so with Dawn dish soap. Rinse with hot water. Since I have a hot water pot that gets to boiling, I would likely use that to rinse, because it heats water faster than the faucet. 

I have been washing all of our clothes in hot water lately and not rewearing clothes that have left the house. If I needed to wash a mask, I would just toss it in with any clothes that were being washed.  I wouldn't dry it, unless it had a nice fabric-grade elastic.  It will break down in the dryer. 

I have fabric masks and some disposable N95s. My N95s are from work, where we are given 1 new one daily (Pharmacy). Instead of tossing them, I save them, let them sit for a week+, and reuse them. I am out in an environment where people are close together, I generally wear the used N95. If I run out of N95, I will absolutely use the cloth and wash daily. My plan before seeing this list was to wash in the sink. My other pharmacy that I am not going to right now (I have 2 jobs) is requiring a medical or cloth mask. The instructions to wash them were to do so by hand, or in the washing machine.  Nothing crazy, just some soap, a soak and a good hot rinse. 

Thanks, Tap.  I don't know if our hot water gets as hot as it should for this. I may wash with Dawn, rinse and pour over with hot water as you and a pp suggested. 

[sheryl]

OK!  Yes, our masks were picked up new today.  Hand/homemade by our seamstress of 28 years!  I have a sewing machine and could do this but don't have all the supplies and have heard there are shortages of some things  plus the room in which t he sewing machine is used is a storage room for now.  We're having carpet replaced and had to temporarily  store some things in the sewing machine room.  

Oh, I get what you're saying about the clothes but I'm just taking the extra precaution.   Can't hurt, right!?!?!!! 🙂

We have 1 mask each.  Since this is likely to go through much of this calendar year, I should try to find some materials and make some to "rotate".  I've heard drying in sun.   Is that better than air drying or dryer?   

[prairiewindmomma]

4 minutes ago, sheryl said:

OK!  Yes, our masks were picked up new today.  Hand/homemade by our seamstress of 28 years!  I have a sewing machine and could do this but don't have all the supplies and have heard there are shortages of some things  plus the room in which t he sewing machine is used is a storage room for now.  We're having carpet replaced and had to temporarily  store some things in the sewing machine room.  

Oh, I get what you're saying about the clothes but I'm just taking the extra precaution.   Can't hurt, right!?!?!!! 🙂

We have 1 mask each.  Since this is likely to go through much of this calendar year, I should try to find some materials and make some to "rotate".  I've heard drying in sun.   Is that better than air drying or dryer?   

 

I'm in camp clothes dryer, fwiw. It offers consistent high heat, as opposed to this mild spring stuff we have now.

FWIW, I'm about out of elastic, and so I'll be making some fabric tied. If you have access to 100% cotton with a tight weave, I think you're good to go. My friend has also had good success with cutting up old t-shirts for outer and old sweatshirts for inner for warm winterish masks.

[sheryl]

3 minutes ago, CuriousMomof3 said:

 

I am 100% positive that I am doing things that don't need to be done, because they make me less anxious about COVID.  So, I am certainly not going to judge you!  

 

It's cheaper.  Probably gets a nicer fresh air smell?  I think that once the mask is done with the soap and hot water, the virus is gone, and would be gone however you dry it.  

🙂      Thank you!

[sheryl]

2 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

 

I'm in camp clothes dryer, fwiw. It offers consistent high heat, as opposed to this mild spring stuff we have now.

FWIW, I'm about out of elastic, and so I'll be making some fabric tied. If you have access to 100% cotton with a tight weave, I think you're good to go. My friend has also had good success with cutting up old t-shirts for outer and old sweatshirts for inner for warm winterish masks.

Well, I just pre co19 threw out some material/remnants, etc.  We're going through "stuff" that we've accumulated over the last many years and are pitching, donating, selling, etc.  I happened to throw out some material!!!!!  Yes, it's tightly woven fibers.  The experts have said to hold up to daylight and if light shines through it's a no-go.  If light does not come through it's thick enough and mask worthy.  

LOL - I have the ac on right now.   It's getting quite warm here so sweatshirt material will live up to it's name - i'd be sweating wearing it.   But, if that's all there is then by all means!  🙂

[ktgrok]

I won't be line drying because of pollen! We have allergies here, and getting pollen all over something I'll be sticking over my nose and breathing in sounds like a horrible idea. But if no allergies, or no pollen, I guess fine. 

But really and truly, soap and water are fine. Run an iron over it if you want hot. 

[sheryl]

Thanks everyone!  I've decided to handwash in sink and did so last night using Dawn dish detergent in hot, soapy water.  Rinsed and finished with scalding water poured over.  Air dry.  

We just really need more than one mask.  Will be going to Walmart today and will check in sewing/crafts to see what supplies I can find!   🙂

[TheReader]

1 hour ago, sheryl said:

Thanks everyone!  I've decided to handwash in sink and did so last night using Dawn dish detergent in hot, soapy water.  Rinsed and finished with scalding water poured over.  Air dry.  

We just really need more than one mask.  Will be going to Walmart today and will check in sewing/crafts to see what supplies I can find!   🙂

If you do decide to wash in the washing machine, I read you can also toss the masks into a pillow case. This keeps them together, and keeps them apart from your other clothes if you're concerned about that. This is more important I think for the tied ones, so the ties don't get all tangled. 

Best of luck making some. 

[sheryl]

2 hours ago, TheReader said:

If you do decide to wash in the washing machine, I read you can also toss the masks into a pillow case. This keeps them together, and keeps them apart from your other clothes if you're concerned about that. This is more important I think for the tied ones, so the ties don't get all tangled. 

Best of luck making some. 

Thanks, Reader!  The "tied" ones?  Bandanas?

[TheReader]

2 minutes ago, sheryl said:

Thanks, Reader!  The "tied" ones?  Bandanas?

the ones with long ties instead of elastic; the ties can get tangled up. Each mask has 4 ties (one on each corner) and these are about 20 inches long each, so it's a lot of long, skinny material. Tossing it into a pillow case, delicates bag, etc. keeps it from snagging, tangling, etc in the wash if washing in the machine. 

I would think the ones with elastic this wouldn't be as much of an issue.