UVMask: Next-gen reusable mask with powerful UV-C sterilization

We may hardly ever have appreciated wearing masks for a more healthier living until now. Face masks coverings are an effective way of mitigating exposure to airborne disease and pollutants. However, the efficacy rates of standard and even high-end masks are far from 100%. Fabric masks get worn out, paper ones fall apart, and gators can be awkward on one’s face. All may offer a degree of protection, but they come up short in the way of helping breathe cleaner, purified air.

The UVMask however is headed our way to reduce the ineffectiveness rates of real masks to next to nothing. Its patent-pending design offers an active defense system, guarding the wearer against air pollution and most airborne pathogens. The most impressive part is that it is effective in providing complete air filtration in under a tenth of a second.

While masks are certainly effective to their own degree, they are largely ineffective against very small pathogens. And when it comes to wearing them for long periods of time, they are certainly not comfortable. Many eyeglass wearers complain about them fogging up their glasses. And most others state that in some ways it makes breathing and speaking harder.

By comparison
The mask category breakdown tends to be unkind to more common masks upon close inspection too. A cloth mask gets a 20% protection score, while disposable surgical masks are just around 40%. Even the N95 masks with a valve achieve only 60% protection. They have a tighter air seal and are good for minimum efficiency in terms of particle filtration. However, they don’t do much for the more rudimentary problems. The same can be said for the reusable respirator, which tends to be 70% effective.

The UVMask was designed around the idea of eliminating even the smallest pathogens. Another consideration was to make it comfortable to wear and provide a cool facial experience. They were also designed to not get in the way of conversation and they circulate the air one breathes away from their face.

Average cost is lower
Disposable surgical masks might be less expensive per unit, running at about 50 cents apiece, but thinking annually, purchasing these masks can run a person between $480 and $1000. After all, the disposables are recommended to be changed up to 4 times per day. By contrast, the UVMask average daily cost is about 14 cents daily for low usage, and about $1 for heavier users, who utilize the mask for greater than 8 hour periods. If worn frequently, the masks filters are encouraged to be changed consistently. The mask comes with 10 included FFP2/N95 filters.

Efficiency of UVMask
Typical N95 masks can block larger pathogens to a certain degree, but the smaller ones can still get through the mesh. The UVMask’s unique first of its kind UV-C LED light filters the air of pathogens like never before. Light intensities have never until now been able to purify pathogens as small as 0.1 microns.

This incredible efficacy is due to the 2 step purification process of the UVMask’s UV-C technology. Breathed-in air is sent through a vortex, then two sterilized state-of-the-art 275nm pure LED UV-C lights, for a combined intensity of 50,000μW/cm. Unlike sunlight, the UV-C LEDs produce a narrow spectrum of UV-C light that is fully safe and ozone free. It is sealed in a Sterile-Vortex, meaning that no UV-C light leaks out during the filtration process, so there are no concerns about it affecting or even reaching one’s skin.

Tests with the mask included experimentation with H1N1 (the cause of the 2009 swine flu pandemic. The UV-C lighting was able to inactivate the deadly virus with 96% efficiency in a mere 0.08 seconds, the speediest way to do so.

UV-C light shatters the DNA and RNA of pathogens, rendering them harmless. The problem is that this process used to take hours. The two UV-C lights in the mask however possess an intensity 100x times that of other products on the market, and illuminates the pathogens in the air it filters at a distance 10 times closer than other UV uses.

Airtight fit
Typical surgical masks offer three layers of protection, but their poor fit causes the areas around the nose, chin, and cheeks to allow a lot of unfiltered air in. The UVMask contains an inner silicone mask that seals around your mouth and nose with an airtight lock. The only air that enters is mechanically ventilated into the mask. Even when you speak, the air only ever gets pushed out, never enters back in.

Even though the mask has an airtight fit, the breathing aspect of it is quite easy. Cloth masks take an effort to breathe through as it takes effort to push the airflow through the fabric. The moisture and the heat that build up inside can become challenging to deal with as well. The UVMask forces air into the mask with every breath, and the instantly purified air vents inside for perpetual circulation. This induces a fanning process that never allows the heat to build up inside, even in hot weather.

Prices and shipping
A single UVMask will cost $250, but purchasing from the Indiegogo campaign, it will run for only $109, while 2 masks are discounted by 60% from $498 to just $199, 3 going for just $289, and a large family pack of 4 masks will go for $369. The pricing tier increases as the masks add-on, with a 100 UVMask package costing only $8,900 via the campaign.

The masks are due to ship in November of 2020 with deliveries expected in December. Even if all goes well the current pandemic will be with us for another year or two, so it’s always a good idea to stay protected throughout that time, and for any outbreaks in the future. The UVMask is committed to being the most effective, comfortable, and affordable mask out there, especially when purchasing through the campaign.