Today is Saturday, June 20 of 2020 for historical context (ADDENDUM: this page has been updated numerous times to facilitate the best possible information for you). It is now pretty easy for us to purchase our own 3M respirator for when we take care of COVID patients. They’re available on Amazon with a bit of a markup. I have been able to secure half-face respirator masks for my wife who is a critical care nurse caring for COVID patients as well as myself. This post is going to show you the 6000 series as well as the 7500 series that I have purchased (update: I have bought a 6800 full-face respirator as well). These two are the one I have found online easily. The full face respirators are too expensive and I have not bought any for myself (update: yes I have, see below).

Go check those out at your own risk. This can all get overwhelming pretty quick.

If you are interested in checking out my other posts on COVID, click here.

Disclaimers galore!

This post is NOT advice on what you should buy. This is what I have bought for myself and my wife to protect ourselves. Please check with your hospital as many facilities specify what PPE you can and cannot bring from home. Please get fit tested at Employee Health before diving into the COVID rooms with these. If you get sick while using one of these respirators, it is not on me.

I will provide adequate links below to help you find the information needed as easily as possible. I do not know which size, small, medium, or large will fit your face best. Personally, I have purchased all three. The small fits my wife well. The medium and large both fit my face. I am 5’11, weight about 175 and my face is scattered around the internet for better or worse.

I only use these respirators to perform procedures or when I am going to be in a COVID room for a prolonged period of time. This is not used to walk around the hospital. I use it in the room, walk out, wipe it down and put on a surgical mask. I much prefer this over the N95 for procedures because despite all the fit testing and fog-proof goggles I can find, my goggles still fog up. The other day I needed to perform an emergency airway and could not get to my respirator on time. The patient was intubated with foggy goggles because I was using an N95. Definitely suboptimal and not recommended.

First, some personal responsibility.

There was an appropriate outcry from all types of healthcare professions as facilities were not prepared for a pandemic. This is justified. When it first hit the fan, obtaining PPE was practically impossible. Now, it is more readily available. Are we going to count on our hospitals to stock up for us, or are we going to take matters into our own hands and provide our own PPE? I’m a fan of the latter. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

6000 series versus the 7500 series.

If I had to choose between the 6000 series and the 7500 series, I would reach for the 7502 series every single time. The silicone is far softer and more comfortable. This may lead to a decreased likelihood of a pressure sore somewhere on the face if being worn for a prolonged period of time. The drawback is that the 7500 series is more expensive and sometimes more challenging to find, as of late it’s much easier. These come into stock and go out of stock all the time. What I do is search “3M respirator” on Amazon almost daily.

Link to the 3M 7500 Series Respirators

Here is the 7502 (MEDIUM) Respirator on Amazon. I have seen these ranging from $35-$45 per mask. As you can see in the image below, I purchased this respirator on June 12, 2020. This is my personal favorite mask.

7501: Small
– $41 at the time of this post
– $34.50 on 8/5
– $27.09 on 8/23
– same price on 11/13.
– $29.39 on 12/13 and remains the same price on 6/14/21.

7502: Medium (this one is my everyday mask for intubations and procedures in the COVID rooms, see my setup in the image below)
– $40 at the time of this post.
– $39 on 7/21
– $31.75 on 8/5
– $27.09 on 8/23
– $29.39 on 11/13
– $29.39 on 12/13
– $18.99 on 8/14/21

7503: Large
– $44.49 at the time of this post
– $37.82 on 8/5
– $35.03 on 8/23
– $25.90 on 9/27
– $27.98 on 11/13
– $29.39 on 12/13
– $27.23 on 8/14/21

Addendum: many of these show as sold out from time to time. Either you can look up “3M respirator” on Amazon to see other options, or come back to this page 12 hours later or the next day.

Link to 6000/6200 Series 3M Respirators

Here is the 6200 (MEDIUM) Respirator on Amazon. I have seen these from $15-$35 per mask. As you can see in the image below, I purchased this mask on May 16, 2020. These are affiliate links, by the way. I will earn a 1% commission at no expense to you if you purchase these items. If you can spend the few extra bucks to get the 7500 series, I recommend that. Only reach for this department if all of those are sold out and/or you can’t afford the 7500 series. Those are far more comfortable.

6100: SMALL
– $26.99 at the time of this post.
– $25.80 on 7/27
– $25.46 on 7/21
– $13.28 on 8/23
– $15.37 on 11/13
– $18.87 on 12/13
– $14.80 on 8/14/21

6200: MEDIUM
– $38.00 at the time of this post.
– $24.20 HERE on 7/27.
– $24.50 on 7/21
– $13.46 on 8/23
– $17.95 on 11/13
– $15.83 on 12/13
– $12.99 on 8/14/21

6300: LARGE
– $25.99 at the time of this post.
– $32 on 7/21
– $21.90 on 7/27
– $13.14 on 8/23.
– Same price on 11/13
– $12.99 on 12/13
– $14.38 on 8/14/21

Addendum: many of these show as sold out from time to time. Either you can look up “3M respirator” on Amazon to see other options, or come back to this page 12 hours later or the next day.

Are you rolling on dough? Try a full face 3M respirator

I will be honest here, I have not tried one of these on. I feel that if I do, I will purchase one immediately. (Update on 9/27, I now own a 6800).
For those curious, you can obtain the full face respirator with the links below:
6700 Series (Small)
– $137.19 on 12/13
– $114.95 on 8/14/21

6800 series (Medium)
– $157.95 on 7/21
– $118.58 on 9/29
– $130.40 on 11/13
– $130.40 on 12/13
– $129.06 on 8/14/21

6900 series (Large)
– $169.98 on 7/21.
– $132.70 on 9/29/20
– same price on 11/13
– unavailable on 12/13 but still click here to see if it has been back in stock
– $129.99 on 8/14/21

Exhalation Valve

Many facilities do not allow the utilization of these respirators due to the exhalation valve. In an N95, if the person wearing the mask has COVID, the mask should trap the virus. Key word is “should” as I had many N95’s that would fog up my goggles. My personal sentiments are that you’re going to be using this in rooms of patients with COVID, not to ambulate around the hospital. If you have COVID, you should not be in the hospital, period. A simple surgical mask should suffice around the hospital. One could also potentially wear a surgical mask OVER the exhalation valve. This is the recommendation from various hospitals throughout the country.

Filters for the 3M Respirators to Protect Against COVID

Which type of filter for your 3M Respirator to protect you from COVID?

This is a place where I highly recommend you do your own research and not trust me as you want the best protection you can obtain. I recommend a P100 filter, though.

3M Filter Selection PDF THIS IS WHAT YOU SHOULD TRUST.

P100 vs P95 Filter

P95: filters out at least 95% of airborne particles. Strongly resistant to oil
P100: filters out at least 99.97% of airborne particles. Strongly resistant to oil. Citation from the CDC

I personally have the pink disk 2097 P100 filter. The downside of the disk filters is that you cannot clean the surface of it. The reason why I purchased it is because it was the first available one. I put a surgical mask over my respirator to attempt to cover the exposed filter. Suboptimal, perhaps, as the virus could live on the filter fibers which are exposed. Leave it in the car to autoclave it in the heat? That’s a joke.

UPDATE: I now use the 60921 hard case filter. You can wipe it down if needed.

Per 3M, the appropriate filters include disc and hardcore filters.

3M P100 Disc Filters

Per the 3M selection guide for products listed here, the disc filters that are appropriate include 2091, 2096, and 2097 (the pink ones). In addition, there is the 2292, 2296, and 2297 (either white or gray). I can’t find the difference between the 2000 series and 2200 series. These are all P100 and should therefore work against 99.97% of airborne particulates. I have added some links to at least point you in the right direction. Dig around and you may find better prices as this all fluctuates quite a bit.

2091 filters on Amazon (link): THIS ONE IS ALL YOU NEED
– UPDATE on 9/29: $12.39
– $10.00 on 12/13
– $10.58 on 8/14/21

2096 filters on Amazon (link)
– UPDATE on 9/29: $14.50
– $18.90 on 12/13

2097 filters on Amazon (link)
– UPDATE on 9/29: $19.99
– $16.99 on 12/13

2292 filter is not available on Amazon
2296 filter is not available on Amazon
2297 filter on Amazon (link)

Addendum: many of these show as sold out from time to time. Either you can look up “3M respirator” on Amazon to see other options, or come back to this page 12 hours later or the next day.

3M P100 Hardcase Filters

These filters are finally more readily available on Amazon as of 9/27/20. This is an addendum, obviously. The ones listed below are all P100 filters. Prices last updated on 9/27. The ones that are the most straightforward are the 60921 filters. The others add for other substances listed here.

60921 Filters:
– $23.94 (THIS ONE IS MY FAVORITE FILTER), still the same price.

60922 Filters:
– $22.81

60923 Filters:
– $22.57
– $22.81 on 12/13

60924 Filters:
– $27.62
– $25.99 on 12/13

60925 Filters:
– $31.20

60926 Filters:
– $26.74
– $27.74 on 12/13

60928 Filters:
– $33.31
– $30.61 on 12/13

60929S Filters:
– $34.00
– $33.73 on 12/13

Link to 7093 filters on Amazon.

When to change the respirator filter?

“If used in environments containing only oil aerosols, dispose of filters after 40 hours of use or 30 days, whichever is first.” Citation

Link to dedicated 3M post on COVID-19

Click here

Cleaning and disinfecting the 3M Respirators for COVID (Decontamination Methods)

Link to the official cleaning and disinfecting guide.

Other places to buy all this gear from:

A quick google search will show you other places where you can purchase the 3M respirators and filters. Sometimes even less expensive than Amazon. I share the Amazon links because almost everyone has an Amazon account with a credit card already linked to it. These masks move FAST when posted. Hope this all helps obtaining a 3M respirator to protect us from COVID.

Transparency

The Amazon links are affiliate links. I will earn a 1-5% commission if you purchase any product listed above at no expense to you. I also own 4 shares of MMM that are currently worth $158.15 a share. How’s that for transparency?

Although great care has been taken to ensure that the information in this post is accurate, eddyjoe, LLC shall not be held responsible or in any way liable for the continued accuracy of the information, or for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies, or for any consequences arising therefrom.

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