Firefighters Warn People to Stop Microwaving Their Face Masks
Fire safety officials in New Hampshire are asking residents to not microwave their face masks.
There are a few ways you can sanitize your face masks after wearing them, but microwaving them could result in ruined masks at the least or kitchen fires at the worst.
Medical officials say that laundering your face masks in a washing machine is best.
There are many ways you can safely clean your reusable face mask while practicing social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. But tossing masks into the microwave for a few seconds is not one of them. Fire safety officials in New Hampshire took to Facebook to warn residents against trying to clean their face masks in microwaves, as the materials used in many medical-grade masks could easily spark a fire.
“The NH State Fire Marshal’s Office (NHFMO) would like to remind everyone that ‘microwaving their masks to kill germs’ is a fire hazard and an extremely bad idea,” the office shared in their post. Apparently, residents in New Hampshire have been learning this first hand in their own homes, as the post also contains snapshots of masks that have since melted and charred.
There are two main reasons why microwaving your face mask is a terrible idea, according to the firefighters. “Cloth masks can overheat quickly and catch fire,” they shared. “Disposable masks also have a metal nose wire and can cause sparks, a fire, and/or break your microwave.”
Many states, including major regions in California and the entirety of New York, have asked their residents to cover their face each time they step outside to run essential errands. But many of the cloth-based masks also need to be regularly sanitized to avoid germ buildup or cross contamination while in public, experts say. As fire safety officials pointed out in their post, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that reusable cloth masks be “washed routinely” in a washing machine.
If you’re unable to launder your face masks between each use, having a few on hand to cycle between uses could be a smart move — whether you make more at home or purchase more online. And if you don’t have laundry in your home, Gonzalo Bearman, M.D., a hospital epidemiologist at VCU Health and the chair of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Virginia Commonwealth University, previously told Good Housekeeping that storing the mask in a dry paper bag after returning home help keep it as clean as possible between washes.
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