Proper respirator use has always been paramount for workers entering potentially hazardous work environments to ensure their safety. But now, because of emerging infectious disease outbreaks, performing proper fit testing of your respirators is not only more important than ever, it can be lifesaving!
The Purpose of Fit Testing
Fit testing confirms any respirator’s fit that forms a tight seal on the user’s face before it is used in the workplace. This ensures that users are receiving the expected level of protection by minimizing contaminant leakage into the facepiece. When a respirator does not fit properly, a portion of the air you breathe can bypass the respirator’s filter and enter your breathing airstream through breaks in the seal of the respirator along your face. If this happens, you may be exposed to harmful pathogens in the environment.
When to Fit Test Your Respirators?
All respirators that rely on a mask-to-face seal must be fit tested to validate the seal is air-tight. This fit test must be performed:
- prior to the first issue,
- when there’s a change in the model, style, or size of respirator used,
- when there’s a physical facial change in the person wearing the mask, and
- at least annually
Specific requirements for qualitative fit testing are detailed in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA’s) Respiratory Protection Standard, 29 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 1910.134 Appendix A – Fit Testing Procedures (Mandatory).
Fit Test Protocols
OSHA recognizes two broad categories of fit testing – Quantitative and Qualitative. Quantitative Fit Testing is the process to measure the precise amount of leakage into any tight-fitting facepieces and is performed by a machine calculating the measurements. Typically, the facepiece is attached to a probe, which is connected to the measuring machine by a hose.
Qualitative Fit Testing is a pass/fail method that relies on the subjective sensory (taste, irritation, smell) response of the respirator wearer to a particular test agent, while the quantitative procedures measure actual face seal leakage.
The following mandatory qualitative fit test protocols from OSHA are recognized, testing agents:
Isoamyl Acetate (Isopentyl Acetate or Banana Oil).
This qualitative fit test agent uses a person’s response to a fruit-like banana aroma to detect leakage into the respirator. A drawback to this agent is the lack of a strong reaction in some fit test subjects to the banana odor. Another drawback is it can only be used with respirators equipped with organic vapor cartridges.
This qualitative fit test agent uses a person’s response to a sweet taste to detect leakage into the respirator. This agent’s drawback is the lack of a strong reaction in some test subjects to a sweet taste.
This qualitative fit test agent uses a person’s response to a bitter taste to detect leakage into the respirator. The advantage this agent has over Isoamyl Acetate and Saccharin is the bitter taste. Few enjoy a strong bitter taste, so an unavoidable response by the test subject is readily noticed.
This qualitative fit test agent uses a person’s response to the irritating chemicals released in the “smoke” produced by a stannic chloride smoke tube to detect leakage into the respirator. The stannic chloride reacts with humidity producing white smoke with a pungent odor. The drawback to Irritant smoke is that it can be toxic. The smoke contains two compounds: hydrogen chloride (HCl) and tin (Sn). Hydrogen chloride is highly corrosive to human tissue. Inhalation of a relatively low concentration will irritate the upper respiratory tract and eyes. This is why it’s such an effective chemical to use for respiratory fit testing.
Even though these qualitative fit testing agents can be used to fit test both half-mask and full-face respirators, it is important to note that qualitative fit tests only validate an assigned protection (APF) of 10 for half masks. OSHA has established an APF of 50 for full facepiece respirators. Still, to use a full facepiece beyond 10 times the permissible exposure limit (PEL), a quantitative fit test must be performed.
Fit Test Exercises
See our full training video on how to perform a proper fit test.
Before beginning the qualitative fit testing protocol, employees are given a description of the fit test and their responsibilities during the procedure. All four qualitative fit test protocols use these seven 60-second exercises:
- Normal breathing: standing position without talking.
- Deep breathing: standing position without talking, breathing slowly and deeply.
- Turning head side-to-side: standing position, slowly turning head side-to-side, holding at an extreme point, and inhaling.
- Nodding head up and down: standing position, slowly moving head up and down and inhaling in the up position.
- Talking: talk aloud slowly and loud enough to be heard clearly; read from a prepared text (Rainbow Passage*, see below).
- Bending over/jogging in place: bend at the waist as if to touch toes. Jogging in place is substituted for testing done in a shroud that does not permit bending over at the waist.
- Normal breathing: standing position without talking.
*Rainbow Passage:
When the sunlight strikes raindrops in the air, they act as a prism and form a rainbow. The rainbow is a division of white light into many beautiful colors. These take the shape of a long, round arch with its path high about and its two ends apparently beyond the horizon. There is, according to legend, a boiling pot of gold at one end. People look, but no one ever finds it. When a man looks for something beyond reach, his friends say he is looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”
The “rainbow passage” is used as part of the fifth exercise: talking. It’s a short and phonetically-balanced passage that reflects the variety of sounds and mouth movements used in normal, unscripted English speech. Having employees read the passage as part of the fit test ensures that they can carry out normal speech patterns while wearing the respirator.
In addition to the breathing exercises, OSHA standards require specific exercises for the following substances:
| SUBSTANCE | EXERCISE | REGULATION |
| Asbestos | Job in place | CFR 1910.1001 |
| Benzene | Grimace, or bend over, or job in place | CFR 1910.1028 |
Facial Hair and Fit Testing
Facial hair is a common frustration when it comes to fit testing due to the fact that facial hair that lies along the sealing area of a respirator will cause a respirator to leak. The presence of facial hair under the sealing surface can cause up to 1,000 times more leakage compared to clean-shaven individuals. Facial hair that does not lie along the respirator’s sealing area is considered acceptable and will not affect the seal of the respirator to the wearer’s skin.
Alternative options for employees who are unwilling or unable to shave for both the fit test and during respirator use are loose-fitting Powered Air Purifying Respirators (PAPRs). This type of respirator uses a battery-powered blower to force air through a particle filter for the wearer to breathe. They can filter particles from the air at efficiencies suitable to be substituted in situations in which an N95 respirator has been recommended. Loose-fitting PAPRs, in which the hood or helmet is designed to form only a partial seal with the wearer’s face, or hoods that seal loosely around the wearer’s neck or shoulders, do not require fit testing. PAPRs also provide the added benefit of being reusable and therefore conserving supplies of N95 respirators. During an infectious disease outbreak such as COVID-19, PAPRs have become an increasingly important option to keep your workers safe as the N95 respirator inventory continues to deplete.
Our selection of PAPRs is suitable for a wide range of applications in a number of different industries. They include:
| PAPRs | Recommended Applications | Suggested Industries |
| EZ Air Economy PAPR | Welding, Assembly, Facility Maintenance, Grinding, Machine Operations, Painting, and Sanding | Automotive, Food and Beverage, Pharmaceutical, General Manufacturing, Metal Production and Fabrication, Military Maintenance, Repair and Operation (MRO) and Transportation |
| EZ Air Deluxe PAPR | ||
| EZ Air Max PAPR | ||
| EZ Air Flex Shield PAPR | Grinding, Assembly, Facility Maintenance, Machine Operations, Painting, Sanding, and Medical | Automotive, Food and Beverage, Pharmaceutical, General Manufacturing, Metal Production and Fabrication, Military Maintenance, Repair and Operation (MRO) and Transportation, and Healthcare |
| EZ Air Tyvek PAPR Hood | Facility Maintenance, Healthcare | Industrial and Healthcare Facilities |
| EZ Air Saran PAPR Hood | Facility Maintenance, Healthcare | Industrial and Healthcare Facilities |
For more information on any of our products, please contact our customer service department or call us at 800.622.3530