REVIEW – In the world we live in today, wearing a mask is not only a part of our everyday lives but it has also become part of our lifestyle. And if your lifestyle includes an active one then you know that going to places such as a gym, studio, rec center, or another training facility, requires you to wear a mask. But just wearing any ordinary mask is not ideal for you when you are doing strenuous activities such as working out, running, biking or doing any kind of intense extreme sport since you need to breathe properly as well as comfortably. You don’t want to wear a mask that will impede your breathing especially when you are breathing heavily from all that working out and training. In times like this, having a mask that is tailored to these physical needs are a must. And with the Takta filtered sports mask from Tekto, it can help you breathe better during your workouts while helping you do your part when the establishment you are at has a mask wearing policy.
What is it?
Keep in mind that this is only a sports mask that is intended for high-intensity workouts, sports, and activities in environments where dirt and dust may be present. See articles linked at the bottom of this review for more information about this mask and preventing the spread of COVID-19.
The Takta filtered mask is a neoprene sport and daily mask with a five-layered filter technology that helps protect against bacteria and viruses. It not only has one but two valves. One on the left and one on the right side of the mask, allowing for proper ventilation as you breathe out and preventing any unfiltered air into the mask as you inhale (but it doesn’t filter the outgoing air). Since the mask is made from neoprene, it is well suited for intense workouts or can be worn as your everyday mask when needed.
Design and features
This mask is designed to allow the wearer to breathe more easily with the help of the dual valve system. And these valves certainly do allow for better breathing which makes wearing this mask comfortable should you need to wear it for long periods of time. Plus, the neoprene material is a nice change from those itchy polyester fiber masks. The form and cut of the Takta mask has a nice fit on my face even without having to pinch the nose clip. However, not only is it a good idea to adjust the nose clip to minimize any air and breathing particles from escaping out of the mask, but it just makes the mask that much more form-fitting to the shape of your face.
Keep in mind that this mask has more size to its profile than your everyday store-bought mask. When I first tried it on and checked myself in the mirror, I noticed that the mask protruded out further than the mask that I normally use. This didn’t have anything to do with its performance, it was just something I noticed from the first time wearing it. I immediately thought I resembled the character Bane or some kind of jet fighter pilot. But I just got used to it after a while. I have seen many people wearing similar types of masks like this Takta mask, however, the masks they wore only had one valve on it, whereas this one has two valves.
Since this is a neoprene material that means it is hand washable and reusable, which I really like. Just remember to take out the valve and filters when you wash the mask.
Cleaning the mask makes it reusable for you so that it keeps the mask clean, fresh, and sanitary.
Also, these valves have a really nice contrast in its look if you get the white version of the mask. I actually really like the look of the white mask.
I found the nose clip to be very pliable yet kept its shape while on the bridge of my nose. It held the mask securely on my face preventing it from sliding down my nose. Having the clip on the nose portion of the mask not only helps prevent air from coming up as you breathe out, which by the way, is very helpful when you are wearing eyeglasses, but it helps form a tight seal around the edges of the mask. If you have had glasses on while wearing a mask then you know that dreaded steam that can fog up the lenses as you exhale and breathe out. I didn’t get that while wearing this mask and I’m thankful for it.
And with the help of the dual valves, it is much easier to breathe. You can even feel the valve work as you inhale and exhale. I found that the valves help tremendously with heavy breathing especially if you are working out, training, running, or doing any other kind of sports activity. I really like how simple and effective it is to use this mask. Although it can be somewhat awkward to wear a mask while you are doing anything strenuous and sports-related, I found that this mask made it tolerable as I was breathing heavily doing my workouts. You will, however, feel it getting warm inside the mask as you breathe hard and sweat but that is to be expected. Trust me, wearing this mask for workouts is much more suited than wearing a mask without valves.
Without these valves, your breath and air just accumulate inside your mask which makes breathing difficult. Plus, it helps expel your heavy breathing, thus allowing the warm air inside your mask to leave. This then helps prevent the inside of your mask from getting too warm than if you didn’t have the valves. The valves help alleviate that warm build-up of air that normally gets trapped inside your mask when you breathe heavily. This mask helps just you breathe.
And speaking of breathing, this mask is supposed to help prevent and protect you from breathing in varying sizes of particles. 95% of particles as small as 0.3 micros to be exact.
According to the Tekto website, the valves are “engineered to only transport out the exhaled air, and not let any unfiltered air to sneak in.” The supplied filter is designed with five layers to help prevent allergens, bacteria, and viruses from entering or leaving the mask.
The Tekto company recommends changing the filter out every other week and that the filter lasts around 80+ hours on average.
The Takta mask is also hand washable should you need to clean it. Cleaning the mask keeps the mask clean, fresh, and sanitary for continued use.
Performance
I was more than pleased that the mask did fit me very well and comfortably. I like the Velcro strap around the neck which gave the mask a more secure and sealed fit since it helps hold the mask on your face in addition to the ear loops and nose clip. It prevents the mask from moving or sliding about. And this Velcro isn’t the typical thick nap but rather a thinner low profile version. Combine this secure fit with the filter and you have the makings a well-sealed and effective mask. Since I haven’t been able to run lately, I have been jumping rope instead. Having the Velcro strap around the neck really helped keep the mask secure and in place. I didn’t have any issues with the mask slipping or sliding off, even with the consistent up and down movement.
Even though this mask is effective for workouts and other vigorous activities, it is also a mask that you can definitely wear throughout your day to day life. I generally carry a cloth mask with me at all times for the sole fact that any establishment I go into nowadays has a “masks on” policy, which I have no problems abiding. So, I keep the mask in my pants pocket when I am not wearing the mask. It’s fairly easy to keep the cloth mask in my pant’s pocket since the mask can be folded into a small bundle.
However, since the Takta mask is made from neoprene material, plus the include filter and valves, it can be beefier than the average fabric mask when it’s folded up. It’s still easy to fold but more cumbersome to place the mask into your pant’s pocket. The mask can be bulky but it is still manageable to place in my pocket. But I do carry the mask in my messenger bag or camera bag when I can, so there is always that option.
What I like
- Dual valve system allows for easier breathing.
- Prevents steam while wearing eyeglasses.
- Low profile Velcro strap.
- Seal tight nose clip.
- Neoprene material.
- Washable
What I’d change
- Make mask thinner to accommodate carrying in pocket
Final thoughts
If you are looking for a mask to wear while you are working out, training, running, biking, or doing any other strenuous activity, then having a mask with a valve system is the way to go since you will want to have a mask that is not going to impede your breathing. However, a mask with two valves systems is even better. Of course, you still want that mask to keep you safe from harmful bacteria and viruses. With the Takto mask from Tekto, you will have a mask that is not only equipped with a multi-layered filter, sealed, and form-fitting but you will have a mask that is a light-weight and comfortable to wear for long periods of time. This is a benefit to have in a mask that you use for workouts and training as well as one you use in your day to day lifestyle.
Not only does this mask have health benefits for the wearer but also the design and features make the mask comfortable to wear for extended periods of time. When it comes to following the policy of gyms, stores, or other facilities that require you to wear a mask, why not have a mask that will allow for better breathing ability?
According to Tekto:
1. This mask as I mentioned before protects the person wearing in because it has a KN95 filter. It is just as good as a mask that has an N95 filter. This means, everything the wearer of the mask inhales is filtered.
2. Any non-medical grade mask lets the person germs go out. This is scientifically proven. That means that all non-medical grade masks should not be allowed at the airport. Yet, they allow bandanas, homemade masks, which do not protect the wearer whatsoever because there is no filter to filter anything they breathe in nor do they keep the germs in since there is no filter. Also, most of these masks are not sealed tight around the edges and therefore the air particles and germs are getting out anyways.
3. People who do not wear medical-grade masks (about 95% of the people you see out there) are putting themselves at risk. It is as if they are basically carrying an umbrella with holes all over the umbrella. The rain or in this case the particles will come through. Our holes are fully covered when the person breaths in and the mask conforms around the face so well so therefore the air they breathe in have to come through the filter.
These masks are designed for high-intensity work, and at the same time, they keep the person wearing them safe.
Additional info to consider:
www.travelandleisure.com/airlines-airports/delta/delta-air-lines-banning-face-masks-with-valve
www.livescience.com/avoid-masks-exhalation-valves-cdc-recommends.html
Price: $49.99 (use coupon code: GADGET10 for 10% off – expires 12/31/20)
Where to buy: Tekto Website
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Tekto.
Gadgeteer Comment Policy - Please read before commenting
A mask with one-way valves is the most American thing I can think of.
If you wear a mask with valves, you are defeating any measure of safety or protection that you would have provided to others.
You might as well use a condom with a one-way valve; it would be the same principal.
This style of mask also affords very little protection for the wearer.
Meaning that it’s a way to demonstrate that you will go way out of your way to *avoid* being kind to strangers, even if you have to die to do it.
American exceptionalism personified.
Not only that, it tells other people that they don’t have to wear masks either. That helps no one.
The point of both parties wearing masks is that it filters out most of the particles from one party, leaving fewer particles for the other person’s mask to filter out. The effectiveness gets multiplied i.e. if the first mask filters out 90%, 10% is left. If the second mask filters out 90% of that, 1% is left. A mask with an outflow valve will defeat this benefit.
Uhm, no.
Our breathing around each other is not a closed system where our masks keep refining each other’s breaths.
The logic is…. My mask protects me, and your mask protects you. I get 95% filtration and so would you if you wear yours. So if I breathe out 100% of my Covid-19 breath, your mask will protect you from me. If your mask cannot stop incoming, the problem is not whether my mask has a valve or not.
In airplanes they tell you that first, you protect yourself then you attend to others. I would not quibble over type of masks and would rather deal with getting as many people as possible to get a mask that protects them.
Another way to, “flatten the curve”, is to cut down on spread. It is best to assume that everyone is infected and infecting others so you should wear a mask yourself instead of hoping people wear valve-less masks.
Nope, not at all. Demonstrably false and well established in science.
Also aggressively American in that it’s advocating something that is dangerous to others in order to stick to a fabricated rationalization that is based on nothing.
Rubber gasketed canister masks on clean-shaven faces, or N95’s that have been fit-tested, are able to reduce what you breathe *in*.
All other mask types have negligible reduction in droplets and aerosols breathed in. The main thing they do is reduce how much you breathe *out*. They are for taking care of *others*, not yourself.
If they have a valve, they aren’t doing that either.
You can find all of this out by googling it, which I recommend that you do.
But you won’t, since you have made up your mind that what you *want* to be true is true — without facts or research.
Okay
It’s irresponsible of you to recommend masks with one-way valves. As the other commenter noted, this completely defeats the masks ability to protect other people from you. Even if you’re asymptomatic you still may have and communicate the virus to others.
Agree. Please educate yourself before encouraging irresponsibility.
These comments are ruthless and brain-numbing. Wear your own mask, and you have nothing to worry about. These types of masks are meant for people who hustle when they work and need a way to get rid of the hot carbon dioxide.
Imagine a biker or someone in a fast-paced work environment wearing a non-vent mask … Americans, always reciting what they hear on CNN and trying to tell others what to do.
“Wear your own mask, and you have nothing to worry about.”
Not at all how they work, sadly.
If that was true, COVID would be over because everyone who didn’t want to catch it would just put on a mask. It would have been gone in a week.
Instead, because Americans are petulant children who refuse to listen, you have killed 66 times more people than died on 9/11.
This horror was completely avoidable and has been avoided by almost every other country on earth.
You just chose not to, because you need to be different.
Take this review/ad/affiliate link down.
You are not being a patriot. You are being an asshole.
Julie;
As a dedicated follower of The Gadgeteer for just about forever, I am asking you to take down this review as it promotes unsafe practices in this time of COVID.
I feel the same way about this mask as I do when I see covidiots in Los Angeles wearing a bandana around their faces, which does nothing to prevent the transmission of respiratory particles to those around you.
Be socially responsible, take down the review.
+1
Agree. This review should be removed. The airlines will not let you board a plane with a mask like this. Likewise a medical clinic will not allow entry. Several months ago it was proven masks with valves are worthless. Take it down.
While I agree that this review isn’t totally correct and it is promoting the incorrect usage of this type of mask. This is a “sports” mask and given that context it is acceptable, depending on the sport. Running, biking, and even tennis this mask is probably fine where social distancing is more apt and the valve is less of an issue. Self protection, whether you need it or not if you are practicing social distancing is another thing totally.
Here in California where wild fires are everywhere and air quality is very, very low, this mask maybe appropriate in an outdoor situation. But indoors, no it is not appropriate.
I’m not sure this review should be removed or not, but it definitely needs a caveat added that one-way valves should never be used indoors or in a non-social distancing situation outdoors.
Just my 2 cents.
The review was taken down for a short time while we added links to articles about not using this mask on some airlines and info from the CDC.
The review does what all our reviews do. It explains what the product is, how it’s expected to be used, and our opinion on it.
Hi Julie,
The most salient fact about this mask is that it puts others in danger.
Also, if it is worn in a place with a legal mask mandate, it is a workaround for that or bylaw.
A law or bylaw which was almost certainly enacted to protect the public from imminent and grave harm.
This is stated nowhere in the review.
My second concern is that the manufacturer’s utterly false, dangerous, and misleading sales pitch is repeated as fact at the bottom of the review.
Face masks have been protecting people for a long time and they have been well-studied by OHSA and infection control agencies worldwide.
The science on which ones are effective, and how they are effective, is settled.
A certain group of people want a certain type of misinformation to be true, but it is simply not.
Why don’t you review a device that allows you to cheat a breathalyzer? The ethics would be the same.
Hey guys,
I regularly exercise at least three times a week. I am a long time asthmatic and recent pre-hypertensive (hence the regular exercise). I have tried all masks and found that I begin to feel hypoxic within minutes of using regular masks. So far, I can only use regular disposable surgical masks.
I recently moved to kn95 masks because my environment was beginning to look nasty with all the used masks (in car, office, and bedroom).
A mask like the tekto takta would improve the quality of life for elevated risk people like me while preventing me from getting infected. It would allow me to get in my regular 9-kilometre brisk walk while being masked and cut down on the environmental pollution of disposed masks.
If absolutely everyone wore such a mask, all inhalations would be safe. If the rate of people getting infected by inhalation goes down, we will only be left with the infected and asymptomatic people. With time testing will be easier and more accessible.
It is my unscientific, non-medic medical opinion that the best place for infections germs is in the atmosphere where they can be diluted and destroyed by dehydration or disinfection. The very thought that an infected person gets to spend the best part of a day concentrating harmful organisms in a mask that they are then entrusted to disinfect or dispose of safely is a scary thought.
Nope.
No hypoxia is caused by mask wearing. None. This is well established in science.
If it was, there would be warnings on them.
Whatever you are feeling is psychological. You just want it to be true. (Asthmatic who has been hospitalized for his condition here.)
If masks caused any drop at all in blood oxygen, wearing multiple masks or wearing a mask for a long time would injure or kill you.
The planet would have experienced a mass epidemic of brain injury and death due only to the hypoxia, since billions of people are wearing masks all day every day.
You are just being classically tribal: You have aligned yourself with a group’s ideology and are seeking (and trying to create) facts to fit it.
Okay
This is sad. The article is disappointing and Julie’s response to the complaints has changed my opinion of this blog.
I have been reading Gadgeteer for a long time. Maybe Julie is not seeing this. The end of the review has the opinion she says her reviews provide. It promotes this mask as a way to satisfy the mask requirement:
“When it comes to following the policy of gyms, stores, or other facilities that require you to wear a mask, why not have a mask that will allow for better breathing ability?
Then Tekto’s arrogant comments (“they do it, so we can too!”).
Then the links Julie stated she added before reposting this review. The two links literally tell you not to wear the mask in the review.
The CDC flat out says not to wear masks with valves, it’s selfish and puts everyone around you at risk. Julie provided the links herself! Absolutely inexplicable.
What’s next? A review of a face shield? https://abcnews4.com/news/local/cdc-does-not-recommend-wearing-face-shields-to-combat-covid-19
It is reassuring to see readers calling out this review. That’s cool. Reminds me that a lot of people get it. We all need to work together to defeat COVID-19.
(I think Julie has created an amazing blog, hopefully, this is just a misstep)