Some agricultural pesticides require the applicator to wear a respirator. Keep yourself safe from inhalation hazards while using these products.
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Choosing the right respirator starts with the label. Pesticide labels will typically require one of two main types of respirators:
Chemical cartridges and canisters, which adsorb or absorb gases and vapors. Most pesticide labels with a cartridge requirement require an organic vapor or OV cartridge, color coded black. Be sure to check the label closely as a few pesticide labels require a different cartridge type.
Filtering respirators, which remove solids and liquids suspended in air. These are much more commonly required on pesticide labels. If the label requires a filtering respirator, it will specify a letter and sometimes a number. In many cases, a label will say “Any NIOSH approved N, R or P filter.” If this is the case, any 95, 99 or 100 filter will be acceptable. A100 filter will provide more filtration, but will also be harder to breathe through and could cause elevated blood pressure or difficulty breathing.
Rating for compatibility with oil-based pesticides
N: Not suitable fo ruse with oil-based pesticides
R: Oil resistant up to 8 hours
P: Oil proof
Filter efficacy
95: Filters 95% of particles from atmosphere
99: Filters 99% of particles
100: Filters 99.9% of particles
The photo below shows four different types of respirators: two filtering facepieces, a half-face respirator, and a full-face respirator. All of these respirators can work as filtering respirators, but only the half-face and full-face respirators can carry a chemical cartridge. A fit test will help you determine which type of respirator is best for you. The half and full-face respirators below have the capacity to hold both cartridges and filters; other half and full-face respirators are available without cartridge attachments.
Any respirator you wear should be NIOSH approved. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health tests respirators to ensure they protect the wearer to the degree they claim to. It is the only trusted certifying agency or organization.
Respirators can be purchased from the following sites. The University of Minnesota does not endorse any of the following.
Grainger
Gemplers
PK Safety
Northern Safety & Industrial
and many more
There are many respirator options on these distributor sites. If you know the type of filter you’re looking for, type the code into the search bar (e.g. “P100”). If you find the correct filter, the description will usually list the corresponding half-face or full-face respirator.
While respirators are meant to protect people, they can pose a health risk if you have high blood pressure, asthma, claustrophobia, etc. Wearing a respirator puts extra strain on your lungs and can cause your blood pressure to rise. As such, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) tends to suggest the least invasive respirator needed to keep the wearer safe.
Before you can wear a respirator or be fit tested to wear a respirator (see #3 for fit testing), you must pass a medical evaluation. Check with your local clinic to see if they offer this service. If not, evaluations can be done online.
One provider that 3M's respirator team recommends is respexam.com. Ninety-eight percent of people will receive clearance through the online system.; 2% will be instructed to see a health professional in-person, and the online system will provide instructions for the health provider. This online exam takes approximately 35 minutes to complete.
If for some reason you are not given medical clearance, you are protected by the Worker Protection Standard. It is illegal for an employer to terminate employment, reduce pay, or punish an employee in any other way due to a failed respirator medical evaluation.
The Worker Protection Standard requires everyone using pesticides that require respirators must be fit tested annually, or when any change occurs to your face shape occurs (i.e. weight changes or traumatic accidents).
For qualitative fit testing you’ll wear your respirator under a hood. After determining you can taste the test agent, someone will pump a sweet or bitter tasting substance into the hood and ask you to perform a variety of facial movements. If you can taste the substance, you’ll have to adjust your respirator or try a new model or size until you find one that prevents you from tasting the substance.
For quantitative fit testing, a sensor will provide a numerical reading on the amount of leakage into the respirator. As with qualitative testing, you’ll have to adjust your respirator or try new models and sizes until you find one with a sufficient rating for your face size and shape. Your fit testing provider will often have samples to try, and they can give you the details on where to buy the model that you are fitted for.
View a map of fit testing locations in Minnesota.
Regularly inspect your respirator for tears, cracks, distortion, dirt, missing parts or other damage. Inspect straps, inhalation and exhalation valves, and all other plastic parts of the respirator.
Changing filters and cartridges: under the Worker Protection Standard, respirator filters and cartridges should only be worn for eight hours. If you only wear your respirator for a few hours at a time and want to wear it again later, keep it in a clean place away from where your pesticides are stored. If you are using an organic vapor cartridge, keep it in a sealed plastic bag between uses, as it will continue to absorb contaminants in the air.
Cleaning and storage: After each use, remove the filters and cartridges. Clean your respirator with warm water (not exceeding 50 degrees C / 122 degrees F) with simple detergent solution. Detergents should not contain lanolin or other oils. Using a soft brush can help to remove residues. After washing, soak your respirator with a disinfectant such as 30 mL household bleach, diluted in 7.5 L of water. Rinse in warm water and allow to air dry. Store your respirator away from contaminated areas.
Pesticide Educational Resources Collaborative. 2017. Worker Protection Standard (WPS) Respiratory Protection Guide. http://pesticideresources.org/wps/hosted/PERC-WPS-Respirator-Guide.pdf
Peter Knott, Terry Gorman. 3M Tech Update, 2012. “Cleaning Re-usable Respirators”. http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/473937O/3mtm-cleaning-reusable-respirators.pdf
US EPA. 2015. Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS): Comparison of the new protections to existing protections. https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/documents/comparison-chart-wps.pdf
Natalie Hoidal, Extension educator
Reviewed in 2018
Prepared by Kerry Bernard, Pesticide Safety Education Professional
Reviewed by Jason Lilley, Sustainable Agriculture Professional, and Jim Dill, Pest Management Specialist
UMaine Cooperative Extension Diagnostic and Research Laboratory, Pest Management Unit, 17 Godfrey Drive, Orono, ME 04473-3692, 207.581.3880 extension.diagnosticlab@maine.edu
Inhaled pesticides can damage the respiratory tract and may pass into the bloodstream within moments. The consequences range from minor nose and throat irritation to permanent disability, neurological damage, or death.
Not only is it a health risk, but when the pesticide label directs you to wear a respirator, it’s illegal to do otherwise. Not all respirators are suitable for all pesticides, users, or pesticide situations, however, and selecting one is far from straightforward. The codes used to identify the different respirator types and components can be confusing. Worse, some pesticide labels still use outdated respirator language.
The following graphics and descriptions should help demystify respirator terminology and classification.
Particulates, also known as aerosols, are tiny, solid or liquid particles suspended in the air. These include mists, dust, fumes, smoke, mold, and bacteria. Only filters protect against particulates. These filters come in nine types, depending upon how well they hold up against oils and the minimum percentage of particles they remove. P100 and HE (for PAPRs only) filters offer the most protection and are colored pink or purple for easy recognition. If a pesticide requires an N, R, or P class filter, but an adjuvant or another, the oil-based pesticide has been added to the mix tank, use an R or P class filter.
Filter Efficiency Not Oil-Resistant Oil-Resistant Oil-Proof 95% N95 R95 P95 99% N99 R99 P99 ≥ 99.97% N100 R100 P100Some pesticides are gases or give off gases at ambient temperatures (vapors). Filters do not protect against these, but the sorbents and/or catalysts in cartridges and canisters can. Cartridges/canisters are color-coded by the type of chemical they protect against. No cartridge or canister can adsorb every type of gas or vapor, but some are designed to protect against two or more (not at once).
Air-purifying respirators mechanically filter out particulate contaminants and/or adsorb gases and vapors as the air is drawn through filters, cartridges, or a canister. They cannot be used in oxygen-deficient atmospheres.
Filtering facepieces are disposable particulate APRs in which the entire facepiece serves as a filter. Though not elastomeric, they must be tight-fitting with a proper seal. As non-powered particulate APRs, they get the TC-84A NIOSH designation.
Nuisance Dust Masks
Though they strongly resemble filtering facepieces, nuisance dust masks are not respirators, are not NIOSH approved, and cannot provide adequate protection from pesticides. They only protect against nuisance levels of NON-TOXIC particles.
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Reusable non-powered chemical cartridge and particulate APRs are tight-fitting respirators equipped with cartridges of activated carbon that adsorb gases and vapors, filters that mechanically prevent particulates from entering the facepiece, or combination cartridges with the components of both. NIOSH designates all non-powered respirators with only chemical cartridges as TC-23C and ALL non-powered respirators and cartridges with particulate protection as TC-84A. Since most pesticides for which respirators are used require some particulate protection, TC-84A respirators are more common. The facepieces for either can be half- or full-mask.
Type
NIOSH prefix
Facepiece
Fit
Reusable
Protects against particulates
Oil resistant
Protects against OV
Protects against fumigants
For use in IDLH atmospheres
Requires fit test
Offers eye protection
Can be worn with facial hair
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Increasing protection
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Atmosphere-Supplying Respirators
Self-contained BreathingAir-Purifying Respirators (APRs)
Gas Mask TC-14G Elastomeric Tight Yes With combo canister With P100 canister With OV canister Some, at very low levels Emergency escape only YES Yes NO ChemicalPowered air-purifying respirators (PAPRs) force air through a filter and/or cartridge for the user, making it less strenuous to breathe than when wearing other APRs. They’re commonly outfitted with a loose-fitting helmet or hood instead of an elastomeric facepiece. This allows individuals who are unable to get a proper seal with tight-fitting respirators, or those with certain physical limitations, to use them. PAPRs are classified differently by NIOSH, depending upon whether they protect against gases and vapors (TC-23C) or particulates alone (TC-21C). TC-21C PAPRs are equipped with a high efficiency (HE) filter. TC-23C PAPRs have either a chemical cartridge or combination cartridge with both HE filter and chemical sorbent. PAPRs are typically much more expensive than non-powered APRs, but may be the only option for some individuals, including those with beards.
Gas masks are non-powered, elastomeric APRs that take a canister. With the proper canister, they protect from both pesticide particulates and vapors. Gas masks are more effective for longer than other non-powered APRs. Some fumigant labels allow their use at known, low-level chemical concentrations. They can be used to escape from IDLH (Immediately Dangerous to Life and Health) atmospheres in emergency situations, but the canisters become saturated too quickly under these conditions to be used in place of atmosphere-supplying respirators.
Atmosphere-supplying respirators must be used when the air is oxygen-deficient or too contaminated to safely filter/decontaminate. They provide clean, oxygenated air, either from a tank carried by the user (Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus), or through a line from a compressor (Supplied-Air Respirator). These are the only respirators that can be used safely when working with most fumigants or other pesticides at or above IDLH levels.
This material is meant as a general guide only. ALWAYS follow pesticide label and respirator manufacturer instructions. For more information on respirators and their use, see:
To download and print this brochure:
Pesticide safety information may change over time. This information is provided for educational purposes only and was published in 2019.
Although pesticides can be an essential tool in pest management, the improper use and disposal of these chemicals present a continuing risk to humans, animals, and the environment. It’s important for applicators to understand that pesticide safety is not only about protecting themselves — it’s also about protecting our domestic and wild animals, the environment, our landscapes, and our communities.
Misuse of pesticides can result in, or contribute to, serious injury, illness, or death. Cooperative Extension does not guarantee the safety or effectiveness of any product or practice. Users of any pesticides, and Extension’s educational materials, do so at their sole risk and assume all risk from using such pesticides and materials, whether they follow recommendations or not. The user bears all responsibility for resulting damages to property, human health, or the environment. Cooperative Extension and the University of Maine System shall not be responsible for any damages including, but not limited to, any and all damage or loss to real or personal property, personal injury or death, resulting from the negligence of cooperative extension, the university, its trustees, faculty, agents, employees or volunteers.
Always follow directions on pesticide labels! Failure to do so violates federal law. Application timing and proper calibration are as important as using the right product.
Cooperative Extension makes no warranty or guarantee of any kind, expressed or implied, concerning the use of any stated products. Trade names are used for identification only; no product endorsement is implied, nor is discrimination intended.
Source material includes publications from EPA, CDC/ NIOSH, OSHA, Oregon OSHA, and PERC, and Cooperative Extension Offices from Pennsylvania State University, Rutgers University, University of Florida, and the University of Nebraska. Photos courtesy of USDA-ARS. Illustrations by Donald Barry.
The University of Maine is an EEO/AA employer and does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, transgender status, gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information or veteran’s status in employment, education, and all other programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director of Equal Opportunity, 101 North Stevens Hall, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469-5754, 207.581.1226, TTY 711 (Maine Relay System).
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