Qualitative testing uses a bitter or sweet tasting aerosol to check whether the challenge particles are leaking into a disposable or reusable half-mask respirator. It is a reliable, HSE-recognised method for testing disposable filtering facepieces (FFP) and reusable half masks, giving each wearer a clear pass or fail result through a proven, hands-on assessment process.
Qualitative face fit testing establishes whether a tight-fitting respirator adequately seals to the face of the individual wearing it. The test introduces a bitter-tasting agent, normally Bitrex, or a sweet saccharin aerosol around the facepiece. If your employee detects the taste while completing the test exercises, air is likely to be entering through a leak in the facial seal.
The method gives you a clear pass or fail result. Under HSE’s INDG479 guidance, it can be used for disposable filtering facepieces and reusable half masks. Full-face masks require quantitative testing and cannot be tested using this method.
Faces differ, so issuing the same make and size to your entire workforce can leave some employees with an ineffective seal. Testing helps you identify the exact facepiece each person can wear successfully before they enter the hazardous area. HSE recommends fit testing during initial selection, while employees can still try alternative models and sizes.
Fire Safe International can organise face fit testing around your departments, shifts, operational requirements and the respirator models used across your organisation. The service can then be delivered in the way that best fits your workforce:
Our Fit2Fit-accredited testers carry out qualitative or quantitative testing at your premises, with each result recorded against the employee and the exact respirator tested.
We can train suitable employees to provide ongoing testing for new starters, retests, redeployment and changes in respirator supply.
External testing can clear backlogs or cover large campaigns, while your internal testers maintain day-to-day capacity across departments and sites.
Before testing, your employees must be clean-shaven across the sealing area. They must also avoid eating, smoking, chewing gum and drinking anything except still, unflavoured water for at least 30 minutes.
A sensitivity check first confirms that the wearer can detect the challenge solution. They then put on the respirator themselves, complete a pre use wearer seal check in line with the donning instructions. They will then be asked to perform the prescribed breathing, talking, head-movement and bending exercises inside the test hood as prescribed by the test protocol.
A pass confirms the exact make, model and size the employee can wear, ready for transfer into your Electronic Staff Record or local FFP3 register.
Where a mask fails, we can review the fitting technique, size and available alternatives before testing another model where possible. Wearer training can then cover the correct fitting, the pre-use fit check and compatibility with spectacles or eye protection.
If no suitable tight-fitting respirator can be found, the result gives your RPE lead a clear basis for assessing an alternative such as a powered air purifying respirator (PAPR).
clear pass-or-fail results allow you to test employees using disposable masks or reusable half masks accurately and consistently across your workforce.
tight-fitting half masks can only deliver their expected protection when they seal properly to the wearer’s face. Testing verifies that the chosen make, model, and size achieve that seal for the individual employee before the mask is relied on during hazardous work.
Because the wearer personally detects the test agent when the seal leaks, the result makes the importance of correct fitting, clean-shaven skin and using the approved mask easier to understand than written instructions alone.
These services are for anyone responsible for employees using FFP1, FFP2 or FFP3 masks or reusable half masks to protect from dust, mist, fumes, other aerosols and if fitted with suitable filters, gases and vapours too.
Equipped with nearly 30 years of company experience, our Fit2Fit-accredited testers understand the specific judgement qualitative testing requires, from sensitivity screening and correct aerosol control to recognising when a failed result points to the facepiece, the wearer’s technique or an unsuitable mask design. Because we work extensively with disposable filtering facepieces and reusable half masks, we can help you resolve failed fits without disrupting the rest of the session. Our technicians are very experienced and can identify false pass results and so provide accuracy and surety of the test process.
If you'd rather build this capability internally, we also provide Qualitative face fit testing training, delivered by our Fit2Fit-accredited instructors. The course gives delegates the knowledge and practical skills to carry out qualitative face fit testing in line with HSE INDG 479 guidance, and can be delivered at your premises or at our training centre in Shrewsbury.
Please speak to our team on 01743 761000 to arrange on-site testing or qualitative face fit testing training at your workplace at a time of your convenience, or send us a message to discuss numbers, respirator types and suitable dates.
