- Mar 9, 2011
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If the coronavirus isn't going to peak for another couple weeks, you might want to start considering how to keep it out of your home. We've been on lockdown for almost two weeks now but occasionally have to make a trip to town. Masks are a gone item but if you have them, it's a good idea to wear one if you have to be in close proximity to others. Nitrile gloves can still be found in the paint department of Walmart here or in a hardware store , but they may or may not be available in your particular location. Also unless you itemize everything you purchase, tell the cashier to throw the receipt away.
If you do have more than one mask, it's a good thing to rotate them. After using one, leave it set in the direct sunlight for at least 72 hours. Gloves can be rotated as well, or disposed of before entering the house. I have washed them inside and outside with extremely hot water, and hung them to dry, but they also need to dry on the inside, or bacteria could infect the insides, So they need to be turned inside out after drying.
It's best not to enter the house immediately when returning home. You should have a spray bottle of Isopropyl alcohol or Everclear, remove your shoes outside, and spray the soles, heels, and the top of the shoes. If alcohol is not available, chlorine bleach would also work. A pair of slippers immediately inside the house will prevent tracking in of the virus. It's best to wash your hands with hot water and soap, immediately when entering the house, and anything you've touched, such as a door knob or light switch, wiped down with a bleach-wetted cloth or paper towel. Clothing should go immediately into the wash, followed by a shower. It's also a good idea to keep a personal-sized dispenser bottle of either hand-sanitizer, alcohol, or bleach in your pocket.
Checking the mail is tricky. I always don a pair of gloves when opening the mailbox. Any junk mail is immediately discarded, and other pieces are left to set in the sunlight for a couple days, or are put under an ultraviolet light (black light.) If spray disinfectants like Lysol are available, spray your car keys, cell phone, credit card, wallet, or whatever you touched while you were out. Or wipe them down with sanitizing wipes if available.
Even better, divide everything into zones:
Red zone. Hot. Area to remove outer wear, preferably outside the house. Spray shoes off, decontaminate your gloves packages, or mail.
Yellow. A place to bag up possibly-contaminated items.
Green. Safe zone. Nothing contaminated.
If anyone has anything helpful to add to this, please feel free.
If you do have more than one mask, it's a good thing to rotate them. After using one, leave it set in the direct sunlight for at least 72 hours. Gloves can be rotated as well, or disposed of before entering the house. I have washed them inside and outside with extremely hot water, and hung them to dry, but they also need to dry on the inside, or bacteria could infect the insides, So they need to be turned inside out after drying.
It's best not to enter the house immediately when returning home. You should have a spray bottle of Isopropyl alcohol or Everclear, remove your shoes outside, and spray the soles, heels, and the top of the shoes. If alcohol is not available, chlorine bleach would also work. A pair of slippers immediately inside the house will prevent tracking in of the virus. It's best to wash your hands with hot water and soap, immediately when entering the house, and anything you've touched, such as a door knob or light switch, wiped down with a bleach-wetted cloth or paper towel. Clothing should go immediately into the wash, followed by a shower. It's also a good idea to keep a personal-sized dispenser bottle of either hand-sanitizer, alcohol, or bleach in your pocket.
Checking the mail is tricky. I always don a pair of gloves when opening the mailbox. Any junk mail is immediately discarded, and other pieces are left to set in the sunlight for a couple days, or are put under an ultraviolet light (black light.) If spray disinfectants like Lysol are available, spray your car keys, cell phone, credit card, wallet, or whatever you touched while you were out. Or wipe them down with sanitizing wipes if available.
Even better, divide everything into zones:
Red zone. Hot. Area to remove outer wear, preferably outside the house. Spray shoes off, decontaminate your gloves packages, or mail.
Yellow. A place to bag up possibly-contaminated items.
Green. Safe zone. Nothing contaminated.
If anyone has anything helpful to add to this, please feel free.
