Cleaning

‘Deep’ cleaning used to be confined to the likes of operating theatres, as I recall.
It seems to have taken over from good old ‘thorough’ cleaning - maybe people think it sounds better.

We do quarantine shopping for a day or two, ditto post and parcels. Any fruit that needs to be eaten very soon goes in a quick bath of Milton. We don’t wipe anything - just wash hands after handling anything that could be suspect.

I don't do any of that, just lots of hand washing.

I think 72 hours seems to be the recommended time to quarantine food items.

Anything for the fridge I disinfect if I need to use it earlier.

I just put the freezer food away as it is and it gets used about a week later.

Not sure if this is correct as I don't think anyone knows enough about Covid yet and how long it lasts on surfaces.

I don’t quarantine anything. I wash my hands well when I come in from shopping, put the shopping away, I don’t disinfect or wipe it, then wash my hands well again.

Post is opened when it arrives, then hands washed well again.

Hands washed thoroughly before touching any food to eat or cook, veg peeled, fruit washed before eating.

I do my usual cleaning of bathroom, kitchen, work surfaces etc.

I don’t change my clothes, wash my hair or shower when I come in from shopping.

I’m fortunate to live in a quiet area, not crowds of people, not very busy shops, don’t have to use public transport.

Well I don’t do any of that, shopping is delivered and goes straight in the fridge or cupboards or my mouth
Post or parcels are opened read or used. Outer package is thrown or put on my shelf where I keep good envelopes for reuse

Just wash your hands that’s really all you need do I think it’s really quite damaging to be so terrified that you are asking if all these extreme things you already do are not enough, this sort of fear can cause mental health problems
All my friends and relatives, even shielding ones do nothing more than I do and one of them is extremely house proud
I think this fear is much more damaging than the virus is

Like you calandergirl I don’t wash any clothes or myself other than my hands
I have used public transport and felt very very safe the buses are disinfected every time they come into the station people are wearing masks and you don’t sit near anyone every other seat is blocked

What BlueBelle said.

We are wiping our shopping in a dilute solution if bleach. I thought I was being over cautious until I heard that a lady, over 80, who was self isolating had caught Covid. The only thing coming into her house was the shop which had been delivered.

Nandalot. I heard of a man who was shielding. He hadn't been outside his house for a month. Shopping was dropped at his door.

He is now in hospital very ill with Covid. As he hadn't seen anyone the virus must have come in via the shopping.

Oh there’s always stories of extremes still not worth your mental health to be going into OCD mode
Stay clean wash your hands and live your life

Calendar girl I'm with you. Carrying on as normal and washing hands frequently. Cleaning as normal.

As above.
The chances of getting CV19 are small, whatever Project Fear tells us. Those of dying are even smaller - unless, of course, one is vulnerable. If one was betting on a horse, would you put money on it? Thought that...
(now ducks under the parapet to tend to gunshots...)

I did wipe my shopping down with disinfectant wipes for the first few weeks, but got fed up with it and now don't bother at all. I have hand sanitiser in the car and use it every time I get back in the car then wash my hands as soon as I get home, and again after I have put all the shopping away. I think I could quite possibly get OCD regarding germs if I carried on disinfecting everything and worrying, so decided to ease up and not get too hung up about it. Happily, I now don't worry about it and am just cautious rather than fanatical!

This has been troubling me from the start, I too have arthritis and my hands are badly twisted, only use of thumb and forefinger. There was a thread some time ago , I was fearful,
can’t get top off disinfectant etc, it was even recommended to
wash each leaf of any plant bought. Not having anyone to ask
i put everything in the bathroom for a week or more, don’t eat
food, drink liquid meal replacements delivered monthly from
the pharmacy, I wash 250 bottles, a few every day.

I use washing up liquid for bottles of milk and honey, dog food, leave tea bags a month and then wash the package with
soap on a cloth . To add to it, I have to bring things from the
bathroom on a trolley so wash that everyday.

I am overdoing it ?

I am very grateful for all these comments as they make me feel that being a bit of a slack-Alice is not so bad after all. I think people are right that we are all in danger of doing ourselves mental damage over all this cleaning. I felt so sorry for a young mum being interviewed on TV and saying that sanitizer had gone up from 60p to £3.60p and she was on benefits and she felt she was letting her child down. I hope someone told her that hand washing is better anyway.

I’m just doing lots of good through hand washing. I don’t do anything other than that really. I do my own shopping, put it away, washing hands between. I open post as usual. My house might be a little less dusty because I’ve got more time at home so I see the dust and have now got the time to do it.

I was washing the milk bottles but haven't done the ones which were delivered today as we won't be opening them just yet.
Fridge food goes on a separate shelf for a few days. Cupboard food ditto in the cupboard.
However, I thought I'd buy DH some custard tarts and they are use by today (just delivered).
So we'll open them, throw the packaging away, wash our hands then eat them. They'll have been in that packet longer than 72 hours, I bet!

I try to be careful without overdoing it.

I think the virus is supposed to die off after 72 hours, Anniebach but do what you feel comfortable with. I found some rather old sterilising tablets and sometimes wash the bottles in a solution of that if I intend to use them straight away.

NanaHev .....I think you have it about right, and we are doing much the same.
If you open your post/parcels straight away, just wash your hands afterwards.
It is a virus not a germ.

I live in a part of Europe where we´re nearly out of lockdown. We all wore masks everywhere from the middle of March on, we have on the other hand never been told to disinfect shopping. When you think about it, really and seriously, a virus isn´t going to jump at you off a tin of beans, it is passed on by breathing, coughing, sniffing, being in confined spaces with infected people. Use your common sense, wash your hands and wear face masks.

Well I don't do anything except wash my hands and wear a mask. I do my own shopping, cleaning my hands when I leave the supermarket and cleaning the car keys , other than that nothing. Also going to have dental treatment in the next 2 weeks. It would seem that the dentist has to clean and then leave the surgery for an hour after each patient. Just thought I would add that bit in

You are right polyester I'm surprised masks here have only recently become compulsory on public transport and I believe only in England. Nothing in supermarkets and enclosed indoor spaces. Now they mention reducing the 2m distance as well!

Do you all do this cleaning regime when we have a bad year of flu with thousands dying, and yes it does happen some years
There is sense in being careful but some of the things being done on here is really beyond any necessities and apart from ordinary hand washing or using sanitiser if you feel safer when out and about this it really over the top and will very fast become a germ phobia and that will be harder to get rid of than the virus
This OCD has became worryingly infectious for some people

? BlueBelle. Exactly! People think I’m bonkers not thinking I shall either die or kill someone the instant I poke my nose out...

I don't do any of that. I wash my hands thoroughly, several times a day. Shopping is put away straight away, and I look at post/parcels as soon as they arrive.

I wipe the kitchen, bathroom, cupboard door handles, tv remotes, mobile 'phone, computer mouse, and light switches every day, with Zoflora on a clean cloth - but I did all that long before the virus (I've been doing those things for years). My dishcloths, tea towels and kitchen towels are changed daily and are washed at 60 degrees - again, I've been doing all that for years.