Cleaning

How long do people intend to sanitise shopping, quarantine post and newspapers, bleach food etc?

If it’s until there’s an effective vaccine, for a long time I think.

Just normal cleaning for me. I wash my hands and always use the hand gel when i am out. Ive been using the hand gel for 5 years anyway, after a bout of flu which nearly killed me its become a regular routine. I must say ive had very few colds etc since adopting this habit.

I am with Bluebelle and others on here who am trying to lead as normal as life as possible. I do my own supermarket weekly shop, come home, wash my hands, unpack and put shopping away (no washing of packages, food etc.), Then I wash my hands again.

Post and delivery parcels are opened, packing disposed off in rubbish, wash my hands and that is it.

Wear a mask in supermarket - but would NOT wear gloves there, (think they are more dangerous in holding and spreading any germs and infection than skin).

Wash my hands (as have always), before preparing or eating food. Rinse fruit / salad in cold water.

Cannot understand people who change clothes, etc. when just returning from shopping - unfortunately, this virus is definitely increasing OCD type behavior.

I think it has already been asked on here, do people follow these strange procedures during serious winter flu outbreaks most years? And, do people understand the difference between bacteria and virus?

The other day I had to throw away a whole 1 kg bag of rice. Dh had been zealously bathing or washing in Milton every item of shopping that appeared to be watertight.

The rice bag evidently wasn’t! Rice at the top of the bag seemed to be rather sticking together, but it wasn’t until I poured the rest into my rice canister that I saw that it was all mouldy at the bottom.
Just as well I had another packet in the cupboard for curry night.

Rosalyn I think like at the time of the plague anything and anybody comes under suspicion! We really don't know much about this virus yet so people feel safer performing rituals. If it helps you do it.

Can we actually catch the virus from food? Really?

Wipe all non washable shopping with 'plain' dettol wipes not the lemon ones it makes things smell/ taste of lemon. Washables can be washed over in sink & rinsed under tap.i.e.cans, bottles, anything plastic, (not anything with air holes in though) or wiped over with wipes or a spray or 2 of dettol antibac spray. The freezer stuff i wipe with the wipes then pop in freezer. Freezing can freeze the virus for up to 2years, it doesnt kill it. I wash fruit& veg under a hot tap& pop in a container then fridge.The dettol stuff are good as they kill 'coronaviruses' it says on label.( i presume that was the sars/mers one?) but if its good for that its ok for this i guess!

I'm with CalendarGirl. I have taken no extra precautions and have always washed my hands when I get home. I made face masks for DH and me because he had a hospital appointment but that's the only time we've worn them although I carry mine around with me in case I need it. The city centre is within reasonable walking distance (just over a mile) so with a rucksack to carry any shopping I don't need to use public transport.

I washed my shopping once having read on GN that everyone seemed to be doing it. I felt daft and OTT, so never again.

Masks and gloves when we shop and wash hands frequently. That’s it!

Thanks Purplepoppies I don't plan to travel by public transport at the moment but feel sorry for people who have to. Same for people shopping in supermarkets, the mask is such a simple step. In Italy where I have fb friends, they were even wearing them outdoors!

Should read “son”

When the so. Was young I had a friend with two kids around his age. She was obsessive about cleaning and bleaching and even got rid of the dog.
Her kids were always sick. Mine was rarely at the doctors despite crawling around the floor and eating cat food and such.

I don't kiss the visiting dog but I still kiss and cuddle my own dog.

NanaHev, I like your double decanting method, I want to do that too.

Deep cleaning basically means fumegating absolutely everything. Not necessary, especially if you have no one entering your house. Also recent guidance says there is very little chance of pickling up the virus from cardboard, paper as long as you clean your hands AFTER handling. You are carrying out guidance to the extreme. Wash fruit and veg as you would normally. Once items in your house 72 hours should be okay to handle if you are uncomfortable about touching when delivered but again, wash hands after opening.

Thank heavens for BlueBelle and similar others - live your life - respect other people's opinions but don't let the worry kill you. What will be will be.

It took me ages to read through this thread but it was worth it and I am happy to announce myself to be a pretty average slut.

My cleaner/carer has been with me for over 14 years but during that time she and her family moved house and now she comes to me by bus and train. I pay her one hour travelling time which I am still paying whilst she is not actually travelling. Those of you who have carers will know that not all of them are worth clapping for so if you get a good one you will do anything to keep them.

I think there is an unknown or misunderstood variable in all this as I keep hearing about isolated people, like me, getting the virus no matter what. Ho-hum...cant worry about the unknown; that is the path to anxiety and depression.

I'm with Bluebelle on this. The only thing I have stepped up is to make sure DH washes his hands more often! I've always been a huge devotee of handwashing which is probably why I haven't caught anything, not even a cold, for fifty years. My cleaner hasn't been for three months and DH and I have been sharing the cleaning. DH turned out to be an absolute whizz at it. His mother (Mrs. I don't like to see a man cooking or cleaning!) deprived him of years of joy! We do it once a week, apart from the loos which are every day and we'd continue doing it but my cleaner is lovely and I miss her.

@BlueSky I believe here in Scotland the face mask rule comes in to play as of Monday as well.
Seems utterly bonkers that's its only just being introduced as a rule!
I have no plans to get on public transport any time soon.
I had cause to make a journey from England back home last week via Gatwick airport. Very strange, very stressful experience. Needs must, I had to get home.

I have stopped wiping every last thing that comes over my threshold. Just aswell, I don't think the grandkids would have appreciated that much yesterday ?

No. The only thing I wipe down from my shopping are milk cartons/juice cartons as they can be a bit dirty on the base, sometimes. Otherwise, the shopping goes straight into the cupboard, fridge or freezer. I don't get changed when I return, either. Fruit and veg gets washed (or peeled, depending what it is) before it is used (not with soap or diluted bleach, just water, as I've always done - I certainly don't want to be ingesting bleach or soap).
Mail gets opened when it arrives. What I do do, is wash my hands thoroughly. I am not obsessive about cleaning, just do what I've always done. Apply common sense and you should be fine.

I’ve just remembered. I have family abroad and they have been told never to allow outdoor shoes inside their home.

The extreme cleaning discussed on this thread makes me feel that one result of the pandemic might be a steep rise in obsessive compulsive disorder.
Soap and water or alcohol will kill off the virus. Absolutely no need to use Milton (which is just bleach), anti bacterial wipes (as Covid 19 isn’t a bacteria), or indeed bleach.
Just keep your home clean with soap and water and don’t have face to face contact with anyone (or any pets). Hand washing is the most effective thing you can do.

I am not OTT I have hand sanitizer in the car use it as soon as I get into the car wash my hands as soon as I get home wash fruit veg etc wash hands again I think I have OCD or soon will better to be safe than sorry. The virus isnt transmitter from paper cardboard etc say the powers that be!

We are careful about hand-washing, using hand disinfection in shops and keeping the stipulated distance away from people.

At no time here in Denmark have we been advised to de-contaminate shopping or post.

We shop, come home and put the shopping directly into the fridge, freezer or pantry.

I wash my hands when I come back home, but not after opening letters or reading the newspaper.

It's not just me, no-one is following the precautions that you are talking of here.

I cleaned the house thouroughly before going into hospital for an operation, three weeks ago. No cleaning done since then, as I can't do any. Washing up and cleaning the toilet is the limit.

We haven't come to any harm and the level of infection here has been far lower than in the UK throughout.

I don’t do any of the extreme cleaning. It just seems bonkers to be wiping shopping down. I open letters And parcels straight away, then wash my hands.