Cleaning Qs and other stuff?

[Rane]

I read the hygiene tips but I still have some questions.

- After I have tested negative, do I need to throw out my hygiene products?

- Do I need to bleach ALL clothes even if I did not soil them or will laundry detergent and hot water take care of it?

- How do I clean furniture and carpets? Will a steam vacuum take care of this? I have heard of some people throwing their beds/carpets out!

- Do I need to bleach dishes?

- Does chlorine dioxide kill C. Diff? I am getting mixed results on this one.

- My dad and brother are sick too, but have mild cases. Will they get better without treatment?

-My mom and sister are not sick. What are the chances they will get it?

- How long does C. DIiff last on porous surfaces?

And lastly

- Will flagyl give me permanent side effects? I already have some form or neuropathy from the C.Diff along with pain. Will the flagyl make this worse?

- I got a bright flash in my eye that has not gone away. This was not from flagyl. The eye doctor could not find anything. Do you think this is a result of infection?

[kristaj]

Great questions, Rane. SInce I am new to this board, I hope someone can post some answers especially around cleaning. I did not ever soil clothing or bedding but did the bleach wash on everything to be safe anyway (initially 1/2C bleach in a load, washed two times, then read 1/4C can work so moved to that). But if things weren't soiled do they need this treatment?

Couch covers I threw in the laundry and did the bleach wash, but that works only if they're removable. Clorox Germicidal wipes would work for surfaces but I cannot get them shipped to Hawaii as they are Hazmat, so turned to the 10:1 water/bleach solution and got a bag of cheap rags, gloved up and masked up and went to town on the bathroom and all light switches, fan pulls, remote controls, telephones, you name it.

I had the neuropathy with Flagyl, but is has disappeared (probably stopped about 24 hours after stopping). Unfortunately the dry mouth has not stopped so will check with the doctor about it.

Best of luck, and again, hope someone has some suggestions to the questions you've posed!

[Bobbie]

Rane and other new posters,
Welcome to all of you. I know you've read the info. in the Hygiene section but have more questions.

Hygiene regarding C. diff. has changed a lot. Years ago, when my son had C. diff. and then in the 90's when I first had it, hygiene wasn't stressed. Patients weren't isolated and the only hygiene measure taken was hand washing - and not always well done. Now, we've done a complete opposite.

First hint - buy all white towels and underwear. I ruined many lovely sets of towels and underwear with bleach. Towels and lower underwear should be washed in bleach. Some also wash bed linens with bleach. I didn't - just used hot water. Use a bleach measure (l pt. bleach; 9 pts.water ). Understand mixture doesn't "keep well" so mix up a small amount and redo every 2 or 3 days. Concentrate on the bathroom and kitchen. If fecal matter hasn't come in contact with rugs, pillows, etc. don't worry about it. You don't have to bleach all your clothes unless they were soiled by fecal matter.

Yes, "the spores" can last a long time on surfaces - particularly on bed rails in hospitals. Good place to clean if you are in the hospital.

Kristaj, If you can't order the "real deal" bleach wipes from Amazon (I don't know why there is a problem - Hawaii is a US state), you might try Amazon.UK. Some Home Depot stores handle them - do a search on the Internet.

Rane, I think your father and brother should see a doc. if their symptoms become worse. Sometimes people recover on their own; sometimes not.

Just run dishes through the dishwasher - no need to bleach. I would use the longer, "sanitize" cycle . If possible, keep one bathroom for your own use. If not, clean it well after you use it.

Some of your questions are medical, and we don't answer medical questions. I'm sure you will do well and have a normal recovery. Keep us posted. Best of luck.

[kristaj]

Hi Bobbie -

Thanks so much for checking in and answering the cleaning questions. My brother-in-law was sent home a few years back after MRSA, then C Diff with no instructions to keep my sister and nieces "safe" so it's great to have you as a resource.

My big question was the non-contaminated clothing (it sounds like Rane and I were fortunate enough to not reach the stage that many of you have suffered) - I only had a couple of days when first on Flagyl where I hit the bathroom 20-30 times a day, so I can see how soiling clothes and bedding become an issue.

The CDC and this great home health care website I found recommended between 1/4C and 1/2C bleach in each load - I even did the extra two-step wash initially on sheets and clothes.

Hawaii, you'd think as a US State, we'd be treated accordingly! Amazon and it's subsidiaries flat out refuse to ship items like that here - I tried every angle including Office Depot, but they use Amazon to ship! Today I'm headed to Home Depot and Lowe's to take a look, I may also be able to have family in California buy and ship. In the meantime I've been using the bleach dilution you recommended (and the home health care site did, too). It worked on the bathroom and then I extended it out to anything we touch like switches, lamp and fan pulls, you name it.

Again, thanks so much for your help. As you've heard before from everyone here, thanks for creating and maintaining this site, you are the real deal and the only one I can find good info from!

[AllisS]

The nine-to-one water:bleach solution should be as effective as the germicidal wipes. I've heard, however, that the solution needs to be remixed often, every 24 to 48 hours, to maintain potency. Not sure if this is accurate or not and would be interested in finding out. Maybe I will call Clorox and if I find anything out will post the answer.

[Bobbie]

KristaJ, thanks so much for the compliment. You "made my day." I helped the first owner write much of the site along with our three other first moderators. Our current owner and mods help keep us up to date so it's always been a group effort. After over 15 years of working on the site, I often get tired and think of quitting but remarks like yours keep me on the site.

I keep some bleach wipes in a double plastic bag and use them on grocery carts. During a recent trip to the UK, I wiped down my seat, tray, and controls - never did that before. I got some strange looks as the bleach smell is strong.

Let us know if you find the wipes. "Where there is a will, there is a way."

Thx again.

[Rane]

Thanks so much! As a precaution I am actually putting a small amount of bleach in with the colored clothes. Surprisingly this has worked well with only minor spots. I think after treating the colored clothes and such I'll store them away until I get better.

[Bobbie]

Mix bleach and water in washing machine first and agitate before adding clothes. Might fade a little but less chance of spotting.

[Rane]

One more thing, does Clorox Cleaner with bleach work? I mean it has bleach in it.

EDIT. I think I found an answer on the Clorox site( https://www.clorox.com/dr-laundry/disin ... y-cleaner/) :

"Q. I know that you can use a bleach solution for cleaning the bathroom of someone with C. diff, but what about your Clorox® Clean-Up® Spray Cleaner. Does that work as well?"

"A. At the current time, only the bleach solution is EPA approved. Since the Clorox® Clean-Up® Spray Cleaner has at least the same bleach level when sprayed directly on surfaces as directed, though; I think you should get a similar result."

Makes sense, but if you want to be extra careful use diluted bleach. I think leaving the clorox spray on longer than 30 seconds is a safe bet though. My plan is to clean with diluted bleach near the end of my treatment, say a day or two before I get tested again, and a few days after. Does that sound like a good plan? Me and my dad already disinfected all the bathrooms with diluted bleach then used the spray.

[seekingcure]

Here's a link that you might find interesting about Clorox Germicidal Bleach Wipes and Clorox Healthcare Germicidal Bleach Cleaner:

http://blog.rjschinner.com/clorox-healt ... ill-claim/

According to this, it takes three minutes for the wipes to kill the spores and five minutes for the liquid.

Just a tip you might not have thought of yet, always close the toilet lid before flushing to prevent "spewing" germs all over bathroom surfaces. Just that one step will save you a lot of cleaning.

[Carlson]

I realized that Costco sells performance Clorox bleach, which doesn't say it kills c diff. So I called them and it does kill c diff. We are on third round, so you can't be too careful. Hope this helps someone else.

[roy]

Dont rely on that info.
A lot of products can claim to kill c.diff.
Problem is they mean vegative c.diff, not the spores.
Stick with ordinary bleach or the medical grade wipes.
Personally I dont like the claims made for any of the wipes because bleach has to be in wet contact with the spores for 15 mins to be certain of killing them.
Areas cleaned with Wipes dry in about 20 seconds.
This is a very old posting if you want to start a conversation its better to start a new thread.