Crazy cleaning question

[JandD Mom]

I don't take off the bed spread. I don't put on my own sheets and use my own pillows.

There is a whole other thread about excessive cleaning before occupying a hotel room.

Bill, you have reminded me of an entirely different thread ... the one about bedbugs

 

[JandD Mom]

My wife is getting the heebie-jeebies just reading your post. She assumes you are Bill talking, since she can't believe a woman would be that cavalier about germs.

-Shawn

Shawn, you crack me up.

Actually I don't disagree with Deb/Bill, since I never really thought about this stuff until I started hearing about this norovirus problem on cruise ships (right around the time we took the kids on their first cruise). Now that all the news stations have turned to that crazy, hard-copy-like tabloid format, I hear about this stuff all the time. I figured better safe than sorry.

Plus, I see what my kids do in a hotel room. I don't want someone else picking up their germs, and I don't want some other family's germs either.

Finally, have you seen some of the people who stay in hotels? I am not talking about Disney. I am talking about places like Atlantic City, where I am forced to go for a convention twice a year. Some of the people, you don't even want to be in the elevator with ... let alone stay in the room they just occupied. That thought put me over the edge ....

 

[DebbieB]

So what do you do about wiping down all the rides you go on or other stuff you touch at the parks? The stuff there has probably been touched by thousands, way more people than in a hotel room. I don't worry about it and never have gotten sick during or after a trip. I look at the dishes as I use them but assume that they have been run through the dishwasher by housekeeping. It's a waste of dues dollars to run them through again (increased utility costs). When you are in a restaurant you can't be sure that they cleaned the dishes properly.

 

[scootert]

We carry hand sanitizer and use it after rides.

We started doing all this after I picked up a very nasty virus returning from a trip (non WDW). I was lucky in that we made it home before the "fun" started. Since that, we carry the sanitzer and wipes -- we're not fanatic about it, don't fear germs in general but feel that it just makes sense to do these things.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

First thing we do when we arrive is load the dishwasher and run it. We carry Clorox wipes and give the remotes, phones, doorknobs and most surfaces a quick once over. Takes all of 15 minutes and could prevent a nasty virus. Think about all those threads where people talk about having the flu, etc at WDW...

I totally agree with your reasoning.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

So what do you do about wiping down all the rides you go on or other stuff you touch at the parks? The stuff there has probably been touched by thousands, way more people than in a hotel room. I don't worry about it and never have gotten sick during or after a trip. I look at the dishes as I use them but assume that they have been run through the dishwasher by housekeeping. It's a waste of dues dollars to run them through again (increased utility costs). When you are in a restaurant you can't be sure that they cleaned the dishes properly.

Actually, we carry hand santizer and are very careful to not touch our hands near our face as to not become infected with someone else's germs. And we always wash our hands before we eat.

And being that there have been reports where people's villas have not been cleaned properly or there have been dishes dirty in the dishwasher upon checking, I am not going to take the chance that mousekeeping took care of everything.

 

[Shawn]

So what do you do about wiping down all the rides you go on or other stuff you touch at the parks? The stuff there has probably been touched by thousands, way more people than in a hotel room. I don't worry about it and never have gotten sick during or after a trip. I look at the dishes as I use them but assume that they have been run through the dishwasher by housekeeping. It's a waste of dues dollars to run them through again (increased utility costs). When you are in a restaurant you can't be sure that they cleaned the dishes properly.

We don't wipe down the rides, and don't sanitize after rides. But during the day, we keep our hands away from our mouth and faces for sure. And we wash up before we eat.

Don't get me stared on the restaurants. I worked my way through high school and college in various restaurants (9 years total). Some are fantastic about cleanliness, and others could care less. I learned that in our town the small 7 table family owned restaurants, that have small staff turnover, usually have far better cleanliness practices than the chains. The owners are usually down there working, and they keep an eye on things, since their reputation is on the line. They make sure there dishes are rinsed in bleach water, and stuff like that. I agree you just take your chances when you dine on vacation.

I didn't start out being germ aware, but after being married for 20 years, my wife has educated me. We strive for a compromise -- I accept her reasonable and valid concerns, and I try to pull her back when she starts going too Howard Hughes on the familly.

-Shawn

 

[dianeschlicht]

I would never assume the dishes were all washed by the maids.

 

[Deb & Bill]

My wife is getting the heebie-jeebies just reading your post. She assumes you are Bill talking, since she can't believe a woman would be that cavalier about germs.

-Shawn

Nope, I'm Deb and I work in a hospital. Wash your hand and keep your hands away from your face. That's about all you really need to do. And I think your wife might be a little obsessive about cleanliness.

I watched a few of the housekeepers cleaning the rooms last week and they do an excellent job.

 

[Pooh667]

Hi,

I don't think you are crazy. In fact I am glad to see the replies that I am not the only one with the Clorox wipes and Lysol on vacation.

 

[brandip22]

I've never done all that cleaning before, but since this will be DS's first vacation, I think I might have to make sure all is clean for him! Will Lysol explode on a plane? I can jsut add it to my shopping list for wegoshop, I guess. I do have the Clorox wipes already. DH works for a janitorial supply wholesaler, so he will be bringing me plenty of santizer! Thanks for the tips- I'm thinking cleaner all ready!

 

[DebbieB]

I would never assume the dishes were all washed by the maids.

Maybe they should just leave all the dishes in the dishwasher, that way members will not have to reload it to wash them the second time.

 

[sixcats]

I don't reclean. If I saw something questionable, I'd complain and then clean it up. I figure that as long as nobody licks anything in the bathroom we'll be okay. I do like the idea of cleaning out the tub. Sometimes the water has looked kind of filmy when I turned it on. I'll give it a try this trip.

 

[WolfpackFan]

Sheesh, none of these things ever remotely crossed our minds. We just move in and start enjoying ourselves. Never been sick because of it either.

 

[pmcpmc]

Hi,

I don't think you are crazy. In fact I am glad to see the replies that I am not the only one with the Clorox wipes and Lysol on vacation.

I do think you are all crazy.
perhaps that's why so many kids get problems because their immune systems never have to fight even the smallest germs.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

I'm not trying to start a debate or anything, but I do not see anything wrong with disinfecting the place you are going to eat, sleep and bathe.

 

[JandD Mom]

Actually, I am pretty sure I am 100% crazy. However, when I posted this thread, I did not imagine there would be so many people out there like me. So since I have found so many kindred spirits, I have decided to forgo therapy at this time!

And as for the parks and rides, I carry a bunch of purel hand wipes in my bag (you can get a big box at BJ's very cheaply and they last forever). If my kids even think about eating something after getting off a ride, and I can't get them to the bathroom, they use the wipes.

I am however thankful all of you are posting. I don't think anyone who skips all of this cleaning is wrong -- you are just less paranoid than I am. One problem I have had is that someone in my family almost always gets sick during or immediately after a trip. I am just trying to lessen the liklihood of that happening.

 

[nono]

One problem I have had is that someone in my family almost always gets sick during or immediately after a trip. I am just trying to lessen the liklihood of that happening.

Exactly! I'm not in WDW to beef up my family's immune system. I do that on a daily basis. Ask my husband.

But, as in my other post, I only perceive the remote(s) as the true danger zones (based upon personal experience). Does that make me right? No. Does it make anyone else wrong? No. It just "is my reality."

I do hope I get a villa right after someone else has definitely washed all the dishes. So thank you in advance.

And, as a final note, I do think it is quite possible that non-English speaking workers can do their job well, and that a multi-national company may indeed employ a bi-lingual employee in a mangement position, so as to instruct the truly non-English, but still "speaking a world language," person. Whether washing all the dishes in a villa in between guests is in a maid's job description is another subject altogether.

 

[idratherbeinwdw]

My wife is getting the heebie-jeebies just reading your post. She assumes you are Bill talking, since she can't believe a woman would be that cavalier about germs.

-Shawn

Well count me in as a woman who is not germophobic. Your immune system, not lysol, is meant to kill germs you have been exposed to. It's people who use MORE disinfectants that get sick more often, as your immune system is like an army. If it's not trained it gets lazy and ineffective. You need to be exposed to germs so your body learns to fight them. My ex-sister in law, who is the lysol queen, is constantly sick with ear and throat infections, as is her 14 year old daughter. My kids, haven't been to a doctor, except for routine check ups, in so long I truly can't remember the last time. Definitely more than 5 years. I am not a slob and certainly keep my home clean, I just don't believe in over use of disinfectants.

Yes, if I see some crud in a cup or on a plate in my villa I'll clean it, but otherwise I don't wash what looks perfectly clean. I may be naive but I don't think folks with TB come to DVC and purposely cough on the dishes. So far I have returned from all my WDW trips unscathed.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Best thing if someone with TB did cough in my room to be, the TB bacilli wouldn't survive very long in the room. The sunlight would kill them. And they would have to be airborne so that you would inhale them. Plus you would have to be a less than healthy condition to develop symptoms of TB.

Anyway, you read what I do. Just about nothing, other than wash my hands. We have never returned home sick. Got sick once or twice just about immediately on arrival, but we brought that with us. We really are pretty healthy. Our son only misses school for those days when we take him out of school to go to WDW.

I use the germs to my benefit. Remember those flu shots and boosters you got as a kid? They exposed you to the disease, just enough to build up your immunity.

I agree, idratherbeinwdw, if I see a dirty dish, I'll wash that one. But not the rest. I even used the refillable mugs last week without washing them out the first time. I figured the coca cola would kill the germs if there were any.