Disinfecting Resort Room

[lc1965]

i'm all about building up tolerance & messy homes. besides, i work w/ the public & am constantly exchanging things directly by hand w/ hundreds of people every work day (don't get any weird ideas -- i'm a theatre usher!!)

i can, however, say i don't use the bedspread because they don't get cleaned nearly often enough.

 

[Jeanny]

Originally posted by Clotho
As Stephanie said--don't lick your remote, and I am sure you'll be fine.

WHAT??? no licking the remote??? but after laying all over the bedspread/comforters, that's the first thing I do!!!

seriously, I don't worry about too many germs, I just have some hand sanitizer with me just in case of some nasty people (who like to lick the banisters or elevator buttons!!

 

[mmausse]

I'd rather DIS than clean any day.............

But I guess that's why I have a cleaning staff - to take care of what I could not stand to do......

BTW as long as you are concerned about the "cleanliness" of your room, if you don't want to get REALLY grossed out then, don't look at the encrusted grime on the vents in your room (the ones in the ceiling & in the bathroom). There's usually enough germs and crud growing there to keep a University biology dept in microscopes for years

Just have a GREAT time and "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and if you're still concerned - buy the darn medical insurance!

 

[Missy1961]

I hate to tell you this, but alot of the claims of "99.9% of germs" removed are bogus. There is just so much that these cleaners can do....so go ahead, spray everything if it makes you feel better.

 

[zurgswife]

I've been 14 times in the past 6 years....I've NEVER gotten sick while there...and I DO NOT.....disinfect ANYTHING.....and I SLEEP WITH THE BLANKET AND COMFORTER!!!!!

I really think some people have to much time to think about things.....

 

[maggiew]

I agree with the hand washing thing. We always wash our hands before we eat at Disney (and elsewhere). So far, on our trips we have never gotten sick.

But ... as I said in my Original Post, I am normally not a germophobe. But, after reading these boards I KNOW that I will be thinking about it on the trip. So I figure if I bring the disinfecting wipes I will feel better, whether they are necessary or not.

Reading these boards can be good and give lots of information but sometimes it can have a slight negative effect. Like last trip I pointed out to DH how a family on 9 were taking up 3 tables (that they scooted together) at Cosmic Rays while they ate their picnic lunch and about 2 dozen people were wandering around looking for a table to eat their Cosmic Rays food (Us included!!). I NEVER would have even noticed that before, let alone point it out to my DH. LIkewise, I kept noticing people using other resort mugs at the refill station. I would have NEVER even noticed that before.

So, I may bring the wipes, wash off the remote and doorknobs and feel better.

Maggie

 

[Exp626]

I'd rather dis than clean.

Also, this morning's news show had a segment all about allergies being on the rise due to our society's 'fixation with cleanliness' (their words not mine)...hmm, a medical reason not to clean too often.

For those brave folks that do the extra cleaning, my hat's off to you. That 20/20 hotel swab show gave me the heebie geebies for weeks.

 

[disneyfreakjackie]

Originally posted by harlock_jds
My solution to this problem is to keep my home as messy as possible, that way I build up a tolerance to germs. I doubt any germs at the resorts can stand up to my mighty immune system

hee heeAND OF COURSE, I'D RATHER DIS THAN CLEAN!! NO QUESTION ABOUT IT!!

 

[goofy4tink]

Well of course...Dis'ing is always done instead of cleaning. But, as far as sanitizing while traveling....the only time I have really worried about it was last Dec. The flu had really just started with a vengence. So, I took some of the Purell hand sanitizer with me and made my dd, 10, use it several times a day, while in the parks. She did get pretty sick on our second day there, but I don't think she got the germs there. Probably brought it with us!!! Nope, I don't worry about the room. I do turn the bedspread down at night but that's about it. A few germs are good for ya!

 

[Chicago526]

I'm no germ freak, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, as my mother says. So on the off chance that wipeing down the hotel room will prevent sickness, I'll go for it! The following is what I do before and durring vacations only. I don't bother the rest of the time.

First, start by taking vitamins and eating lots of fruits and vegtables in the weeks before going (and contiue this while in WDW). This is not only healthy for you overall, but helps build your immune system. Stay away from sick people at the office (or anywhere else) when possible. Wash you hands or use sanitizer frequently.

If you fly down to WDW, disinfect everything you come in contact with on the AIRPLANE. The sickest my parents got on a trip was going from their home in AZ to my home in IL. They picked up the flu on the plane! You could pick up a bug before even checking into your room, so I always wipe down the arm rests, headphones, table tray, and window shade. I don't use the pillows or blankets provided by the airline, either.

Once at the hotel, the Clorox wipes come out and I do a quick wipe-down of all hard surfaces of the room, and the comforter comes off the bed. In the parks, I bring hand sanitizer and use it about once an hour or two (makes my hands feel refreshed, too!).

Does any of this make a differance? Maybe not. But on the off chance it does, I'm not risking an 8 night, $3500 vaction to being stuck in my room sick the whole time!

Oh, and I'd much rather DIS than clean (or work, for that matter!).

 

[Ladyhawke10]

I'd rather DIS than clean!!!

I really like the antibacterial wipes from Bath and Body works...there are apple, raspberry and vanilla scents and I bring them to the parks and wipe down my son's hands from them every so often. I still admit to using the comforters and blankets....and we always go in the jacuzzis and pools and have never gotten sick. I even rented a villa once and stayed six weeks, went in the public jacuzzi everyday at least once, and was always healthy .

 

[prairie]

Wiping down a room can't hurt, but when it comes to hotel rooms and airplane cabins you are probably at greater risk of getting sick by simply breathing the air. This is due to air conditioning. I would guess the air systems are basically recycling the air that other people breath (and sneeze and cough into) cooled throughout the hotel and airplane. Remember the legionairre's outbreak at a convention hotel a few years back.




prairiegirl

03 - AKL
WL next month

 

[kmc]

i don't want to gross anyone out any further but would like to warn you of something that happened to us after our visit in may.. awhile after we returned home i noticed the bottom of my son's foot was really dry..i didnt think much of it i just kept putting lotion on it...then one morning a couple weeks later he woke up crying saying his foot hurt and when i looked the bottom of his foot was red and cracked so i took him to the doctor and he had picked up a foot fungus..the doctor told me that in the few cases he had gotton with young kids picking up a foot fungus in each case the child had recently been on vacation and used a public pool and walked around the hotel room barefoot so just a little warning about not walking around the hotel room barefoot.

 

[kwdietrich1]

Okay, I have to comment.

I am a Kidney Transplant recipient. It has been 3 years since my transplant. I have to take medicine to supress my immune system so that my body won't reject my kidney for the rest of my life. If anybody should be worried about catching germs it should be me. I am most vunerable to catching colds and other illnesses, but have been the healthiest since before my transplant (less colds/illnesses) Advice from my transplant doctor: Wash your hands. Antibacterial soaps and gels are fine, but over use of them (more than 3 times per day) is not recommended. The reason why? Our bodies as well as bacteria build up a tolerance for such chemicals, and the end result of overuse is ineffectiveness. My doctors also said that there is no need to disenfect everything on vacation unless it is for peace of mind. He actually laughed at me for even considering it. He applauded me for my desire to have good hygiene, but said that unless I have an infection related to my kidney issues, that I should not worry.

I think what I am trying to say is that do it if it makes you feel better, but it is not absolutely necessary.

 

[excitedmom]

well not to be off topicy but the thing that carries the most germs that you are in contact with alot is cash. got this from an article in the globe and mail http://globeandmail.workopolis.com/servlet/News/qprinter/20010524/UCASHN

The study released yesterday is different from previous research in the field because it tried to measure the presence of bacteria on money circulating in the general community, rather than in hospitals, in this case Dayton, Ohio.

But it found high rates of bacteria on dollar bills. Seven per cent of the money showed traces of the more serious bacteria, 86 per cent harboured more mundane bugs, and only 7 per cent were germ-free.

Bacteria are not the only unusual substance that can be found on the money people handle daily. U.S. studies in recent years have shown that more than 90 per cent of money in circulation in big cities such as New York, Miami, Houston and San Francisco, carries traces of cocaine.
Wash your hands!
The bacteria found on grocery store money can be transmitted into our systems by our unwashed hands. While they don't pose much of a risk to the general public, they are a danger for the immune-compromised.
Klebsiella pneumoniae
Symptoms include pneumonia (characterized by emission of bloody sputum), chest pain, difficulty breathing, fever, and urinary tract infections.
Enterobacter
Causes opportunistic infections of the urinary and respiratory tract as well as other parts of the body.
Pseudomonas
Associated problems include urinary tract infections, respiratory system infections, dermatitis, soft tissue infections, bacteremia and a variety of systemic infections.
Streptococcus
Some strains cause sore and red throat, tonsilitis, high fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, malaise, rhinorrhea, and occasionally a rash. Other strains cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, fever, chills, and dizziness.
Staphylococcus aureus
Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, retching, abdominal cramping, and prostration. In some cases, headache, muscle cramping, and transient changes in blood pressure and pulse rate may occur.

 

[pixie71]

Okay here's something "weird" that I do while vacationing with my 2 1/2 year old. I always bring washcloths and towels from home especially for him becasue I don't want him using the hotel towels and washcloths but I use them. It's just that if I see a hair or anything on the towel I freak And yes I have disinfected some of the things he is likely to touch while we are at the hotel.