As Australians prepare to hibernate, the focus has shifted to the best ways to protect homes from the coronavirus.
A series of practical steps for maintaining good hygiene at home has been recommended by health experts with alcohol-based hand sanitizer cleaning products recommended.
Experts believe that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is transferred largely by droplets when an infected person talks, coughs or sneezes in close proximity to another person. As a result, social distancing is crucial also avoid touching your eyes, nose use paper towels, and wash your hands with soap.
* Households are a new front in the fight against coronavirus-like surfaces in your home.
* Experts recommend using a detergent and disinfectant to clean surfaces with soap and water and use hand sanitiser always
* They recommend focusing on high-traffic locations such as doorknobs, door handles, and benches
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledges that someone could contract the virus by touching a contaminated object and then touching their own mouth, nose, or eyes. However, the chances of this happening are slim, especially if you practice good hand hygiene.
When it comes to preventing the virus from spreading, wearing a mask and keeping a safe physical distance from others are no-brainers. But, especially in your own house, how cautious should you still be while handling and cleaning things and surfaces? So far, here’s what we know.
Is it possible for COVID-19 to propagate through surfaces?
The coronavirus has been found in studies to stay on surfaces for hours or days, depending on the surface.
While you don’t have to wipe down everything you touch or bring into your house on a daily basis, it’s still a good idea to clean high-contact surfaces on a frequent basis. If no one with COVID-19 has been in your house or space, the CDC recommends cleaning surfaces once a day with water and soap (or detergent) to eliminate any virus that may be present.
If someone in your family is ill, the CDC recommends washing and sanitizing high-touch areas such as doorknobs, handles, worktops, and light switches.
It’s also a good idea to do some extra cleaning and disinfection if:
- Your town has a high rate of COVID-19 instances.
- There aren’t many individuals wearing masks where you are.
- Members in your family have poor hand hygiene habits.
- If someone in your home is infected with COVID-19 at a high-risk level.
- Hand washing or sanitizing on a regular basis can also help remove most germs picked up from touching a contaminated surface.
What about the box that was just delivered to my door? Is it secure?
Shopping online is safer than shopping in person since it avoids the close person-to-person contact that is the most common cause of COVID-19 transmission.
While research revealed that the coronavirus may survive for up to 24 hours on cardboard boxes, the CDC claims that the virus is unlikely to spread from packaging that is delivered over many days via mail.
How can I keep COVID-19 from infecting my home?
- Taking your shoes off before entering the house is a good idea, especially for children who like to jump on beds.
- Non-porous objects, such as takeout containers, can be cleaned with detergent or soapy water, but fresh vegetables should be washed.
- Sanitizing the mobile phone also if your kids try to use them
- Hand sanitizers and disinfectants are insufficient.
COVID-19 has been shown to survive for up to 72 hours outside the body on plastic and stainless steel surfaces.
Because the virus is spread by hand-to-hand contact, doctors advise washing off any surfaces that are often touched.
Cleaning up the home
* If you only want to clean, hot, soapy water is usually sufficient.
* If you want to disinfect, clean first, then disinfect using the least toxic, most biodegradable solution that does the job.
* Make sure that any product you use doesn’t damage the surface you’re working on.
* Place ill house residents in quarantine for 14 days and boost cleanliness.
Think about cleaning their room a bit more frequently, applying disinfectant after washing hands, and cleaning the taps.
If a member of the family develops COVID-19 symptoms, they should be isolated in one room, ideally with their own bathroom.
For a fortnight, contact with people should be kept to a bare minimum, and cleaning should be done multiple times each day.
To reduce the danger of transmission, clothing and bed linens should be cleaned more often if feasible, using gloves and surgical masks.
Because an infected person’s clothing and silverware might transmit the infection, they should be kept apart.
A dishwasher is fantastic because it kills the virus. If you don’t have one, hot water as hot as you can stand it — would suffice.
Wiping in a ‘S’ shaped pattern minimizes re-contamination and ensures that the whole surface area is covered.
Cleaning methods can also make a difference when it comes to infection risk.
Wearing disposable gloves is also recommended.
If infection occurs, and it will most likely occur in one of the household members, then the transition will be simpler.
While these precautions do not guarantee infection-free living, it helps reduce the likelihood of the virus entering a household.
