Disinfecting Towels and Shirts

[The Ranger]

I have been hit -- and hit hard -- with a fungus that spreads about one's torso (luckily) after showering and when wearing "the same shirt" throughout the day.

It's one of the fun fungus -- in that it's resilient to many of the standard forms of cleaning. The medication I'm currently using is thorough, though, and quite effective (short term). The dermatologist laughed when he mentioned this. There's a catch.

It would seem that since I don't use Institutional Towels and Uniformed White shirts, the normal "bleach it to death and destruction" instructions can't really be applied. My Sainted Mother (tm) used to use a Lysol product called Lysol's Institutional Laundry Disinfectant -- a viscous, maroon glop which the manufacturer provided a steel disposable lid to measure said stuff out. That was before everyone in the PRC had their own tort lawyer on speed dial, though, so the product -- as least in my little burg -- seems to have been yanked from the dangerous consumers' hands.

I'm looking for a similar _NON-BLEACH_ product because I like the colors I've chosen in my shirts to remain in place. I also don't want to damage the towels because SWMBO won't use Institutional Towels for similar reasons of color and softness.

Many thanks,

The "Sulfide Using" Ranger

[Michael A. Ball]

I'm not sure if you're serious, but I do have a few minutes to spare. I've supervised a couple of nursing home laundries and been involved with three hospital laundries. None of these facilities used a disinfectant in the laundry process.

In some cases an additive was used to increase the pH (and sometimes a "sour" to lower the pH). Between the effects of hot water, laundry chemicals and the drying process, hospital linen is considered disinfected. Items for surgical use are further treated to make them sterile. This is accomplished by autoclave and/or ethylene oxide.

There are many disinfectants on the market, but I found none designed for laundry use. Lysol's professional product dilutes 1:512, but that's for third sink wares washing (restaurant use).

If using a disinfectant is really important to you, go to a janitorial supply store and by a gallon of no-rinse disinfectant---Not disinfectant detergent. Wash the items and rinse them, refill the tub and add the prescribed amount of disinfectant. Agitate the load for a few minutes, halt the cycle and allow at least ten minutes of additional contact time. Complete the wash cycle and dry as usual.

When I die, I want to go where dogs go!

[The Ranger]

Michael A. Ball wondered in message news: [e-mail]...

As a heart attack.

Great!

Even better; practical experience.

Hmmm. I don't think I need go to either of these extremes (or so it would seem.)

This was a product that she could get (during the 60s and 70s) at the local super market. It was a disgusting product because you could smell it from several feet away whenever she added it to loads of towels or bedsheets...

Many thanks!

I'll hit the local retailer/wholesaler tonight. The manager is very helpful and someone I'd trust with regards to any recommendations he might make.

The Ranger

[maureeng7eh]

Hi........are you thinking of Detol (or Dettol)....was popular around that time, at least here in Canada......

[Michael A. Ball]

Around 1998, Lysol became available as a quaternary ammonium chloride disinfectant: the blue version. It is a strong germicide and very gentle to skin and environmental surfaces. As "quats" go, it is not very concentrated. A long term weakness was that quats were not tuberculocidal. That problem has been conquered, by some manufacturers.

The foul smelling product your mother used was based on Lysol's original formula, what is a "phenolic" disinfectant. Phenol being the crystalline form of carbolic acid. Phenolics are tuberculocidal, broad spectrum disinfectants which have a bacteriostatic quality. The weakness is that the in-use dilution is corrosive to skin and practically everything else.

Phenolics led to the phrase: "hospital smell".

If you find a suitable product, please, tell us about it.

When I die, I want to go where dogs go!

[Anita]

Hey Ranger. I sympathsize. My husband has to wear Nomex and we have constant heat-and-bacteria related problems during the summer. Use vinegar every single wash. EVERY ONE, in the final rinse. Toss in a cup of baking soda with the wash, then a cup of vinegar in the final rinse. Removes a large variety of screaming meemies.

[The Ranger]

Great! Thank you!

The dermatologist is right: this thing's resilient!

The Ranger

[ilaboo]

Michael

we need some more info--any medical problems like diabetes--taking any medication how old are you?

doubt fungus came from laundry--was the fungus cultured so we know what we are dealing with?

there maybe an underlying medical condition that makes you susceptible to skin fungus

tia peter

[ilaboo]

Michael

if i recall phenols are one fo the few diinfectants that can be used on unwashed materials--pine oil also has this proberty

ifirecall sounds like blue lyso is like Zepiran ( or something like that)

tia

peter

[Michael A. Ball]

Actually, its "The Ranger," the original poster, will have to provide the necessary information. I hope he sees your message.

When I die, I want to go where dogs go!

[Michael A. Ball]

Yes, as disinfectant detergent types, they are essentially identical. However, that's where their similarity ends.

I had to look up Zephiran, and found a fascinating web site discussing this awesome product.

I had mentioned that the blue Lysol was not very concentrated, and Zephiran confirms that! The blue Lysol, designed for home consumers, dilutes 1:64 or two ounces per gallon of water. Zephiran dilutes 1:750 or one ounce per 5.89 gallons of water. And look at this:

Highest Dilution of ZEPHIRAN Aqueous Solutions Destroying the Organism in 10 minutes but not in 5 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Organisms 20° C

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Streptococcus pyogenes .....1:75,000 Staphylococcus aureus ........1:52,500 Salmonella typhosa ..............1:37,500 Escherichia coli .....................1:10,500 End--end--end

Generally, good cleaners of physical soil are not very good disinfectants; and good disinfectants don't remove soil very well. Phenolics remain potent under heavy soil loads, but we talking about a quite corrosive solution--even at in-use dilutions.

Quats strike a useful balance: germicide activity and soil removal.

Humorous note: the blue Lysol has a higher "detergency" {than professional products} (complete with suds) because the household consumer equates cleaning power with the amount of suds created. LOL!

Thanks for mentioning Zephiran; its a very high tech disinfectant. I'd love to know how much it costs per gallon. Do you use it in your work?

Michael

Zildjian: world class cymbal of excellence.