Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Cross Contamination

Ok this is serious...

1. People towels and dog towels are washed separately.
2. People towels/clothes and cleaning rags are DEFINITELY suppose to be washed separately.
(People towels that are washed with dog or cleaning rags become dog or cleaning rags. This can become expensive when these two rules are ignored)
3. Rags are washed after all the clothes are done, after the rags come the dog towels. This way cleaning rag juices that aren't killed with bleach get on dog towels instead of MY clothes.

Ok so your getting the idea right?

Well this isn't the only way this whole cross contamination idea can be applied. In our house we have 2 sponges, sounds simple right? One is for washing dishes that can't go in the dishwasher, the other is for cleaning the chickens eggs. Let me just take this moment to remind you that eggs are not the only thing that come from the back end of a chicken and their eggs MUST be washed. So yeah, I keep the dish washing sponge up so it isn't used for cleaning eggs or counters, it can *only* wash dishes (because you know, some of the things it washes goes in your mouth). The chicken sponge is usually left at the sink ready for the eggs. I am obsessive about warning anyone who may use a sponge which is which, you think they would listen. I don't let guest's do dishes but roommates are another story, haha. Back when we lived in Homer and had 2 roomies I warned those two OVER and Over about all this, because I just knew it was bound to happen. One afternoon just after they moved in I go up and one of them had done all the dishes, (it was really sweet and an unbelievable pile that day) being that it wasn't me or Marty who washed them I just had to ask....

me: You used the dish sponge right?
him: ummmmm....
me: you didn't use the chicken sponge right??
him: ummmmm..... (looking a bit worried)
me: haha, which one did you use?
him: ummmmm...... that one...
me: yikes.
him: oh...
me: I'm gonna wash all those dishes again, with a LOT of bleach
him: ok I'll help
**Never happened again after that, I can say for sure. LOL**

This whole cross contamination idea is another great reason for shower/hand soap in a squeeze bottle for guests. Ya know, because who wants to use the same bar of soap as the last guy, you never know where its been or what he may have touched before washing his hands.

My apologies to anyone who didn't share these peeves until now but I'm just wondering if any of you have your own cross contamination peeve? I may not have enough, lol.

11 comments:

Heidi said...

Bossco... I now worry about you... I understand the cross-contamination but why not put the chicken sponge away and leave out the one for the dishes and counters. It might help out any confusion.
Bar soap it gross, the girls helped me figure that one out. My next battle in cross contamination...the PEANUT BUTTER JAR!!

Princess Sarah said...

so i dont use spongges, learned they hold in bacteiria so yuk no sponges here, shoers gross no soap bars here either, we use liquid soap their, and kids have their own puff and so do trav and i have our own if a guest were to show up, i would just give them a washcloth... as for dishes we have a scrubber, with bristles that too gets in the dishwasher for its cleaning too, and i just use a washcloth for the counertops and the table, if i had chickens i guess i would need something for it too....i talk to trav about the cross contamination thing and he laughs like it isnt real...wish we all could be so nieve lol...you should think of the sponge holder, and label them...maybe an idea for ya

MrsM said...

haha Your just now gettin to worry about me???

The peanut butter jar, I forgot about that one. Can't mix jelly and peanut butter till its on the sandwich, I'm so with the girls on that one. As for the sponge, I dont use my dish sponge on the counter, ick. When I leave the dish sponge out people tend to grab it and use it in careless places. Another tip, I find sponges clean dishes better then rags or bristle, if you microwave them for a few seconds it zaps the germs out.

That's funny about trav too, isn't he the one who didn't like the idea of that whole nut cross contamination thing? The thing we were laughing about last week?

FishTaxi said...

I am anal about sponge usage. I like the yellow sponges with the green scrub side. I buy a big bag of them.

New one is used for dishes only until SOMEBODY wipes up coffee with it then I use that one for wiping out the microwave and other dirty chores. The dirty one sits on the right side of the sink and the dishwasher one on the left of the sink and I NEVER leave it it the water. It always has to sit on the edge of the sink when not in use. I find they start smelling funny faster when you leave them in the sink.

Also, when somebody is sick in the house I add a capful of bleach to the dish water. No dishwasher here so I feel handwashing dishes isn't hot enough sometimes.

My husband is a diesel mechanic who wears black carharts. After he washes his clothes I clean out the washer with simple green & bleach.

Sorry about the long comment but I am way with you on this topic.

john r mclay said...

Wanna worry? Did you know that if you flush the toilet with the lid UP, water vapors from the moving/flushing bowl can travel as far as TEN FEET!? Is your toothbrush covered?...another reason to close the lid.
I shouldn't get started on body sponges/loofahs (with the dead skin and all)...

Heidi said...

oh he just hates my Loofa...

Anonymous said...

I have been trying to find a sponge that was shaped like a chicken or an egg so it would be easy to spot. Maybe you should take one of your sponges and cut one out like a chicken head or an egg. I know sometimes when I'm up there I always forget where the dish one is. I'm still looking for a cute sponge for you.

Mom

Klondike Kate said...

That's so funny Mom! I was looking for the same thing! =-)

I'm not nearly as paranoid about the cross-contamination thing in the laundry. Towels just get washed. i do wash cleaning cloths seperate since I don't want the bleach to get anywhere else.

I hate sponges. Since I rarely do dished by hand I just use a wash cloth or the bristle thingy. I love the big container of disinfectant wipes. I love using something clean to wipe up and then *throw away* the dirt and germs.

MrsM said...

haha Fishtaxi I swear when it comes to this we are two peas in a pod.

And John, yikes I can't stop thinking about that one. Sure, close my toilet lid but still, it doesn't seal. Even with my toothbrush in the drawer there are still other things... Most of us have small bathrooms, and you can only put so much away, at the very least the floor, shower rug, bathtub, toilet paper, and toilet seat are all still available for the toilet juices to get on, lid down or not. And the worse part is that beyond saranwrapping my toilet before every flush, I do not see a solution for this. Yuck yuck yuck.

Anonymous said...

Gulp! Are you talking about eggs you get from the chickens in your back yard? Or are you talking about the eggs in carton fromt the store? I was sure that they were washed before being put into the carton...at least until now. I'm not sure!

As far as the counter/rag/towel thing, we do that here. Oh yeah, we do that here. With two babies, puke, poop, snot, etc...sorry. I hope no one was eating and reading.

MrsM said...

haha thats hilarious logan. While I would definitely rinse the eggs from the store, I get eggs from the chickens in my backyard. Sorry to get a little graphic but when you take them from the chicken coop at least half have you-know-what stuck to the shells. But after you comment I guess my bigger warning should be that the other half from the coop *appear* to be clean.