So, what about mail and Amazon Prime packages?

[kenny]

Those were recently touched by people who may have cooties which are contagious days before the symptoms start.
Next, the virus can live on surfaces for some period of time.

Should we let mail and packages sit, untouched, for a few days?
And what about everything we buy on the rare occasion we leave our homes?

...

Yes, we should avoid panic, fear, and irrationality.
But making good choices based on proven medical facts is prudent to protect our health, and ultimately the health of others.

But where should we draw the line?

 

[Arcadian]

The virus can live on cardboard and plastic, don't know about glass but I'm going to assume probably. I give the box a quick wipe down and let them sit for 10 minutes. I then open the box and wipe down all the contents.. Anything you purchase from the store that has a hard package should also be wiped down.

SHOULD we do this? IMO yes especially the stuff I've read. Each individual has to decide for themselves what line they don't want to cross. I thought it was nutty at first, but now its routine.

 

[missy]

So we are not doing this but a friend texted us yesterday and this is how he and his wife are handling it. FWIW he is a scientist.



Greg just bought me some weights from Target and he sprayed it with Lysol and it is air drying. That's how we are handling things. As for the mail not spraying it or anything. But after handling anything (mail, packages etc) we wash our hands properly and thoroughly with soap and water.

 

[Queenie60]

I had pet food and supplies delivered on Sunday. I sprayed everything with Lysol on the porch, let it dry and then brought inside to store. We are in isolation mode here in the Bay Area.

 

[kenny]

Imagine receiving your 5 ct D IF Crafted by Infinity diamond from FedEx, but leaving the package unopened for 9 days?

Then after 9 days you forgot about it because you have old-man brain.

 

[Gussie]

Imagine receiving your 5 ct D IF Crafted by Infinity diamond from FedEx, but leaving the package unopened for 9 days?

Then after 9 days you forgot about it because you have old-man brain.

Worth the risk!!!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Oh, I'd be opening a package with diamonds really fast! I order from Amazon a lot, so it is unlikely I could go the next 3 months without doing so. Like Missy, I'll open the box and throw it in the garage trash can, then wash hands, wipe down the item, and wash hands again. That's my thought, but we'll see if I am that diligent when the time comes!

 

[MamaBee]

So we are not doing this but a friend texted us yesterday and this is how he and his wife are handling it. FWIW he is a scientist.



Greg just bought me some weights from Target and he sprayed it with Lysol and it is air drying. That's how we are handling things. As for the mail not spraying it or anything. But after handling anything (mail, packages etc) we wash our hands properly and thoroughly with soap and water.

@missy Look at the Lysol spray can to read what viruses it kills. I don’t believe it’s effective in killing the Coronavirus. You would need to wipe it with the Lysol or Clorox wipes. It says on the container that it kills the Coronavirus..

 

[Karl_K]

Washing hands after handling them is what we are doing.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

what is this Lysol spray you all swear by ?
will regular house hold bleech do the same thing ?
my groceries are coming tomorrow and the health dept just recommends washing anything from a supermarket

 

[arkieb1]

If it's an international package and it's been on a plane chances are the temperature variations in the cargo hold of a plane have probably killed most viruses anyway but if it is domestic then spray it down with disinfectant and don't open it for 14 days, and wash your hands properly before and after you do.

I don't think there have been any cases recorded yet of anyone being infected from mail.....

@Daisys and Diamonds - we don't have it in Australia or NZ, do you have Glen 20? It does the same thing.

 

[kenny]

If it's an international package and it's been on a plane chances are the temperature variations in the cargo hold of a plane have probably killed most viruses anyway but if it is domestic ...

But even if it was in a jet, it's here now and humans touched it between the jet and your door.

So, I'd say a package's origin and jet travel is irrelevant.

 

[arkieb1]

But even if it was in a jet, it's here now so it has been touched by domestic humans between the jet and your door.

So, I'd say a package's origin and jet travel is irrelevant.

Yes I see your point, I was more talking about getting packages from Wuhan and Italy before they shut Italy down. You are talking about the workers in the US being infected. Here in Australia I don't think there are many postal workers infected, if any, we are tracking EVERY single case when it shows up here, who has it where it came from, who they had contact with.

All things the US should have done much earlier.....

I ordered a jewellery related item from Belgium that hasn't shown up yet and will be getting something that has gone Canada to the US, back to Canada, probably back to the US and then to Australia.... so I guess I'll be thinking about it more.

Are you disinfecting food and groceries as well? If people are worried about mail then things like groceries that have not only been handled by workers but also potentially by whomever in the general population that has walked past them and touched them or put them back in shops would be in the same situation....

 

[kenny]

Yes I see your point, I was more talking about getting packages from Wuhan and Italy before they shut Italy down. You are talking about the workers in the US being infected.
Here in Australia I don't think there are many postal workers infected,

It only takes one.

Plus, the insidious thing about this virus is you are contagious days before you develop symptoms.
Brilliant!
Smart virus!

So, you are unwittingly contaminating others with COVID-19, glob only knows how many, before you even know you have it and start taking measures.
Such a worker touching everyone's mail is worrisome.

Yes countries with fewer cases (so far) are considered to be in the "earlier stage" of the same the process happening everywhere.
But again, it only takes one.

 

[arkieb1]

Yes the same thing is happening everywhere, but countries spreading the curve of infection out over a longer slower period of time will give their health departments a better chance of dealing with the most critical cases....

I'd be more worried about things like gas/fuel pump handles (think about how many people touch those a day) and public transport, I have kids, kids all together at school are a cesspool of germs, than mail....

Our Government understood this concept weeks ago:

Coronavirus: What is 'flattening the curve,' and will it work?

Many hundreds of thousands of infections will happen — but they don't all have to happen at once.

www.livescience.com

Your Government is run by a moron that initially was declaring the thing a hoax and fake news meanwhile he allowed who knows how many infected people into your country....

Italy and China were able to get the virus under control but they only did that after a rapid spike or peak of infection which mean their health systems couldn't cope with the amount of people presenting needing ICU beds all at once. America is probably going to have the same pattern as Italy, I'd guess in around two to three weeks ( +- ) time.

Like those countries you will get it under control by making every one stay at home and your whole country will be forced to shut down. That is how their cases started to decline.

Countries like Australia, New Zealand and many others that took really proactive measures earlier will spread the curve of infection out over a long slower period (well that's the aim) and the theory is they are better able to deal with a lower slower peak when it hits.

 

[kenny]

...
Your Government is run by a moron that initially was declaring the thing a hoax and fake news meanwhile he allowed who knows how many infected people into your country....
...

I didn't vote for that moron.

Many here did.

 

[arkieb1]

I didn't vote for that moron.

Many here did.

Here's my plan if any elderly relatives that live not near ICU hospitals get it. I'm going to insist their local medical staff give them either the Malaria drug or the HIV drug named in this article. A specialist and researcher local to me has already been giving these drugs to people in my city and they have now given them in Asia with a successful outcome;

Researchers want to trial drug ‘cure’ for coronavirus on patients

A team of Australian researchers say they’ve found a cure for the novel coronavirus and hope to have patients enrolled in a nationwide trial by the end of the month.

www.news.com.au

Australian researchers have found a CURE for coronavirus

Researchers at the University of Queensland in Australia hope to start human trials by the end of this month to see if the coronavirus can be stopped by drugs made for HIV and malaria.

www.dailymail.co.uk

I figure if any elderly relatives get the virus and can potentially die anyway these are tablets, what's the worst they can do? Not work and they die anyway. They have already successfully given these to people with the virus, they haven't done a fully controlled and written up study yet so they cannot legally claim to the rest of the world this is the cure yet, they are about to undertake the controlled study so they can do that.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

If it's an international package and it's been on a plane chances are the temperature variations in the cargo hold of a plane have probably killed most viruses anyway but if it is domestic then spray it down with disinfectant and don't open it for 14 days, and wash your hands properly before and after you do.

I don't think there have been any cases recorded yet of anyone being infected from mail.....

@Daisys and Diamonds - we don't have it in Australia or NZ, do you have Glen 20? It does the same thing.

havn't heard of Glen 20 either
sounds like an old sci fi show !

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

what is this Lysol spray you all swear by ?
will regular house hold bleech do the same thing ?
my groceries are coming tomorrow and the health dept just recommends washing anything from a supermarket

Bleach ist antiviral so works in this case @Daisys and Diamonds

 

[MaisOuiMadame]

I received a package from northern Italy (UK website, UK merchant, did NOT know their logistics centre was in Bologna)
I handled the cardboard with gloves in the garage.There was only fabric inside, that was protected by individual fabric bags. Since the virus can live max 12 hours on fabric and I know it was in transit for 5days, the clothes were safe to open

 

[Niffler75]

Imagine receiving your 5 ct D IF Crafted by Infinity diamond from FedEx, but leaving the package unopened for 9 days?

Then after 9 days you forgot about it because you have old-man brain.

@kenny Ok I have just spat my coffee out laughing. I don't think I could wait!

 

[missy]

@missy Look at the Lysol spray can to read what viruses it kills. I don’t believe it’s effective in killing the Coronavirus. You would need to wipe it with the Lysol or Clorox wipes. It says on the container that it kills the Coronavirus..

Thanks @Mamabean for that info...It looks like the regular Lysol does not have Coronavirus listed so you are right. The professional Lysol which we don't have does have Coronavirus listed -thanks google for that info. I guess we can just do the best we can. We have to open our packages and our mail and our deliveries (if we are able to get anything delivered right now which doesn't seem possible anyway). So no choice.

Here is a list as to what is effective against Coronavirus.

The EPA recommends using these home-cleaning products on surfaces to protect against the new coronavirus

The EPA has a registered list of cleaning products expected to be effective against COVID-19. Here are the products and where to buy them online.

www.businessinsider.com

And as @kipari and others have wisely pointed out bleach is effective against Coronavirus.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I wouldn't rely on labels that say coronavirus because that is likely referring to the common coronavirus that is associated with colds.

Anyway, I just read a study that says how long they think it lasts on surfaces:

plastic and stainless steel: virus could be detected after 3 days (half-life @ 5.5 - 7 hours)

cardboard: virus not viable after 24 hours (so one could leave a package for 24+ hours and be safer opening it, it sounds like).

The virus decreases in viability over time, so on cardboard, the half-life was about 3.5 hours.

I think the best part about that is that all the hands that touched the outer package at the point of origin and in transit won't matter by the time it comes. So it's more the hands of the delivery person that matter.

 

[sarahb]

@missy, thank you for posting that list from the EPA, very helpful.

 

[missy]

Italy and China were able to get the virus under control but they only did that after a rapid spike or peak of infection which mean their health systems couldn't cope with the amount of people presenting needing ICU beds all at once. America is probably going to have the same pattern as Italy, I'd guess in around two to three weeks ( +- ) time.

Italy, as far as I understand, does not have it under control at all. Doctors and nurses overwhelmed and equipment and supplies running out. It is getting much worse there. So upsetting and scary.

The USA is just 2 weeks behind Italy in the number of cases.

Coronavirus, China, Italy: Your Thursday Briefing (Published 2020)

Here’s what you need to know.

www.nytimes.com

Opinion | I’m a Doctor in Italy. We Have Never Seen Anything Like This. (Published 2020)

My country’s health care system may soon collapse.

www.nytimes.com

And Italy has more hospital beds and doctors per capita than the USA has.



At least China has no new cases. That is great news.

 

[missy]

FYI:

 

[missy]

For those of us who cannot find EPA recommend products to disinfect the house re Coid-19...Clorox wipes etc.

Use Household (diluted) bleach..one teaspoon of bleach to one cup of water.

Alcohol solutions with at least 70% alcohol.

And if you cannot find any of the above just use soap and warm water to wipe germs away.

 

[kenny]

For those of us who cannot find EPA recommend products to disinfect the house re Coid-19...Clorox wipes etc.

Use Household (diluted) bleach..one teaspoon of bleach to one cup of water.

Alcohol solutions with at least 70% alcohol.

And if you cannot find any of the above just use soap and warm water to wipe germs away.

I just put pure 70% Isopropyl Alcohol, into a spray bottle - super cheap and available at Costco.

It's only around 10% of the price of any brand name product, and it's the active ingredient everyone tells us to look for in a hand sanitizer.
It can dry your skin out though so I use one of those disposable Nitrile gloves, which cost only 5 cents each at Costco.
Spray bottles are a buck or two at Home Depot or the 99 cent store.

I walk around the house and use it to spray & wipe doorknobs, handles in the kitchen, etc.
I also prefer it to bleach as I don't have to worry about it staining clothing, dishtowels etc.

 

[Arcadian]

As a reminder to all take great care with what you mix with bleach. water is still OK...lol

 

[1ofakind]

I'm opening packages and mail as usual and then washing hands. Hand washing, not touching face and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces should be fine. If you try to disinfect everything someone else has touched you'll need a second can of Lysol to spray the first one. A nice lady bagged my groceries today and I touched the same bags...and then washed my hands when I finished unloading them. But what about the groceries? Someone put them on the shelf, maybe some shopper picked it up before me. At that point I stop worrying and wash my own hands...and try, try, try again to keep my hands away from my face.