Washing dishes after Norovirus outbreak

[Ivan_UK]

My mom has used most of the cups and mugs in the house to drink ginger root tea during her bout of Norovirus.

Is washing them with dish washing liquid enough or do I need to use bleach?

Also, is bleach safe to use on utensils we will be drinking out of?

Thanks for the help.

[grrlga30]

The dishwasher will actually get hot enough to kill the virus, dont use bleach, its not safe, and would leave a awful taste on your dishes.

[Ivan_UK]

I don't have a dishwasher.

It was probably was use of the phrase "dish washing liquid".

Sorry about that.

I meant just washing the dishes by hand with the liquid.

Would that be fine or are they infected?

[stefanie]

I don't have a dishwasher either, last winter my boyfriend had the noro and what i did was fill the sink with really really hot water (as hot as your hot water will get) and soak them in that with dish washing liquid and about a 1/4 cup of vinager for about 20-30 min. Then drain the sink and put some more dish liquid on a sponge or your dish cloth and scrub scrub scrub! Then rinse in the hottest water you can stand.

Dry them really really well adn that should do it! I did that and I never caught it. Also if you are really scared wash them like I said above and put them away and just avoid using those particular utensils for a week or so but seriously washing them in hot water and letting them soak should be good enough. I also like to get the dish liquid that is anti bacterial too .

[Ivan_UK]

Thanks Stefanie, but I can't really fill up my sink since I don't have one of those plugs.

The model is old and doesn't allow it.

I guess my best bet would be to just wash with really hot water and scrub for about 5-10 minutes.

I hope I don't catch the Noro!

[stefanie]

do you have a basin? Or a bucket? I would fill that with hot water even boil a kettle and pour it in with some hot tap water and dish liquid and the vinigar let them soak until you can reach in without buring your hand then pull them out and wash them in the sink.

[Ivan_UK]

Yeah, that would work perfectly.



I just have to wait for her to fall asleep, because she doesn't react well to my phobia.

She tends to laugh it off or suggest that I need a doctor urgently.

Oh well, at least I have a solution to disinfect the dishes so I can eat in peace.


Thank you!

[grrlga30]

It should be fine to wash them in hot water with soap. Thats how they say we wash it off of our hands, would probably be the same with dishes.

[Ivan_UK]

It should be fine to wash them in hot water with soap. Thats how they say we wash it off of our hands, would probably be the same with dishes.

Yeah, I hope so.

That's going to be my method for the next week or so.

I haven't caught the Noro yet, so that's a good sign.

[olschesky]

using just dish soap and rinsing well with hot water should take care of the germs......like someone stated...that's how we wash our hands.

it is ok to use bleach on dishes.........you mix with water and it is fine for rinsing the dishes in it. we use bleach here during hurricanes to disinfect our drinking water.......it won't hurt you as long as it's mixed with water......just be careful not to get it on your clothes........

but like i said....just hot/warm water and dish soap is good.....i don't have a dishwasher either........hope your mom feels better soon

[mooki]

This is all overkill. Unless she actually vomited on the dishes themselves, they shouldn't even be an issue. And even if they are infected with noro, just a regular washing is all you need. The temp of the water doesn't matter because to get it hot enough to kill noro would burn your hand. You're just flushing the noro down the drain basically.

[jandub]

Yep, I understand the want to soak things in bleach, etc., but we don't wash our hands in bleach if we've been exposed to the sv, so I'm sure the same is true for the dishes. I'd wash them with soap and hot water and call it good!