To rinse, or not to rinse?

[Guest guest]

I note the Hanger site, too, advises rinsing after the alcohol. I

assume that means, with water? That's not what I got from STARband,

so it seems there is some discrepancy between the two.

IMHO, it is counterintuitive to re-introduce water, the foundation of

microbial life, after having largely displaced it with alcohol.

Between the rinse and the helmet drying, it seems likely that

something from the towel or the water itself would start colonizing

the helmet. Disinfectant alcohol, followed directly by the more

rapid air-drying it causes, is a relentless assault on all

microorganisms.

If the helmet is allowed to dry, either way, there should be no

liquid residue to consider. Alcohol might be more chemically

reactive with the Hanger helmet than the STARband, but I doubt that.

I speculate that Hanger believes the cleaning effect of the rinse,

removing detritus from the microenvironment, is more beneficial than

any lost gains in disinfection.

But I believe that by using a generous amount of alcohol, making the

helmet wet, brushing the helmet, and toweling with a well-wrung, damp

microfiber cleaning cloth, I can both remove all the crud and

disinfect to the max. The key is to apply the alcohol with a spray

bottle, minimizing waste.

--

Thad Launderville

Montpelier, VT

Clara age 20 months, 4 months in STARband

On Dec 13, 2009, at 12:42 AM, stacyolagundoye wrote:

> woops, sorry, is assumed that everyone knows to clean with rubbing

> alcohol. i should have made that step 4. we were advised to clean

> the band with shampoo first, rinse thoroughly, and then clean with

> rubbing alcohol and rinse thoroughly. Works amazingly well for us.

>

>

>>

>> le -

>>

>> I'm not sure what type of band you have but all of the major

>> brands (Hanger,

>> Star, Doc) specifically recommend cleaning the band with rubbing

>> alcohol.

>> Do not use shampoo or water on them. The liners of the band are

>> porous so

>> any water or other cleaning solution will get absorbed into it.

>> It might

>> feel dry but it really isn't and then the water will slowly eek

>> back out and

>> cause skin problems with the moisture sealing against skin. Worse

>> yet, skin

>> irritations can develop from baking soda, Clorox, dial soap, etc.

>> that the

>> sensitive skin of some infants just can't take. Rubbing Alcohol

>> evaporates

>> and won't irritate the skin.

>>

>> Molly

>> Novato, California

>> Nicolas, 4, tort & plagio, STARband (CIRS Oakland) 4/24/06-9/12/06,

>> Graduate!

>> , 6.5

>> , 10