Sanitizing Garden Gloves

[greenthumbomaha]

I've been on a mission to clean my pots and seed starting containers since we are having a late summer warm weather week. I left my nitrile/spandex Atlas-style garden gloves to soak in a bucket of dilute dish detergent, rinsed them out , hung to dry and they turned stiff as a board.

Not to complicate something this simple, but how do you clean and sanitize your gloves?

- Lisa

[AlittleSalt]

Lisa,

I had to look that one up https://www.google.com/search?q=nitr...IBygC&dpr=1.25

I do use gloves while gardening. Leather gloves to drive T Posts and move lumber. Jersey gloves to pull weeds. And vinyl gloves to save pepper seeds with. When I was younger, I was a mason and many times I actually saw my fingertip bones.

However, I cannot answer your question - other than maybe using some bleach?

[HudsonValley]

I put that kind through the laundry in a mesh bag - warm wash, drip dry. I'm not sure the gloves are sanitized, but I haven't noticed problems so far. Avoid chlorine bleach (Clorox) on anything with spandex - it causes the fibers to break down.

[Worth1]

I have no idea but it was a reaction of some sort.
I personally dont wear gloves but I darn sure will if I am messing with brick mortar or concrete.
Anything with hydrated lime in it.
I cant count how many times I have told people you need to wear gloves and they didn't on that one.

Worth

[Gerardo]

I wash my vinyl gloves by hand in dishwashing solution with some orange cleaner from the dollar store.

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I've been on a mission to clean my pots and seed starting containers since we are having a late summer warm weather week. I left my nitrile/spandex Atlas-style garden gloves to soak in a bucket of dilute dish detergent, rinsed them out , hung to dry and they turned stiff as a board.

Not to complicate something this simple, but how do you clean and sanitize your gloves?

- Lisa

When I manage to keep gloves on, I usually just rinse them off before I take them off, then let them dry in the sun. I always intend to wear gloves when I'm potting up and mixing soil (and digging in the soil), but somehow the only time I do keep them on is when I'm working with compost or mixing lots of planting mix.

But I have had that same thing happen with cheaper gloves -- they dry stiff. iirc, it didn't happen with the actual Atlas gloves, just with the Burpee knockoffs.

[bower]

Ditto about beware of bleach. I made that mistake and the nitrile turned hard and cracked. Started using dish liquid instead and that's working fine so far.

[dustdevil]

Ferment the gloves

[greenthumbomaha]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

When I manage to keep gloves on, I usually just rinse them off before I take them off, then let them dry in the sun. I always intend to wear gloves when I'm potting up and mixing soil (and digging in the soil), but somehow the only time I do keep them on is when I'm working with compost or mixing lots of planting mix.

But I have had that same thing happen with cheaper gloves -- they dry stiff. iirc, it didn't happen with the actual Atlas gloves, just with the Burpee knockoffs.

I have several knock offs and one pair of Atlas. I guess the cheaper ones will be considered disposable. Maybe my hard water made them stiff. I switch pairs out after pruning diseased leaves and wash en mass at seasons end.

Several years ago I had a life threatening mersa type infection run up my arm from scratching a mosquito bite with soil under my fingernails. I now know to use gloves, but also peel them off when doing the fine work. I was told surgeons shouldn't be gardeners because of the bacteria under their fingernails. Good lesson for the rest of us.

- Lisa

[brownrexx]

I have several pair of the Nitrile palm/mesh back gloves like the Atlas ones. I just throw them into the washer with work clothes and then air dry them.

I have had no trouble with the nitrile cracking and I have not had any deteriorate from washing although I do not wash them all that often, just when they are really, really dirty. I throw them away when holes wear through the finger tips.

[Labradors2]

Yowser Lisa!

It certainly makes you think doesn't it? I have a heck of a time getting my hands clean after working around the tomato plants, but a friend bought me some "Surgical Scrub" brushes*, which do a great job of getting a lot of the dirt off.

I bought a12-pack of nitrile gardening gloves and wear them a lot (not always for working around the tomatoes though). I throw them in the wash when they get dirty and they come out nice and clean.

Linda

* Available from Lee Valley in Canada, and not expensive either!!! (I have no affiliation BTW).

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I have several knock offs and one pair of Atlas. I guess the cheaper ones will be considered disposable. Maybe my hard water made them stiff. I switch pairs out after pruning diseased leaves and wash en mass at seasons end.

Several years ago I had a life threatening mersa type infection run up my arm from scratching a mosquito bite with soil under my fingernails. I now know to use gloves, but also peel them off when doing the fine work. I was told surgeons shouldn't be gardeners because of the bacteria under their fingernails. Good lesson for the rest of us.

- Lisa

Lisa,it surprises me,the retired Microbiologist,when you say that you got a MRSA TYPE of infection from SOIL,since that's not where MRSA hangs out but I'm not sure what you mean by type of.

When I fell and was out for over a month this past Spring,when I was in the cardiac unit and was transferring to a different place for rehab,they asked for 3 consecutive nasopharengyl a swabs that were clear before they admitted anyone,and that was standard at the hospital as well, but if it was an ASAP situation they would go ahead and do what they had to do but also put in an extra IV line with a couple of antibiotics known to inhibit MRSA to one degree or another.

Surgeons not gardeners?

Richard,my ortho surgeon has the most beautiful gardens that I've ever seen since when I was still able to drive my own car I was having kidney stone problems and that MD was at the corner of the st where Richard and wife and son lived.I still remember his address was 117 ------ st since it reminded me of the tomato variety Russian 117.

There are other surgeons I know of who also have wonderful gardens.As Richard said once,yes,my hands are how I make my living but I'm not going to let that take precedence to do what I want to do on my own time.

About gloves?I solved that one many years ago.

I never used them,especially with the veggies, and if my hands got black when harvesting fruits,like many others I just took a semi-rotten tomato and washed my hands with that.Nothing better.

I once had over 100 rose bushes and when pruning them,for sure I wore gloves.

Carolyn

[Worth1]

Nitrile is one of the most resistant to chemicals and oils there is.
Now that I know what they are I have worn them at work and have had everything under the sun on them with no problem.
What I think happened is the result of China garbage fakes.
These people are shameless in what they will do.
Even manufactures that specify quality are getting ripped off.

Here is a good place to get your gloves.
Many selections to choose from.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...QK5ClRtFlqB0Iw

[bower]

Originally Posted by dustdevil

Ferment the gloves

Splarf!!! You purist.

[bower]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I have several knock offs and one pair of Atlas. I guess the cheaper ones will be considered disposable. Maybe my hard water made them stiff. I switch pairs out after pruning diseased leaves and wash en mass at seasons end.

Several years ago I had a life threatening mersa type infection run up my arm from scratching a mosquito bite with soil under my fingernails. I now know to use gloves, but also peel them off when doing the fine work. I was told surgeons shouldn't be gardeners because of the bacteria under their fingernails. Good lesson for the rest of us.

- Lisa

I am all about the gloves too, because I hate tearing up my hands, but even more so if I have even the tiniest cut... nothing irritates a cut like working in the dirt! One scratch and I want a bandaid and disposable latex gloves INSIDE my work gloves.
There's a trick I learned many years ago, a fresh sage leaf will clean out a cut and prevent infection like nobody's business. I always stick a sage leaf inside my bandaid or just use sage and bandage tape to seal it onto the wound. The only drawback is that it tends to heal the cut open instead of closed. But what the heck... keeps the doctor away.