How to thrift during the Coronavirus pandemic.

COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease) has the world at a stand still. People are practicing social distancing, self-quarantining, and have even ransacked every supermarket in sight of it’s daily essentials thanks to public fear stoked by hourly news coverage. It all feels too much like a scene out of a bad zombie movie.

As with every pandemic of the past, this too shall pass. Question is, how can you safely thrift during this pandemic?

I pose a serious question, though difficult to answer, it must be in the front of all our minds. To answer this question, one must practice deep self-reflection of thrifting techniques and do a ton of research via Google on how to truly protect yourself and others even after the virus has passed.

Comment below if you know of any safe thrifting techniques.

As fashion journalists, we write about things that we love and think you like too. Men of Thrift often has affiliate partnerships, and may generate some revenue from links at no cost to you.

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Tips to Follow after the COVID-19 Pandemic:

Thrifting Process

According to the  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, coronavirus may remain viable for hours to days on surfaces made from a variety of materials, which includes clothing.

The  National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease states, “Some viruses can remain active after two or three days on plastic and stainless steel, 24 hours on cardboard and four hours on copper.” Think of the hardware on your thrift clothing like buttons, zippers and other clothing pieces.

Wear latex gloves when touching thrift clothes. Once your done thrifting, throw away your gloves as you do not want to spread any possible germs from one surface to another.

Carry thrift clothes in a plastic bag, and be sure to spray it with disinfectant before transporting home.

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Cleaning Your Hands

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that you should clean your hands often:

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

• Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds especially after you have been in a public place.

• If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.

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Washing Thrift Clothes

Be sure to spray your washer and dryer machines with disinfectant before and after use. Reapply gloves. and put the thrift clothes from the plastic bag into the washer. Spray the plastic bag with lysol then throw it away along with the gloves and wash your hands. Don’t forget to include in your laundry pile the clothing you wore when thrifting.

Family and emergency Dr. Janette Nesheiwat suggests that polyester, spandex-like material may retain germs longer than breathable cotton-based fabrics, making it important to wash leggings, underwear and dresses more carefully.

When washing clothes the National Health Service states:

• Normal washing of clothes will reduce the risk of germs being transmitted. In certain situations clothes should be washed at higher than normal temperatures and with a bleach-based product to minimise the transmission risk as much as possible

• Wash high-risk items separately from other items.

• Wash your hands after handling unwashed clothes.

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References

1. Prevention of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). (2020, March 18).

2. Can clothes and towels spread germs? (2018, August 8). Retrieved from https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/infections/can-clothes-and-towels-spread-germs/

3. Leiva, C. (2020, March 19). How Long Coronavirus Lives On Clothes, And How To Wash Them. Retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-long-coronavirus-live-clothing-washing_l_5e724927c5b6eab779409e74?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAANm0aGSTdU1pU3qQl6EbuGuz5c9xw6egr0L33Zhi5jMFXJXcbWL3_SmgXlaUss4x8v_jxOSJO4G6WdBSTLpORUyKbAkQsD02R4ZCKsYdSzAjNBQ0wr1T7WdgUe_-TV6WciWgqsiVSVwhcZtk0wz9xlSIrnmLUwfLX_-AqC4zi0-x

4. New Coronavirus Stable for Hours on Surfaces. (2020, March 17). Retrieved from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/news-events/new-coronavirus-stable-hours-surfaces

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