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Original poster

Are you preparing your home in case of Covid?

179 replies

QueenBlueberries · 23/09/2020 09:06

The Government is now saying that most of the contagion happens in the home, so I wanted to ask if you wouldn't mind sharing any tips on how to try and prevent Covid from spreading from one member of the family to others.

I have prepared a small box (shoe box) with gloves, masks, Dettol, an old baby monitor (my kids are teenagers now but I somehow kept a baby monitor all those years at the back of a cupboard), paracetamol, face masks and a face shield. We have two bathrooms so I know how we will use the bathrooms in case someone gets infected. We also have good neighbours and we have all agreed to get food for each other if one of us get ill.

Any other tips??

OP posts:
Oly4 · 23/09/2020 09:08

You will be fine, as long as the infected person stays in a bedroom and has sole use of one bathroom, that’s the main thing you can do.

Twickerhun · 23/09/2020 09:08

What’s the baby monitor for??

We just have lots of soap available,otherwise cracking on as normal

Original poster
QueenBlueberries · 23/09/2020 09:10

Baby monitor is because my kids are older, the will stay in their bedroom with the door shut, and one of them is in the loft room - it's a three story townhouse.

OP posts:
IloveJKRowling · 23/09/2020 09:12

Since my DD is very little and usually wants me in with her when sick, I can't avoid catching it without neglecting her. She's by far the most likely to catch it in school. If she catches it I'm pretty much stuffed (thanks government for your nonsensical, crap school reopening plans and lack of funding).

BrieAndChilli · 23/09/2020 09:12

We only have 1 bathroom so not a lot we can do! If someone gets it we all get it.

lughnasadh · 23/09/2020 09:14

I don't think there's much you can do within your home.

The point is to stop it spreading into the homes of others, by staying put yourselves.

That's what they mean by reducing spread within private homes.

Itsabeautifuldayheyhey · 23/09/2020 09:17

What’s the baby monitor for??
Presumably an infected person can communicate their needs to others without leaving their isolation ward room? Sounds like a good idea to me.

Thermometer? Pulse oximeter to be used by the infected person in the event of being extremely breathless to reassure them their oxygen saturation isn't going down? (Or in the event of a drop to a worrying level, to indicate when an ambulance should be called?).

Pootles34 · 23/09/2020 09:17

Do we not have mobile phones for communicating?

SweetGrapes · 23/09/2020 09:18

We have loads of hand sanitizer and soap in.

The living room and adjoining cloakroom are our designated sick room and toilet.

That's what we used in march when I was sick.

The rest of the family didn't seem to catch anything (other than ds who I suspect brought it in as he was still going to school over public transport while we were all wfh)

I had food brought in, separate plates that went straight to the dishwasher. And I sanitised my way out of the cloakroom - taps, toilet seat cover, door handles, light switches)

BiddyPop · 23/09/2020 09:21

Similar. We've worked out which room is the isolation room (well, if DH or I get sick really - DD is in the attic here too) and which bathroom gets used by who.

We have masks, gloves, hand sanitiser, lots of liquid soap, etc - not all gathered together but it's the work of moments as they are all placed around the house in places for use. Gloves and hand sanitiser behind the front door.

I have spare bottles of squash in my stash, as I reckon ill people will need lots to drink. And there is a travel kettle in the spare room (isolation room) that I will be pulling off its shelf - DH may not necessarily use it, but I definitely would for lots of tea without bothering others.

My plan is that the isolation room would have a coolbox with icepacks renewed daily to hold a bottle of milk and a couple of cold things (some butter, jam, ham, cheese, fruit etc). I would have teabags and instant hot choc mix, maybe some instant coffee (but in all likelihood would just beg for the bigger cafetiere to be filled and delivered to me). A couple of packs of biscuits and a half pan of bread, and some other snacks (and a bottle of screwtop wine for medicinal purposes =- screwtop so I can take a glass and close it again for tomorrow). There are already a few books in here, and my crafts (as it's also my office at present) - but I would make sure to bring a few more. And I already have phone charger etc in here too.

awesomeaircraft · 23/09/2020 09:21

@BrieAndChilli I use a disinfectant spray. Covid teen sprays handles/bath/wash basin after use. We do have a spare loo though so it is now their dedicated one.

vodkaredbullgirl · 23/09/2020 09:22

Not really prepared, other than having masks, bleach, hand sanatiser. Always do my shopping online.

userxx · 23/09/2020 09:22

We only have 1 bathroom so not a lot we can do! If someone gets it we all get it.

I know of 2 people who tested positive and no one else in their household did so that's not necessarily the case. They were also 1 bathroom homes.

hamstersarse · 23/09/2020 09:26

I honestly think you have lost your minds

Original poster
QueenBlueberries · 23/09/2020 09:30

We do have mobile phones but the wifi doesn't reach the loft so DS can speak to me if he needs to. Sorry wasn't clear in my post. I have a few things around the house and masks for school but I tend to run out of things without noticing, hence a few in the box so we don't use it and it's always there, I wont have to look for it.

OP posts:
Whataplonkerheis · 23/09/2020 09:34

My kids are teens now but I have loads of unused paper plates left over from when we used to host kids parties. I’ve bundled those up to use to serve food on to anyone isolating in our designated sickroom (spare bedroom) so they can just go in the rubbish rather than be washed.

At least then they will be used rather than just go to landfill to declutter my kitchen cupboards.

Original poster
QueenBlueberries · 23/09/2020 09:36

I might invest in a wifi booster, I can't imagine the phone bill with a 15 year old in the loft and no wifi... Thermometer, yes I have one somewhere, good idea. And a few packs biscuits, of course...

OP posts:
Stradivari · 23/09/2020 09:37

How bizarre. But maybe thats because I’m talking from a place of not having fifteen rooms in my house to decamp the unwell into. If one person in my house gets it, they can rest and recuperate in bed but will have to share the bathroom and kitchen with everyone else.

ChromaBook · 23/09/2020 09:38

No. IMO unless you live in a mansion there is literally zero point in doing this.

If one of us gets it we'll all get it.

Stradivari · 23/09/2020 09:38

Wtf? Just wash your plates with washing up liquid and water for 20-30 seconds!

ChromaBook · 23/09/2020 09:38

I mean, I live in a 500sq ft flat with DH and DS. I do marvel at how out of touch some people on MN must be with other people's lives if they seriously believe that the majority of people have got sufficient space in their home that allows them to quarantine people completely separately.

Baaaahhhhh · 23/09/2020 09:39

When DD has Covid in March, she just stayed in her room as much as possible with the window open. She ate up there too. We didn't make any other changes. She used the main bathroom, cleaned up after herself, she used normal plates etc, which just went in the dishwasher. We kept our distance as much as possible. We didn't use masks, or gloves, or any other barrier methods, we just washed our hands. No-one else got ill.

Friendsoftheearth · 23/09/2020 09:41

We have a stock of food for two weeks just in case. Lots of medication, tissues and dettol.

TweeterandtheMonkeyman · 23/09/2020 09:41

Gosh.
The only person I know to have tested positive for COVID didn’t spread to her family, if that reassures anyone. She was quite ill with it as well, stuck to her room etc but I don’t think she went as far as shoeboxes and old baby monitors ...

Jrobhatch29 · 23/09/2020 09:41

@userxx

We only have 1 bathroom so not a lot we can do! If someone gets it we all get it.

I know of 2 people who tested positive and no one else in their household did so that's not necessarily the case. They were also 1 bathroom homes.

I know a man who tested positive recently and his wife and 3 kids all negative and symptomless. They didn't do any distancing within the house so don't think it's inevitable either.