AIBU to think wiping down trolley handles is utterly pointless?

[RaspberryCoulis]

Just back from my weekly trek round Asda to do the shopping. Got hissed at by some woman because I bypassed the queue of people waiting in a (socially distanced) queue to spray and wipe their trolley handles.

I never bother, I have never bothered. Seems utterly pointless. Rates of Covid in my area sitting around 100 per 100,000. That's 0.001%. Even if you believe that 90% are asymptomatic, that would be 1000 per 100,000 or 0.01%. You'd have to be very unlucky for one of the 0.01% to be the person who had the trolley before you.

Then, that person would have had to be not wearing a mask (mask compliance in this town is very high), sneeze/cough/lick the trolley handle (removing their mask to do so), and then i'd have to smear my hands exactly where they'd licked, remove my own mask, and lick my fingers.

A somewhat unlikely scenario.

It's all about the supermarkets trying to show how "covid secure" they are, isn't it? And actually, it makes bugger all difference?

People clearly aren't washing hands thoroughly after using the loo.
I do wipe down trolley/basket handles, but did microbiology as part of a course, and that was an eye opener.

I cleaned a public toilets for a couple of years at a tourist site. Trust me, the number of men who was their hands after having a shit is probably 50/50 at most. The women slightly better but will spend more time touching their face and hair afterwards. I never touch the door handles of a public toilet after that and if I have to - because no one is coming in at a convenient time and the door is open - I will use a part of my clothing to avoid skin / shit germ covered handle contact.

@wintertravel1980

Waitrose is catering to its customers - anxious middle class (often - working from home) population who might treat their weekly trip to the supermarket as a highly risky activity.

I have hardly been to Waitrose since the pandemic started. I tend to avoid places that go over the top with “COVID security”.

Waitrose also seem to clean their floor in the shop, I don't think that is anything to do with Covid though, it just makes it a more pleasant place to shop, likewise its nice to have a clean trolley, not one that someones grubby child has been standing in.

@Meepmeeep

Thing is - generally in the supermarkets I use you’ve walked across the car park with said trolley before you even get to their cleaning stations. Pretty pointless after you’ve already touched it no?

Exactly this. I pointed that out when M&S staff offered to sanitise my trolley - it’s a bit late when I’ve had my hands on it to walk across the car park.

@RaspberryCoulis

One of the very few benefits of masks - no-one can see you muttering "just fuck off" as you walk past them. She didn't really speak to me.. she did that typically British passive aggressive thing of commenting loudly to her husband about SOME PEOPLE who think they don't have to follow the rules about sanitising.

The rules about sanitising 😂😂 since when is sanitising part of the rules? Have I missed one of BJ's oh-so-informative briefings, during which he introduced these sanitising rules?

Jokes aside OP, I don't wipe trolleys either. One of the supermarkets I go to do it themselves after you hand the trolley back. I don't think it makes much of a difference if, like you said, my hands are fairly clean and I'm wearing my mask properly.

I'm very careful about washing/disinfecting my hands but I have to agree that most people don't seem to care much about hygiene.

I had two sets of friends over for dinner last month (allowed where I live, we'd all been tested two days prior, we were distanced and windows were open - before someone jumps on me saying how dangerous that is), and not even one of them asked where they could wash their hands when coming into my house. I had to point to the bathroom and say 'please, wash your hands first!' before they had the chance to start touching the food.

I don’t do it but I’m glad Sainsbury’s do

Thing is - generally in the supermarkets I use you’ve walked across the car park with said trolley before you even get to their cleaning stations. Pretty pointless after you’ve already touched it no?

No.

The idea is that you clean the trolley and use sanitiser on your hands straight after.

This cracked me up a bit of that too but I always like to be in and out as quick as possible when shopping with little ones

Thing is - generally in the supermarkets I use you’ve walked across the car park with said trolley before you even get to their cleaning stations. Pretty pointless after you’ve already touched it no?

By this logic there is no point in sanitising or cleaning anything and the whole medical profession have been wasting their time for the past 100 years.

@TheSandman

Thing is - generally in the supermarkets I use you’ve walked across the car park with said trolley before you even get to their cleaning stations. Pretty pointless after you’ve already touched it no?

By this logic there is no point in sanitising or cleaning anything and the whole medical profession have been wasting their time for the past 100 years.

This is just ridiculous. The whole medical profession is dealing with sick people all the time. Touching and examining one sick person after another. It’s in no way comparable to sanitising a bloody trolley handle. How much difference can it possibly make to the handle of a trolley that’s been standing outside in the rain?

Am I the only person who has always cleaned trolley handles?

I hate touching things other people have, I've carried anti bac wipes for years and wiped down the trolley handles.

People pick their noses, don't wash their hands after wiping their arses, toddlers dribble on them. Trolleys are bloody gross at the best of times!

@wintertravel1980

You seem to know an awful lot about all of this.

A little bit... I follow a mix of epidemiologists on twitter. I have also been on the “Daily numbers...” MN thread since it started back in March. It was a great source of information and some of the posters back at the start of the pandemic might have been more knowledgeable than the SAGE members. I am not talking about myself though.

Are you a member of Sage or just trying to offend people who happen to like Waitrose and the food they sell?

I definitely didn’t mean to offend anyone. My post about Waitrose clientele was just a statement of fact. I like Waitrose and I probably fall into their demographics myself:). However, post COVID I prefer more “relaxed” places (e.g. a socially diverse supermarket not far from my place) where no one is checking whether others sanitise their hands or trolley handles.

I definitely didn’t mean to offend anyone. My post about Waitrose clientele was just a statement of fact. I like Waitrose and I probably fall into their demographics myselfsmile. However, post COVID I prefer more “relaxed” places (e.g. a socially diverse supermarket not far from my place) where no one is checking whether others sanitise their hands or trolley handles.

what an odd attitude you have to shopping.

Why would you choose a supermarket based on social diversity rather than the food they sell?

Why do socially diverse and relaxed have to b e mutually exclusive?

Where are you shopping to be watched about sanitising your hands or your trolley?

At Waitrose no one watches anyone else because the stores do the trolleys and they also control numbers in the store very well.

I think a lot of people here, especially the OP lack imagination.

It is very easy to touch a trolley handle then push your hair out of your face, touch your mask, touch your glasses, or whatever and transfer the virus to your face. It's also be shown by science that the virus can live on your credit card for 3 days, so using it if your hands are contaminated risks you catching the virus every time you touch your card thereafter.

It might be a small risk, for sure, but multiply it by the population and that's why we have a rise in cases.

Every single thing all of us can do can help bring down rates. It's hardly a big deal to make sure your trolley handle is clean.

@WankPuffins

Am I the only person who has always cleaned trolley handles?

I hate touching things other people have, I've carried anti bac wipes for years and wiped down the trolley handles.

People pick their noses, don't wash their hands after wiping their arses, toddlers dribble on them. Trolleys are bloody gross at the best of times!

I've never carried wipes on me so I can clean the trolleys, but I agree with you. Supermarket Trolleys, door handles, public toilets and transport etc... are just filthy. That's why my mum taught me never to bring my hands to my face unless I've just cleaned them. And that's why my hand washing habits haven't changed this year, because I maintained good hygiene before Covid and the pandemic only confirmed that what I've been doing all my life is the right thing to do. But yeah, most people don't even wash their hands first thing when getting home.

It might be a small risk, for sure, but multiply it by the population and that's why we have a rise in cases.

This is plainly nonsense. We have a rise in cases for all manner of reasons from a mutated strain, to people not isolating when they should to people having house parties.

Not because people are spreading it around on their credit card.

I also don't think it's ever been proven that "can be detected under lab conditions after 72 hours" means the same thing as "in real world situations surface transmission is a real problem".

I hope supermarkets carry on providing sanitising stations long after the pandemic is over, trolley handles are filthy because of the sheer number of people who use them.

@RaspberryCoulis

It might be a small risk, for sure, but multiply it by the population and that's why we have a rise in cases.

This is plainly nonsense. We have a rise in cases for all manner of reasons from a mutated strain, to people not isolating when they should to people having house parties.

Not because people are spreading it around on their credit card.

I also don't think it's ever been proven that "can be detected under lab conditions after 72 hours" means the same thing as "in real world situations surface transmission is a real problem".

@RaspberryCoulis Your arrogance is outstanding. How do you know all these things for sure?

We have an increase for all kinds of reasons.

Contamination in the supermarket is not unknown .

Why do you think hospitals, drs and dentists santitise everything?

I have been the the dentists 3 x in a month.

They open the outer door remotely.
They take your temp on entry.
They make you sanitise your hands (or wash them if you cannot use sanitiser.)
They have removed all reading material (as it's a risk of transmission.)
They open the loo door for patients and sanitise afterwards.
They sanitise the chairs after you have left.
They sanitise the credit card key pad immediately.

IF THERE WAS NO NEED WHY THE FUCK WOULD THEY DO IT?

Dentists are dental surgeons. They are highly qualified.

If they thought the virus was only transmitted via coughs and sneezes and breathing after 15 mins next to someone, why would they do what they are doing?

Every post you write just confirms your ignorance of this issue.

@Lordamighty

I hope supermarkets carry on providing sanitising stations long after the pandemic is over, trolley handles are filthy because of the sheer number of people who use them.

You’re perfectly welcome to sanitise yours if that’s what you want. I don’t want to pay more for my groceries, thank you.

Why do you think hospitals, drs and dentists santitise everything?

Well not being an expert and all.... because they are dealing with SICK PEOPLE or people who are being drilled into or cut open? Exactly the same scenario as a scoot round the supermarket. Exactly the same level of risk.

@RaspberryCoulis Do you take medicines??do you buy packaged foods?? Those two industries are highly regulated and require anyone working in certain areas to sanitise constantly (even when wearing gloves!) I work in pharmaceuticals and you wouldn’t believe how much IPA we use to do simple procedures (like testing/sampling water) you can’t just discredit the use of sanitiser just because you haven’t caught COVID yet!!
It’s not about supermarkets trying to prove anything OP, it’s about common sense and using techniques that work. Or would you prefer your food and medicine to be made in a factory where workers decide for themselves whether they think they NEED to sanitise??

Well not being an expert and all.... because they are dealing with SICK PEOPLE or people who are being drilled into or cut open? Exactly the same scenario as a scoot round the supermarket. Exactly the same level of risk. hmm

You are right OP you clearly are no expert! the point is it minimises risk...that is all you need to know.

But we're not talking about pharmaceuticals... or doctors... or dentists... or any other industry.

It's about sanitising trolleys, which has never been recommended or a "rule". It's something you can choose to do, or choose not to do. If it were really that critical to keeping us all covid-safe, then it would be a law. And it's not.

I sanitise the handles then sanitise my hands. Think ya u as shouldn't que jump just as some want cleaner trolleys

I wiped down them before all this - in a study done in 2016 they found 72% of trollies had faecal matter (actual poo residue & bacteria from faeces) on the handles as well as staph bacteria, cold and flu viruses and gastro bugs. I’d rather not have those things or anything else on my hands as I shop & pick up items to take home, I prefer my wine bottles without added poo bacteria thanks.

if you watch the brainless twats wearing masks under their noses coughing all over them or the scuzzy people who walk out of public toilets without washing hands who then pop over to grab a basket I think the fact that cleaning trollies is now the norm is fucking brilliant, long may it continue!

The point is it minimises risk - really?

It minimises are very teeny tiny ultra-low risk into an even more teeny tiny risk? Same as washing your shopping, having a shower when you come in from outside, quarantining deliveries, not leaving the house, disinfecting your Christmas cards and all the other totally OTT things people have been doing.

Starting to see why people have started to go a bit nuts with the sanitising, cleaning, OCD tendencies and worries about germs.

Exactly this. I pointed that out when M&S staff offered to sanitise my trolley - it’s a bit late when I’ve had my hands on it to walk across the car park.

🤦‍♀️

What are you not understanding here? Unless you are licking the trolley handle while you walk, there is absolutely a point in sanitising it when you get to the sanitising station. Because when you’re at the sanitising station you also sanitise your hands.

Teeny weeny risk multiple by 67 million becomes a big number