ransley wrote:
On Jul 28, 7:30 am, teabird wrote:
On Jul 28, 7:19 am, ransley wrote:





On Jul 27, 9:22 pm, "Cheryl" wrote:
Can you treat heavy duty welders gloves to kill poison ivy residue or should
you just throw them out when the work to clear it is finished? Welders
gloves might be overkill but I just want to know if I can reuse them. Thank
you.
Cheryl
Soap and water dissolve and remove the oil that causes the irritation,
if its on gloves then its probably on your pants and shoes as brushing
into a plant releases the plants oil, just wash everything. The palms
of your hands have thick skin and are the least supceptable part of
your body to Urishiol oil, and if your wash your hands within an a
half hour or so nothing should happen. Welders gloves are a bit
overkill as light duty gloves will work, but just throw them in a
bucket of water with dish washing detergent. The oils remain active
for something like 6++ months so wash it off. Google about it for more
specific informaton. Once I pulled doen vines and burnt them, didnt
shower and didnt know I was breathing Poison ivy burning, I had about
250 welts on each arm, was sick for at least 6 months from breathing
the smoke, and I spread it over my body from not washing. I pull it
mistakenly now and notice it poison ivy to late, I just wash off my
hands with a hose and some soap now and no problem. The important
thing is removal of the oil within about 1/2 hour and not touching any
other part of your body.
A distinction needs to be made between soap and detergent. Soap will
not remove oils, you need a detergent for that. So washing clothes in
a washing machine will work, it uses a detergent. But washing with
soap and water will not work.

For washing after handling PI, I found 2 things that work well. Fels
Naptha bar detergent can be found in the laundry section of hardware
or grocery stores. I guess it used to contain napthalene, which will
dissolve oils well. Now it doesn't so it's safe for household use.
The fact that it says it's used to pre-treat clothes, and that it has
surfactants in it highly suggest that it would be a detergent. The
other solution I have had success with is Tec-Nu. It's a thick liquid
that I rub on my arms and legs after handling PI, then wash off in the
shower. Tec-Nu is expensive, $12 for a bottle but it will last for
many applications and works well.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Ive been exposed 20+ times since my big time in 86, bar hand soap is
all ive used and I have had no outbreak. Any hand soap breaks down
poison ivys oils so water can wash it away, even just hosing your
hands after touching it has keep me from having any problems. But I
wash within 15 minutes of pulling it.

Yes, soap does dissolve and remove oils. Maybe not all oils as well as
a detergent but for poison ivy, Ivory soap has worked for me for 30
years. I shower within 1 hour of contact, (I lather and rinse twice).
Immediately wash outside with soap/detergent if I have some scratches
that may have been exposed. Get the cheap $1 gloves and throw them
away. Actually I seldom use any gloves unless it's a big job.
Depending on how much my clothing was exposed, I'll undress in the
laundry room, or many times on the front porch (I'm not so sure everyone
here can do that without risk of arrest). The clothing goes straight to
the washing machine and me straight to the shower. I also wash the
shower knobs after I've touched them.

Some people still think you can spread it by contacting the oozing
blisters, thats an old wives tale. Once you wash well, you can't spread
it. It's not a disease, it's an allergic reaction to the oil. Once the
oil is gone, no chance of spreading it.