Rebreather hygiene question

[Sas]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

It's paranoid to worry about getting face herpes or hepatitis???

 

[Dsix36]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

All depends on where I am kissing them.

 

[Neldive]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

So based on that make sure you try after a lady :cool2:

 

[rigdiver]

Depends on what I see after the alcohol wears off.

 

[HowardE]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

Hand Sanitizer?

 

[hypertech]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

LOL, I run over and kiss everyone at a rebreather demo too.

 

[matt t.]

I sense paranoia. What do guys do when you kiss someone, gargle with Clorox?

No, I have HER do the gargling :mooner:

 

[Deep Thought]

Your question is very valid, and I don't sense paranoia but a very common concern based on misinformation, and urban legends. I see paranoia all the time when people talk about "lung infections"... yes it can happen if you are sloppy, but people talk like its an everyday occurrence - its not! Prevention of illness is quite simple when you understand how a ccr works.

You are doing right seeking a demo to learn as much as you can before taking the leap. I would suggest taking a demo that explains the mechanic of the loop, then you should realize that it is a one way directional flow of gasses, etc. The goop that you see is on the exhale side and the one way valve in the mouthpiece prevents the gas/goop from reversing direction. The scrubber as listed previously is an environment that is not tolerable. Using a liberal dose of Listerine on the mouthpiece - inside/out is an industry standard that was adopted from recommendations by navies around the world about rebreather sanitation. If you do research on public swimming pools, you will realize that you have a much greater risk of contracting a bacterial infection from unsafe public pools.

If the mouthwash does not satisfy your concerns, then simply hire an instructor for a private demo. Ask the instructor to assist in sanitation prior to use so you can guarantee that you are safe.

Keep it silent

Ron

 

[Surface Interval]

I did a rebreather tryout that was not hosted by my LDS but at a local area and hosted by DiveRite.

I felt like alot of attention was paid to making sure the unit was cleaned in between divers.

 

[Gene_Hobbs]

A few things worth reading...

Severs, YD; Lamontagne, MC. 2002. A Literature Review of Disinfectants: Effects When Used by CF Divers in Cleaning Rebreather Sets. DRDC-TORONTO-TR-2002-209 RRR ID: 4288

As a result of the health concerns expressed by the combat divers the consultant in Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine at CFEME Toronto requested a toxicological review of the disinfectant Virkon S to determine its suitability for continued use as a cleaning/disinfectant of re-breather sets for the Canadian Forces (CF) diving community. An initial assessment of the components of Virkon S revealed the product had not been approved nor was it intended for human topical disinfection. As a result, a literature review was performed on Virkon S, but as well the review was expanded to include other disinfectants used by civilian and military divers around the world. The aim was to assess the health hazards of using disinfectants to clean re-breathers, as well as, assess the capability of disinfectants to kill the full spectrum of biological contaminants (bacterial, viral, and fungal) to which divers might be exposed. 9 disinfectants were found to be used by divers nationally and internationally (Virkon S., Sanizide, Confidence, Advance TBE, BI-Arrest, Buddy Clean, Trigene II, Listerine, Cavicide) and all were evaluated against the same criteria. In order to be recommended for use two mandatory criteria had to be complied with; the product had to exhibit an absence of components that would cause undue risk to human health during use that could not be prevented by reasonable protective measures, and proof must be available to indicate the disinfectant was effective. Products should be able to kill the full spectrum of viruses, bacteria and fungi that divers could be exposed while using a re-breather. Two further considerations were applied in reviewing all disinfectants, compatibility with system components and ease of use. Based upon the above criteria the review of these nine disinfectants revealed that only two products, Virkon S and TriGene II, met all of the criteria considered essential for use by CF divers using rebreather equipment.

O'Rourke, JR. 2000. RECOMMENDATION FOR REPLACEMENT OF WESCODYNE AS A SANITIZING AGENT FOR USN DIVING EQUPIMENT. NEDU Ser 02/276 RRR ID: 3806

RECOMMENDATION FOR REPLACEMENT OF WESCODYNE AS A SANITIZING AGENT FOR USN DIVING EQUPIMENT. (1) Recommended disinfecting agents. (2) Cleaning procedures for US Navy Diving and Recompression equipment.

NATO Multinational Guide to Diving Medical Disorders. ADivP-02(A)/ MDivP-02(A) section: 0820