disinfecting with the sun?

[subhanalah]

How long does something (plastic tub) need to be in the sun for effective sterilization?

 

[aart]

I doubt the sun can 'sterilize' anything.
Depends on what organism you're trying to eliminate whether the sun will work or not....it could just go dormant until conditions are right for it to grow again, like algae or molds getting wet again.

 

[subhanalah]

I doubt the sun can 'sterilize' anything.
Depends on what organism you're trying to eliminate whether the sun will work or not....it could just go dormant until conditions are right for it to grow again, like algae or molds getting wet again.

that's what I thought too, but maybe I'm confused and disinfect means something different than sterilize?

 

[aart]

Disinfecting definitely means something different from sterilizing.
I worked in an injectable pharmaceutical environment for 18 years.

In simple terms, sterilizing means killing all living organisms on a surface......usually accomplished by high levels of heat or steam under pressure(autoclave). Disinfecting, sanitizing are lesser levels of 'clean'.

What are you trying to clean off the plastic?

 

[subhanalah]

Wet duck brooder.

 

[aart]

Unless you had some particular disease outbreak I'd just scrub it out good with a bit of dish soap and then lots of hot water rinse and let it dry thoroughly.....in the sun is always good.

If you did have a disease outbreak, I'd use a 10% bleach solution in there somewhere.

 

[subhanalah]

Okay, thanks. I know that continual exposure to bleach can cause plastic to become porous and begin to trap bacteria so wanted to avoid it if I could. Great news, thanks aart!

 

[donrae]

Unless you had some particular disease outbreak I'd just scrub it out good with a bit of dish soap and then lots of hot water rinse and let it dry thoroughly.....in the sun is always good.

If you did have a disease outbreak, I'd use a 10% bleach solution in there somewhere.

I second this. Soap and water does wonders, and just air drying in the sun is good.