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How to be safe while doing everyday chores during coronavirus outbreak

Dr. Frank McGeorge offers advice on household tasks

DETROIT – Many people are looking at the chores they do every day -- getting the mail, taking out the trash, doing laundry -- and wondering if they need to take extra precautions due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Local 4′s Dr. Frank McGeorge has some advice on handling these tasks safely.

You don’t need to take any special precautions with any packages or mail. In particular, there’s no need to handle your mail with gloves.

As with any garbage, throwing your mail out in your regular trash can is completely fine.

As an aside, everyone should naturally assume garbage is contaminated -- not because of coronavirus, but because it’s garbage and contains decomposing material.

The amount of cleaning it takes to eliminate the coronavirus isn’t onerous. While viruses can survive on surfaces for hours to days, they are also very sensitive to common disinfectants.

If something is visibly soiled, the heavy contamination should be removed more thoroughly with soap and water. But for ordinary, commonly touched surfaces, a good wipe down using a common disinfectant is enough.

No special precautions need to be taken for laundry except to avoid shaking clothes out before you launder them to minimize any dispersal of contaminated debris.


About the Authors
Frank McGeorge, MD headshot

Dr. McGeorge can be seen on Local 4 News helping Metro Detroiters with health concerns when he isn't helping save lives in the emergency room at Henry Ford Hospital.

Derick Hutchinson headshot

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.

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