Sal_Refinada

Wanna through this out there. Maybe you'll think I'm crazy, ... I dunno. I do deliveries on my bike and I wear the same clothes most days. I just hand wash everything and re-wear it the next day. I don't like to smell bad, so I go scorched earth. Green sensibilities be damned, I want to smell like a rose even if I've been riding all day. To achieve this I used to use bleach. But, bleach fades or stains everything eventually, no matter how durable and colorfast. Thinking of a way around this, it occurred to me to try hand-washing my clothes with Dial anti-bacterial hand soap. Works f-ing amazing. Clothes get super clean and smell fresh all day. I don't think I'd do it with cotton, but with synthetic fibers I think it's fine. Then, it further occurred to me that this could be something of a revelation for bike touring. You could keep a small plastic container of Dial and use it to wash both your body and your cycling clothes.

Figured I'd share...

fietsbob

Just wash with regular soap there is enough chemicals , dont add more to the streams and lakes

Lanovran

My brother and I have both used camp soap with good results. It's biodegradable, and is intended to be used for body, laundry, dishes, etc. On top of that, it doesn't contain antibacterial agents, which is a good thing, because it won't promote the development of resistant bacterial strains while still working just as well to sanitize yourself and your things.

MassiveD

I'm sure there are doctors around here... I am not sure how healthy it is to cycle all the time in an antibacterial soup. Essentially this is working, according to your reports, because there is an AB residue on everything. It seems to be an oversimplified view that all bacteria is bad. A lot of skin surface bacteria has a job to do. Not normally considered all that healthy, not to mention the fact those soaps are a persistent poison in the environment. That means they shouldn't be used to wash in natural water course. The main point though, is that you don't need some poison to stay OK along a tour.

CustomSteel

Antibacterial is indiscriminate about which bacteria it kills. Bathing in/wearing it is not a good thing for your body at all. You could easily end up leaving yourself susceptible to a lot of things.

Ekdog

If you care about your own health, that of your fellow citizens or the environment, you should consider giving up antibacterial soap. It's no more effective than the regular stuff anyway.

[h=1]Five Reasons Why You Should Probably Stop Using Antibacterial Soap[/h][h=2]As the FDA recently noted, antibacterial products are no more effective than soap and water, and could be dangerous[/h]

Carbonfiberboy 

I've been using Selsun Blue for many years for showering. It's fixed all my toe fungus, crotch rot, and saddle sore issues. Great stuff. I tour with a little bottle. Highly recommended if you suffer from any of those things. I don't wash my clothes in it, though. I use ordinary shampoo for that when touring, works fine. I've just started using Penguin Sport Wash at home for all my sports clothing. Fantastic stuff.

CharlyAlfaRomeo

Heard of a study recently that showed anti-bacterial soap was suppressing hormones in test subjects or some such thing. It was reported on the radio so unfortunately I don't have a link.

Machka 

Just add a bit of Borax to your usual laundry shampoo, whether you handwash or wash in a machine, and that'll take care of any lingering odours.

howeeee

Bacterial soap is bad for everyone, first it kills the good bacteria living on your body, second in contributes to super bacterias that are resistant to anti biotics. Like another poster pointed out, regular soap does the job intended.

Rowan

Most of the issues with clothes and body are fungal, not bacterial. Hence carbonfibreboy's success with Selsun Blue in clearing up the various skin ailments.

indyfabz

What an interesting first post. Are you a rep for Dial products?

gregw

I take a completely different approach, 5 sets of cycling clothes, laundromat on a rest day.

Tourist in MSN

Small bottle of Woolite works for me. I hand wash biking clothes at home, not just on tour, the bike clothes last much longer when they don't go into the washing machine. I dry them on a plastic hanger hanging in the shower. For touring I use a 3 oz squeeze bottle with a flip top lid.

That was a good question.

Cyclebum

Troll? Whatever.

Antibacterial soap is good for hospitals. Not good anywhere else. Bleach is about the best disinfectant there is. Use on water bottles, and in a pinch, to sterilize pond or river water. 'Bout any kind of plain soap, liquid and/or solid, will take care of everything else.

Making a federal case on a touring forum about soap is kinda silly. But it happens.

lhendrick

Thank you to the original poster for sharing his observation, very thought provoking, as is almost anything that is posted here. My contribution is that a bar of strong deodorant soap, even in it's box, makes your panniers smell great. Irish Spring (not an Irish Fundamentalist Uprising) is my favorite. I do not work for a soap manufacturer.

fietsbob

Dr Bronner's will do anything you wish + Not Kill Things in the Water , like fish food, and thus Fish..

on tour I brought a very small vial of Liquid Surgeon's Scrub..

I used it just to use on my crotch and the 'Shammy' pad in my shorts
to combat 'saddle sore' inducing , skin bacteria.

Cyclebum

In addition to plain ole soap, I carry a small jar of honey. Be aware that honey is antimicrobial. Smear a dab on a cut, abrasion, burn, no infection.

andrewclaus

I'm relieved to hear all the news lately about AB soap. It verifies what I've felt for years.

I've also heard that there is evidence that the most effective part of washing is friction, and that the main function of soap is to get you to rub more to get rid of the soapy feeling. With that in mind, I do carry a small scrap of soap when I travel but if I need to wash in free flowing water I don't use it. It works OK for me--I don't get skin problems. Others may complain about the smell but it doesn't bother me.

It's nice to get away from the chemical perfumes, actually. Its funny cycling behind a townie, in the draft of perfume, realizing it's that morning's shower soap and shampoo, shaving cream, deodorant--normal stuff that's not part of my life at the moment.

HK 45

I second this, Dr Bronners is a favorite for anyone that goes camping, specially the pepermint since it has a nice tingle

I buy mine in bars and dissolve whatever I need into liquid.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJ2zS51J50o

shipwreck

'

That's pretty cool, I use bronners but dislike buying the bottles as I am trying to keep my plastics use down. Will be doing this!

MassiveD

I do virtually nothing for cuts, etc... maybe it goes back to boy scout days where I got a few staph infections from bandaids left on too long. Sometime I lick them, other times I wash them, for the most part they don't get much from me, and I never get infections. Having been bashed up a few times seriously and attached to a pump for a month or so, I know you can't be a jerk about infections when there is any serious risk, particularly of it getting in deep, but a lot of stuff doesn't give me any worries. So honey, whatever, it may be you, not it. Must say though, manuka honey really does seem to work with sore throats.

Too fancy for me, but what about that new clothing that has stuff woven into it to kill off bacteria?

And, also, anyone shave their legs, who isn't otherwise doing so, or doing it for racing? Saving whatever does reduce the surface area for BO, but I don't have the time for it.

indyfabz

Like you, I don't do much for cuts except keep pressure on when necessary. I take blood thinners daily (mechanical heart valve) so some cuts can be a PITA

I shave my legs during riding season (spring though fall). Even when I was on tour for nearly 4 months I shaved regularly. The origin of my shaving can be traced back to my heart surgery. They shaved my entire body below the neck except for my arms, which, of course, is where they taped down all the tubes and wires I woke up wit). I decided that I liked the look and feel of shaved legs. The first time shaving each season is a pain, but after that it takes 3-4 minutes in the shower once or twice a week to maintain.

andrew.waye

+1 Borax

If you mess up your natural bacterial flora, be ready for a skin infection/sensitivities.

rwpshaw

Ditto