You and other household members should wash your hands before eating, for instance, as well as after touching pets in the house. You should also make sure everyone washes their hands after using the bathroom.  Using soap and water, scrub for 20 seconds before rinsing, making sure to get in between your fingers and under your nails. Try singing the happy birthday song while washing, which is about 20 seconds. Keep hand sanitizer in a purse or care for when soap and water are not available. Basically, you should avoid sharing items that have touched other people's mouths. They can pass bacteria to you, which will enter your body through your mouth. Wash these items in hot, soapy water between uses. Using a dishwasher with a disinfecting cycle is even better. The more you're around people, the more likely a virus or bacterial infection will be passed to you. If you want to go out to eat, for instance, go earlier in the day so there won't be as many people there. Avoid activities like concerts, school assemblies, flying, and movies when you can.  When you are out in a crowded area, avoid touching surfaces as much as possible, and don't touch your face until you can wash your hands. Use the wipes provided by grocery stores to wipe off cart handles before you use them. If possible, ask someone else to help you out with grocery shopping. Of course, you can't avoid cuts all the time. However, you can avoid activities that put you at risk, such as cutting vegetables and using a standard razor. Opt for an electric razor, instead, for instance. When brushing your teeth, brush very gently so you don't make your gums bleed. Your doctor may even ask you not to floss or want you to use a water pick instead. Similarly, blow your nose gently to avoid an open wound. Cook meat until it's not pink in the center, and check it with a meat thermometer. Stick the thermometer into the center of the meat to check the temperature. Also, heat eggs until they are solid and not runny. Aim for an internal temperature of 160 °F (71 °C) for most meat and 180 °F (82 °C) for poultry. For instance, avoid deli-cut foods, dented cans, and bulk-bin items, which are more likely to have bacteria. Pick the freshest fruits and vegetables you can find, and choose packaged items that have the farthest expiration date. Also, don't eat soft-serve ice cream from a machine or free samples around the store.

Summary: Ask everyone in the house to wash their hands often. Avoid sharing cups, utensils, and plates with other people. Skip crowds as much as possible. Avoid nicks, cuts, and other injuries when possible. Cook meat and eggs thoroughly to avoid contamination. Avoid foods from the grocery store that are likely to have extra bacteria.


After 24 hours, your water will be completely disinfected and you can begin the process of removing chlorine from your water supply.  To do this, attach as many hoses as you have outdoor spigots and tie the ends around a tree or fence approximately three feet off the ground. This makes it easier to monitor the water flow. Don't run the water anywhere near the septic tank or leach field, as you don't want to expose these areas to the chlorinated water. Turn on each of the spigots and run the water as hard as possible. Try to direct the stream of water into a ditch or somewhere the water will be somewhat contained. Just make sure that the ditch does not lead to a stream or pond, as the chlorinated water will kill off fish and other animal and plant life. Periodically check the water coming out of the hoses for the presence of chlorine. Use the chlorine test kit for this, as you may be unable to detect small quantities of chlorine by smell alone. Boring as it may be, it is important to keep an eye on the water flow at all times, to ensure that the well doesn't run dry.  If the well runs dry, the pump may burn out, and these can be very expensive to replace. If it looks like water pressure is dropping off, turn off power to the pump and wait an hour before resuming the run-off. This gives the well a chance to refill itself. Only stop the water flow when all traces of chlorine have been removed -- this may take as little as two hours or much longer, depending on the well.

Summary: Set up as many hoses as possible. Run the water at full force. Test for the presence of chlorine. Don't allow the well to run dry.


Close the hook and loop fasteners on Velcro whenever you are not using it. This will protect the hooks from picking up stray matter like lint, hair, and other debris. Velcro is designed to be sticky and will easily grab onto things like blankets or clothes from which it will pick up lint. When you wash Velcro it will pick up lint, hair, and anything else floating around in the washing machine. Keep the hook and loop fasteners closed when you wash Velcro to keep this from happening. Wash garments that contain Velcro separately from other items when possible. Washers and dryers are full of lint that Velcro attracts. Leave garments that contain Velcro to air dry so the Velcro doesn't pick up lint from other clothing and fabric items. If air drying isn't possible, then keep the Velcro tabs closed and dry the garments in the dryer separately from other items.
Summary: Keep Velcro tabs closed as much as possible so they don’t collect debris. Close Velcro tabs on garments before washing them. Let Velcro air dry instead of putting it in the dryer.