Deluxe Camp Sink: Sanitation and Hand Washing

By Michael.

It isn’t always important to have clean hands while camping.  But it is very important to have clean hands while preparing food, eating, and after a bathroom break.

When we are home, if we want to wash our hands, it’s easy to go to a sink and wash them.  We usually have a bar of soap or a soap dispenser at the sink to help clean off the dirt and germs and water is plentiful.  In a grid down or camping situation life is different.  There might not be clean, running water, but the need to wash hands is ever so important.

There are several methods that people currently use to wash hands while camping.

One is the gallon bottle method.  This is where one pokes a hole at the bottom of a gallon jug, plugs the hole with a golf tee and hangs the jug or sets it on a table.  Pull out the golf tee and you get a small stream of water.  Put the tee back in the hole to stop the water.

Another method is a water cooler.   This method has one pushing the button with one hand while getting the other hand wet.   Then switching hands to get the dry hand wet.  Soaping up and then doing the switching hands trick again to wash off the soap.

A third method is the jug method.  The jug typically rests on a table.  One turns the spigot to let out water while washing their hands.

Unfortunately these methods use either to little or two much water and can create a mud puddle.  And with the water cooler and jug, if these are water sources for drinking and cooking, when one touches the spout or spigot with dirty hands they have just contaminated their water source.

Some use a hand gel sanitizer to disinfect hands.  This is good for killing germs, but doesn’t help with washing off dirt and grime.  And some campers use baby wipes.

Hand Washing Study

An article in USA Today cited a study at Michigan State University that showed only 5% of people washed their hands enough to kill infection and illness causing germs after using the bathroom. To make matters worse, 33% of hand washers didn’t use soap, and 10% skipped the hygienic step altogether.

It also mentioned that according to the CDC, people need to vigorously wash their hands for about 15 to 20 seconds to kill any type of dangerous bacteria. Most people wash their hands for about six seconds. Without executing the correct hand sanitizing techniques, grime, dirt and bacteria that would typically be sent down the drain stays on the hands and increases the host’s likelihood of becoming seriously ill.

Hand Washing Tips

Always use soap: A quick rinse with just water won’t get rid of all the harmful germs that could make you sick. It’s surprising, but a lot of people don’t know the proper method to wash hands. Here’s how to wash your hands according to the CDC: Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold) and apply soap. Rub your hands together to make a lather and scrub them well; be sure to scrub the backs of your hands, between your fingers and under your nails. Continue scrubbing your hands for at least 20 seconds and rinse your hands well under running water. Finish up by drying your hands with a clean towel or by air-drying them.

Now it is obvious that most of us don’t follow these guidelines while camping and probably not even at home.  But if we did, we would have less sickness and spreading of germs.

A Better Way

There is a better and more effective way to wash hands while camping with a foot-operated, running-water sink.  The Deluxe Camp Sink doesn’t have any knobs or handles to touch and turn on.  It has a built in soap dispenser so one is more likely to use soap.  Any because it is easy and fun to use – even kids like to wash their hands.  It packs up and stores nicely.  Women particularly are fans of the Deluxe Camp Sink because they are usually the ones most concerned about cleanliness.

The sink is valulable wherever a washing station is needed such as camping, BBQ competitions, on the patio, tradeshow booth or in a grid down situation.  There is even a water filtration option that allows one to use stream or lake water.  It includes a water filter that is good for 1 million gallons.

The Deluxe Camp Sink is a useful tool for anyone who enjoys camping or a prepper that wants to make sure their sanitation capabilities will handle a grid down situation.  Check out their website at DeluxeCamping.com or watch the video below that shows how it works.