New Home Depot hours

[Cooler]

I picked up some supplies at Home Depot last night.  I was advised that starting today the stores will close at 6:00 p.m. every day.  The opening hours will remain as before.

This was explained as extra time was needed to sanitize the store each evening.  They claim that they will be wiping down shelves and hard surfaces with antibacterial cleaners.

Is it even possible for them to wipe down shelves?  Each sand bag weighs 50 to 80 pounds.  I picked up some drywall compound which was on the second shelf.  That shelf was full.  I did not weigh the container but it probably was about 30 pounds. 

I can't imagine them removing all the containers to wipe down the shelves each night. 

Even in the paint department I cannot imagine removing all the 1 gallon pails each night to sanitize the shelves. 

I am guessing that they are mopping the floors and wiping down the first 6 inches of each exposed shelf.  Which is probably a reasonable effort.

[R Clark]

Menards is reducing hours, too.

I can't imagine that any sizable store is wiping down EVERYTHING every day/night.  What are the chances that the virus has migrated to the underside of the box that hasn't been moved for 6-8 months?  They're probably doing all they can to wipe down the "high risk" surfaces like customer service counters, shopping cart handles, larger dispalys with high traffic, customer service kiosks, etc.

[Cooler]

Menards is reducing hours, too.

I can't imagine that any sizable store is wiping down EVERYTHING every day/night.  What are the chances that the virus has migrated to the underside of the box that hasn't been moved for 6-8 months?  They're probably doing all they can to wipe down the "high risk" surfaces like customer service counters, shopping cart handles, larger dispalys with high traffic, customer service kiosks, etc.

That is my take too.  But the poster listing the new hours bragged about wiping down all shelves. 

I do believe that this is more than just lip service though.  I think a real effort is being made.

[Admiral]

That is my take too.  But the poster listing the new hours bragged about wiping down all shelves. 

I do believe that this is more than just lip service though.  I think a real effort is being made.

I do too, part of it is for the customers, but I think the driving force is to protect their own workers as well, who are putting themselves out there simply by going to work.  I was in my local supermarket, and they had staff emptying, then spraying and wiping down shelves in a quite organized fashion, so there must be some guidance out there in the retail world.  I asked one of the staff what else they are doing, and he said after they close they use backpack sprayers to do all the floors, register areas, exterior doors and vestibules and where ever they have not wiped down.  So somebody is thinking about this and taking it seriously.

[Halfathumb]

My thought on this  is they can wipe down the exposed portions of the shelves and other areas. They don't necessarily have to remove every item to cleanse their stores. I just hope they (and all other employers) do the best they can to keep their employees employed. I'm blessed with a very good retirement and medical coverage.

[overland]

My thought on this  is they can wipe down the exposed portions of the shelves and other areas. They don't necessarily have to remove every item to cleanse their stores. I just hope they (and all other employers) do the best they can to keep their employees employed. I'm blessed with a very good retirement and medical coverage.

What they (and others) should also do is provide hand sanitizer at the entrances and exits for people to disinfect their hands. They could also follow the lead of Whole Foods and restrict the first hour of business to the elderly, who after all are the most vulnerable. I'm surprised more businesses haven't done that.

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

What they (and others) should also do is provide hand sanitizer at the entrances and exits for people to disinfect their hands. They could also follow the lead of Whole Foods and restrict the first hour of business to the elderly, who after all are the most vulnerable. I'm surprised more businesses haven't done that.

They are in my Home Depot

[Cooler]

What they (and others) should also do is provide hand sanitizer at the entrances and exits for people to disinfect their hands. They could also follow the lead of Whole Foods and restrict the first hour of business to the elderly, who after all are the most vulnerable. I'm surprised more businesses haven't done that.

ShopRite stores (a grocery chain on the east coast) implemented a 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. "seniors only" shopping time on Thursdays.  Radio reports are that there are huge lines of elderly waiting to get in.  They are metering the number of shoppers coming into the store.  They are also maintaining a 6 foot space between customers on line so the line is enormous. 

It seems unlikely that they will be able to process the line of seniors in the time frame allotted.  Perhaps if this were done daily it would work better.

Starbucks brags that they have gone through this identical crisis in China where they have 4,500 stores.  They have 90% back open.  At one  point all were closed. 

They claim that their crisis protocols worked in China--they expect all stores to be re-opened within two weeks.  They expect that those same protocols will work in the USA (they should).  It is a 1 - 2 month process though. 

The are not saying if they are sharing information with other businesses though.  You would hope that they would.

[Stwood_]

Going to be tough reaching into every plumbing fitting box and every bolt bin wiping every piece down that has been fondled.

[Cooler]

Going to be tough reaching into every plumbing fitting box and every bolt bin wiping every piece down that has been fondled.

There is a lot of conflicting information out there.  From what I have read that the virus remains on surfaces for up to 3 days.  But is not active after a few hours.

So go in the morning after the parts have sat for 12 hours unmolested and you should be fine. 

Or wear gloves and spread the parts out in the sun when you get home.  The UV should kill any stray viruses.

I ordered a custom holster from a holster maker.  I got an acknowledgement that the holster will ship on March 31st and should arrive on April 14th, 15th or 16th. 

So a two week travel time sounds like it is shipping from China, or perhaps Vietnam  or some other distant port.  Is two weeks enough time for the virus to be inactive when it arrives (in  a sealed carton and probably in a plastic bag)?

When it shows up I will hang it in the sun for a few days just to be sure.