Folks,
Since working in my new job, I've had to get under rotary dairy platforms to inspect or repair the drive units and most of the farmers that own them, to be nice, their idea of maintenance is to cake everything in sight with thick grease.
Now, the question is, what is the easiest and kindest way to get grease out of your hair and off your skin.
I tried dishwashing liquid, soap, and shampoo, none of which worked, most of the grease came off on the towel.
I did think about the sort of hand cleaner we use at work but it seems too aggressive to use on your scalp.
After all, I'd hate to mess up my pretty hair-do!


Any thoughts guys?

Shave your head or wear a beanie.

Someone out there may have a recipe using natural ingredients that'll do the job.

Some handcleaner has no pumice in it so its smooth on your hands so try hunting down some of this for your hair/scalp.

Wear a hair net to keep the grease out of your hair. Simple Green works pretty well to get the grease out. If that does not do it use waterless hand cleaner followed by shampoo and conditioner. Rod

Wearing a cap or getting Kojaked seems to be the best idea.

Wear something on your head Mike. I look goofy with a respirator in the summer (attic work), but it keeps me from getting sinus infections. Ask the farmers what they use to get the grease out. Any solvent that works good on grease will really trash your beautiful hair and dry out that soft skin. About your skin...if you get some kind of lotion and put a LOT on your skin, your pores will fill up with the lotion so the grease stays on top. I'd also try the same thing with a mild soap. See which works better.

BTW how's the bambino?

Dave

I once had a job operating screw machines ... think of an early form of automated lathe. These machines - which had their heyday in the 50's - always managed to have a fine mist of oil about them; as a result, since then, I've kept my hair real short.

Now, for your problem .... the greases used are developed to be exceptionally water resistant. Pre-cleaning the area (steam hose), then getting into a boiler suit seems the only way to reduce the mess.

Otherwise, various towels and rags are sold specifically to catch / absorb oils. These can be used to blot the grease away, as the grease seems to prefer the fiber to you. Even ordinary toilet paper - even the shiny foreign kind - seems to do this quite well.

My last thought ... have you tried baby oil? That stuff seems to work where most else fails.

I second the waterless hand cleaner idea

Like A-Line I would say the Trevek Suit. The cost is reasonable (3 to 5 CDN$ each retail at one store I just checked, and probably less if bought in bulk from a supplier). You can also get nitrate gloves if you want to keep you hands clean.

If your contract says management has to provide you protective clothing get them to order them in for you.

The house painters and body shop guys use them when spraying so a paint wholesaler or body supply shop may be the best place to try if you have to buy them on your own.

Try a barrier cream. I've used both SBS 44 and Invisible Glove with success.

http://www.ggsafety.com/product.htm?pid=502537

http://www.firstaidmonster.com/prod...?osCsid=74a1ffe0486af2b36181c6eafcc1e514

I 2nd the barrier creams. When I worked for the railroad lots of equipment was greasy/oily.I liked the barrier creams because they allow you to work without gloves and it was quite amazing how easy it was to wash away the grime when it came time to clean up.

A-Line on the money. Their cheap too and not to hot. Disposable.

I have heard baking soda works, but have never tried it personally.
Certainly a cheap and readily available substance, if it proves effective.

Another trick worth trying (I use it after working on bicycle chains, have no idea how it will work for heavy dairy grease) is to use some nice skin compatible oil as a solvent for removing the grease. You can then use your ordinary soap to remove the oil, or you can simply scrape the oil off. Various vegetable oils, 'baby oil', oil based moisturizers, massage oil, etc. are all potentially useable in this fashion.

-Jon

the easiet way is to sub out the work and you walk away clean as a whistle

I haven't tried it on industrial grease but dishwasher detergent is great at breaking up almost anything if you let it sit long enough.

Short hair, hat and hand cleaner gets my vote. I occasionally worked on pre-WWII railway equipment and you can guess the amount of grease caked with dirt.