Poison ivy hammock hang?

[Birch]

http://www.poisonivysoap.com FYI

[hawghangar]

Poison ivy vaccination is now available at most doc offices... series of 3 shots - cost about $100 - lasts about 12-15 months.

[Armor Like Fire]

Really? Does it completely keep you from getting it or what?

[gooseofdeuce]

Try this stuff. You take it by mouth mixed in a glass of water and do about a drop a day and it's supposed to make you immune to the oils. I've never tried it but i know sherrilltree has been selling it for years. Look for the very hairy vines in the winter or summer time. Regular ivy that people plant in their yard has some hairs on it but no where near as much as the poison ivy vines.

http://www.sherrilltree.com/Skin-Products-1308

[hawghangar]

Really? Does it completely keep you from getting it or what?

Supposedly.

[SilvrSurfr]

I'd invest a little time in learning to identify the plant - if you're that allergic to it. I know I'm plenty allergic to poison ivy but haven't gotten it in 20 years 'cause I keep an eye out for it.

[BillyBob58]

I've always been told for the vine to remember "hairy rope, don't be a dope". The vines look like that are hairy.

Attachment 82779

That's the key right there! It seems like there's lots of "leaves of three" every where I hike, and it can be really tough to tell. I hike mostly off trail and am super sensitive. But I have not had any rash since I became obsessive about watching for the furry vines for the last 10 or 15 years. often I can not find any "leaves of 3", but I do find the evil furry vine and it goes up the tree and if I look REAL close, then I will see the leaves of 3 intertwined with the tree's leaves, completely camouflaged. And yu can see those big furry wooly booger looking vines from 50 yds away, but don't be faked out by the young tiny ones. Look on any tree you are going to tie off to, and you might see a very small but furry vine running up the tree. Avoid any vine that is furry. Notice how you can barely see any fur on this small vine, but it is there.

Alright so your pole came in direct contact with the ivy right? If so I can see that oil sticking in the pole. But say I got it on my hands and later had gotten into my hammock obviously using my hands would I need to wash off everything I touched including my hammock?

Yep, it will get on everything!

I sell a poison ivy soap at my Hardware store. If you have a non-box store such as Doit Best or Ace hardware, they might carry it. It is called Stop The Itch poison ivy soap. This stuff really works! Phone for the company is 570-448-5381. This is a small Company w/o a Web site, but great guy to deal with.

Just found out the Web site for soap is poisonivysoap.com. You can find a local retailer from the site

I have always been told that the best way to remove the oils after contact was with 91% rubbing (isopropal or 2-propanaol) alcohol. It makes sense that the alcohol would break down the oils too. I have been exposed several times but, wiped off with a towel soaked in the stuff. Zero problems since I have started doing that. I carry a small bottle now when I hike for that, hand sanitizing (its whats in the store bought stuff), and wound cleaning. Medical literature highly recommends the use of alcohol based sanitizers as bleach based products can degrade quickly. Really great stuff.

All very useful info there!

[ntxkayakr]

I'd invest a little time in learning to identify the plant - if you're that allergic to it. I know I'm plenty allergic to poison ivy but haven't gotten it in 20 years 'cause I keep an eye out for it.

I agree, best to learn to identify all in poison sumac family all seasons. Older vines on trees will often be "hairy and scary" as we were taught as small children and "leaves of three leave them be", "red stems", "asymmetrical leaves that look like mittens, don't touch", I forgot all the rimes. Better to look up on Internet or field guide book for good photos. Some are standing plants, not vines.
If someone in your group has a wondering dog or child they can bring the oils/resins to those who are allergic. Lastly people who are not allergic (20-35% of population? ) will eventually become allergic if they are repeatedly exposed to poisonous sumac family of plants so use common sense and wash up with best soap you can buy, any thing you have even fireplace ash and fat is better than nothing, but i keep good soap in 1st aid which is ALWAYS in bug out bag, on top! CPR on very top. Hope this helps.

[BillyBob58]

I agree, best to learn to identify all in poison sumac family all seasons. Older vines on trees will often be "hairy and scary" as we were taught as small children and "leaves of three leave them be", "red stems", "asymmetrical leaves that look like mittens, don't touch", I forgot all the rimes. Better to look up on Internet or field guide book for good photos. Some are standing plants, not vines.
If someone in your group has a wondering dog or child they can bring the oils/resins to those who are allergic. Lastly people who are not allergic (20-35% of population? ) will eventually become allergic if they are repeatedly exposed to poisonous sumac family of plants so use common sense and wash up with best soap you can buy, any thing you have even fireplace ash and fat is better than nothing, but i keep good soap in 1st aid which is ALWAYS in bug out bag, on top! CPR on very top. Hope this helps.

Poison Sumac is still much harder for me to identify than poison ivy or oak, and oak seems trickier than ivy. But I guess the poison sumac is not as common, at least down here, as the p. ivy which seems to be every where? At least I have had no outbreaks in the 20+ years since I became much more proactive about identification, and especially since I learned about the hairy/scary vine. The last case I got was after our big ice storm in the early 90s, working to open trails at my local hiking area. This may have been too early in the year for the leaves of 3 to even be out, but I bet I picked up a big branch with a tiny furry vine which I did not know to look for back then.

Any tips on P. Sumac identification? There's all kinds of sumac out there, which looks much like the poison variety, I think.

Oh well, here is a quick look up:
http://www.wikihow.com/Identify-Poison-Sumac

[BillyBob58]

Poison Sumac is still much harder for me to identify than poison ivy or oak, and oak seems trickier than ivy. But I guess the poison sumac is not as common, at least down here, as the p. ivy which seems to be every where? At least I have had no outbreaks in the 20+ years since I became much more proactive about identification, and especially since I learned about the hairy/scary vine. The last case I got was after our big ice storm in the early 90s, working to open trails at my local hiking area. This may have been too early in the year for the leaves of 3 to even be out, but I bet I picked up a big branch with a tiny furry vine which I did not know to look for back then.

Any tips on P. Sumac identification? There's all kinds of sumac out there, which looks much like the poison variety, I think.

Oh well, here is a quick look up:
http://www.wikihow.com/Identify-Poison-Sumac

Plus, according to : https://answers.yahoo.com/question/i...1043643AA7g4Of , " poison sumac........Flowers: June, July. Dioecious; yellow green, borne in long, narrow, axillary panicles crowded **near the ends of the branches........ The whitish green fruits **hang from the plant,((( non-poisonous varieties of sumac have fruits that are red and upright.))) ... prefers to grow in wet, swampy conditions....Poison Sumac has tiny sweet smelling flowers in the spring and is brightly covered with lovely red and yellow leaves in the fall, but remember, only Poison Sumac has cream colored berries."

So p. Sumac vs regular, cream colored berries is poison. Similar to p.ivy/oak. Also, bright red stems on the p, Sumac in the spring, but neither there in the winter. Any way to identify P. Sumac in the winter?

http://landscaping.about.com/od/weed...umac-Stems.htm
http://landscaping.about.com/od/weed...umac-Seeds.htm