How should we clean go equipment in light of COVID-19?

[Kirby]

What really told us it was time to throw in the towel was when we saw the rule about maintaining a distance of 6 feet (2 meters) or more. The other restrictions, we could meet; but if we have to stay 6 feet apart while playing, that changed the whole dynamic.

If only the go boards were bigger...

[SeattleGo]

If only the go boards were bigger...

I know, right? I toyed with the idea of installing a plexiglass "sneeze shield" over the boards, but ultimately discarded it as too ridiculous. (Would have made for a few good Instagram posts though.) And I thought about putting the magnetic demo board on the floor, and have the players stand 8 feet apart, and move back when the other player is placing a stone. Also ridiculous.

[SeattleGo]

I read somewhere that the virus doesn't survive more than 3 hours on contaminated objects. To be confirmed by reliable sources...

I have never heard such a short time for any virus. And, AFAIK, the research has not been done for this virus. Touching go stones that someone else has just touched may not be as dangerous as shaking hands, but it might be, don't you think?

Apparently, the type of surface matters a lot. It seems like most viruses (virii? oh well) in the "coronavirus" category go inactive after 2 or 3 hours on metal surfaces like copper xxxxxxxx* (unless a slime has built up). Wood surfaces also are relatively anti-viral; though I'm not sure if that's true of Go boards, which usually have a finish of some kind.

On the other hand, most coronaviruses apparently can survive on plastic for over a week. Glass, I haven't seen addressed.

And no, for this particular species of coronavirus, I don't think detailed testing has been done for different surfaces.

Apparently this virus is relatively easy to kill with ordinary disinfecting cleansers. A few sources have said even normal detergent disrupts its lipid capsule (not that I know what that means, precisely), but I haven't seen that confirmed by an official authority.

* Apparently this virus can live for three days on steel surfaces, so I felt obliged to cross out my earlier comment.

[Tryss]

This is what the coronavirus looks like :



The envelope in red is composed of lipids (fat). Soap (or other products that remove fat) will rip it easily, destroying the virus. Alcool do the same, but with less efficacity.

[sybob]

And no, for this particular species of coronavirus, I don't think detailed testing has been done for different surfaces.

Apparently, the U.S. CDC just released an article about this specific virus lasting on different surfaces (wood, metal, carton).
Haven't read it myself though.

[SeattleGo]

And no, for this particular species of coronavirus, I don't think detailed testing has been done for different surfaces.

Apparently, the U.S. CDC just released an article about this specific virus lasting on different surfaces (wood, metal, carton).
Haven't read it myself though.

I just read a New York Times article about a study that appeared yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine. Apparently this virus can survive for three days on steel and stainless steel (contrary to what I said above) and plastic. On cardboard, 24 hours. On copper, only 4 hours.

Most troubling is that it seems likely that it can be transmitted by aerosol, and remain suspended in the air for about 30 minutes. But the "virus does not linger in the air at high enough levels to be a risk to most people who are not physically near an infected person". Which gives some rationale to the 6 feet / 2 meters distance requirements. Still, it's a real concern for health care workers.

Editing to add this from the Chemical and Engineering News from March 13, 2020.

• Soap, detergent, bleach, alcohol, and probably ammonia products should deactivate the novel coronavirus, based on their efficacy against similar viruses.
• The EPA regulates antimicrobial products (as pesticides), and has an "emerging viral pathogen" program that gives manufacturers an expedited way to claim their products work against the novel coronavirus -- though such information probably won't appear on labels, but rather on websites etc.
• It's important to follow the directions on the label, which often say to leave the surface wet for ten minutes. Many people wipe it off too soon, leaving the surface looking clean but not actually disinfected.

[Gomoto]

In my place of the world we have now rules in place that stopped offline go completely. Skype and online go is a pretty nice combination to stay in contact with the go friends.

[jlt]

In my go club we use KGS + Discord, it's quite convenient to review games afterwards (or to chat about any topic).

[SeattleGo]

In my go club we use KGS + Discord, it's quite convenient to review games afterwards (or to chat about any topic).

We're doing the same now with Seattle Go Center, though it seems like OGS is more popular than KGS these days. We're running a Discord server, and a Google Hangout, and the Discord server is about 3x more popular than the Google Hangout. I guess that Discord already has a strong following among gamers.