:?: PLAYA FOOT: (getting the Dust out of the Water...?)

[barnz]

Okay, so I have decided that it will greatly enhance my enjoyment of future events if I can take much better care of my feet. (I am a WUSSY.)

To protect the delicate, princess-like skin of my tootsies, in the past I have tried eliminating sandals (except for trips to the JOTS) and cleaning and moisturizing my feet multiple times per day.

This hasn't been enough, and I have wound up with painful cracks in my heels.

Next year, I would like to upgrade my foot cleaning from a damp washcloth & Cetaphil cleanser & lotion to a full immersion foot bath. (And still using cetaphil).

SO WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?

I don't want to haul in and out gallons upon gallons of extra water. It seems to me that a single use of some small tub of water will result in playafied water too dusty to use a second time. I've read lots of ePlaya posts about treating kitchen water so that it is clean enough to evaporate, but what can I do to simply get the dust out of my foot bath, leaving the water to use again? Is there a Mister Wizard out there (and of course a missus can be a Mister Wizard) who can get the peanut butter out of my chocolate? ?

[nixiebunny]

If you let the water settle, the playa dust will be at the bottom of the tub. You can add a drain to the tub about 1/4 inch up from the bottom to allow you to decant the settled water, leaving the dust layer behind. Thus, you only waste a 1/4 inch layer of water.

Attaching a drain line to the side of the tub can be tricky; I used 1/2" electrical PVC box-to-pipe connector with a sealing locknut, then attached a PVC ball valve with a short length of PVC pipe. The above all being 1/2" trade size, which uses a 7/8" hole. Rather large for a foot soaking tub, but cheap (under $4 at home Depot) and effective.

[CapSmashy]

I had great success with recycling my cooler water this year. A 2.5/3 gallon ziplock bag is the perfect size to dump the 7lb bags of ice into. The sealed bag kept the water clean and cooler contents dry. I simply poured the ice melt from the bags into my shower bags or used it for head dunkings and foot washing.

On those really hot afternoons that we had end of the event, the ice water head dunk and head wrap soak was very invigorating.

As for undusting the water...hmmm... not sure on that one. Maybe have 2 tubs and pour the water through a several layers of fabric and then lay out the fabric to dry and shake out later.

[barnz]

If you let the water settle, the playa dust will be at the bottom of the tub. ...

Thanks for the suggestion! But I'm wondering how much of the dust will be dissolved into the water, making an alkaline foot bath that might look clear but would make my problem worse after repeated use of the water.

Anyone?

Thanks!

[theCryptofishist]

What is this foot of which you speak?

[AntiM]

Snort, Fishy, snort.

Just don't put them directly in the cooler. They make the beer cans taste funny.

We used melted cooler water with a dash of vinegar, then into the evap pond it went. Only need a few inches. Had one of the basins swiped from the hospital, so never got the footbath all too deep. Used fresh water daily, no soap, just a good scrub with wipes mid-soak.

I get dry heels here at home in winter, just as badly as I do on the playa. While the foot baths are good, the key ingredient has been Gold Bond foot cream, very specifically. My some of my campmates were using lotions and I let them try mine. A good thing I brought two tubes, they were all asking to use it daily. Seriously, give it a try, I was wearing sandals with socks and my feet held up.

[goathead]

making an alkaline foot bath that might look clear but would make my problem worse after repeated use of the water.

Freshen it with a little vinegar to neutralize the alkali.

[asp3]

I start my playa foot prevention program a week before heading out. I put a liberal amount of lotion on my feet every day during that week. While on the playa I use wet wipes to clean my feet every morning and then lotion them. I'll also clean and lotion them before going to bed if they seem a bit dry. If I start to get a crack I make sure to switch back to closed shoes and have lots of fluffy, clean white socks to use.

[somekind]

I spent the week with my campmates around a wading pool with our feet soaking in it. The water got dirtier and muddier as the week passed, but it was still refreshing to have the feet soaking in water. That helped a lot.

[barnz]

I start my playa foot prevention program a week before heading out. I put a liberal amount of lotion on my feet every day during that week. While on the playa I use wet wipes to clean my feet every morning and then lotion them. I'll also clean and lotion them before going to bed if they seem a bit dry. If I start to get a crack I make sure to switch back to closed shoes and have lots of fluffy, clean white socks to use.

This is almost exactly my daily routine, and it's just not enough for me. (See above note on Wussy-ness. . .) I'm also wet-lotioning my feet all 51 weeks of default-ness, so there's not much to add-in there. (I can try AntiM's Gold Bond lotion and see how I like that for a while, thanks Anti!).

I think I'll be bringing a lot more vinegar to the Playa next year, it seems like it takes care of everything...
http://www.apple-cider-vinegar-benefits ... negar.html

[trypical]

A little spray bottle of vinegar. Also try heritage products rose water with glycerin and/or lavender water. Both will sooth and calm your foot skin while it is freaking out. it also smells nice and will help your feet too!!

[bloom]

I guess I avoid playa foot by avoiding putting my feet on the playa. Here's what I do:

Every morning when I get up, after bkfst and a trip to JOTS in flip-flops, I use my weed-sprayer to rinse off my feet, towel dry, apply Lubriderm, then put on a fresh pair of ankle socks. Then I put on my tennis shoes. So I spend the day with feet enclosed in shoes, socks and soothing lotino. The shoes are loose/comfy, almost like sandals or flip-flops but enclosed. This has the added advantage of no busted toes when someone fails to mark their rebar or while bicycling.

At night, when I rinse off my feet just before bed, I apply another coat of Lubriderm and hit the hay. So my feet remain comfy and never suffer.

Works for me, your mileage may vary...

[mojo]

I think that playa foot problems are much worse if you already have a build-up of callous on your heels to begin with. Before the event, go get a couple of good pedicures - yes, men get pedicures too - and have them really work on reducing the amount of callouses on your heels.

Anti-M is right on about the Gold Bond cream - another thing that can't be beat is SHEA BUTTER.

[unjonharley]

I think that playa foot problems are much worse if you already have a build-up of callous on your heels to begin with. Before the event, go get a couple of good pedicures - yes, men get pedicures too - and have them really work on reducing the amount of callouses on your heels.

Anti-M is right on about the Gold Bond cream - another thing that can't be beat is SHEA BUTTER.

\/
I have a problem that demands care for my feet.. like take good care of the feet or possible even loss them..

When they become hard to the touch i soak them in dish soap water until soft.. then soak in freash water to rid the soap.. air dry completely.. vitamin E and cotton socks to bed.. doctor daid to never cut calloses off.. if you have callouses you have the wrong shoes..

on the playa i wear open sandels no sock and no problems.. care for the feet in the afternoon and before bed..

[barnz]

Before the event, go get a couple of good pedicures - yes, men get pedicures too ...

Oh, I don't need to come to Burning Man for my manly ego to have an excuse to get a peddi.

I used to drive the nail techs crazy because most of their female clients just want their nails painted - whereas I wanted mine buffed to a shine - much more work! This year before the burn I opted to get a nice, macho metallic blue color, and it still looks nice a week after getting back.

But this still hasn't taken care of my play foot problem. . .

I think I will have to build the Rube Goldberg (anything mechanical is Goldbergian to me) foot bath with offset drain, and treat the reused bath water with vinegar to keep it less alkaline...

[skeetsh00ter]

I say just start wearing sandals and flip flops (even go bare foot) for most of the year before you get out to the playa. This way your feet get used to it. I'm not sure if there is any validity to this approach, but thats what I did and my feet were fine all week.

I did maybe 2 vinegar foot baths during the week, i wiped my feet w/ straight vinegar another two times, and then i wore a brand new pair of socks to bed every night. Feet stayed perfect (ie callused and worn) all week long!

[Fat SAM]

Prevention:
Spray those little tootsies each morning with a solution of vinegar water (you can add some essential oil to it to make for a nicer smell - rose or lavender are both very nice). Using a spray bottle kills the problem of having too much grey water, and whatever's there you can drip into your evap. Dry them off well, rub them down with a thin coat of Bag Balm (good enough to make a cow's tit feel better), and thrown on a pair of fresh socks. Can't emphasize the importance of those nice new socks...And then, yeah, full wrap shoes. Gotta go with shoes or boots to totally avoid playa foot.

If you've got cracks already:
Spackle the cracks with SUPERGLUE! Right into the wound. Hold it together until it seals. It doesn't sting and it keeps it from getting worse. Then follow the instructions above.

[barnz]

Prevention:
If you've got cracks already:
Spackle the cracks with SUPERGLUE! Right into the wound. Hold it together until it seals. It doesn't sting and it keeps it from getting worse.

Scary!

[Fat SAM]

No, I swear...it works really well and doesn't hurt a bit.

[goathead]

No, I swear...it works really well and doesn't hurt a bit.

Just clean it out good before you glue it.

[theCryptofishist]

No, I swear...it works really well and doesn't hurt a bit.

As I understand it, that's what it was developed for. They just sold it as superglue while waiting for the okay to use it on wounds.

[safetythird]

Dermabond is basically medical grade super glue and tends to leave much smaller scars. Why we still use stitches for many minor injuries is beyond me.

In a pinch, duct tape works well for larger gashes.

Super glue, duct tape, large hose clamps, an exacto knife... My playa first aid kit looks more like a toolbox now.

My tip for foot baths and general de-playafication purposes is to use lemon juice instead of vinegar. Same acidic reaction without the pesky douche smell.

S3

[Remark]

I never eat chili, never never eat chili... until I go to the playa. Then I eat it for six days straight. Scary idea right!

Work up to going bare footed (or sandal footed) Condition them, build to it.

Now if I could only find a way for my ass to NOT hurt from riding a bike one week out of the year. Hmm If only I could think of a way.

[theCryptofishist]

Build your ass a chair that's only a bicycle seat and use it to post to eplaya from.

[dr.placebo]

Socks, sandals, and lotion worked for me, and I have pretty wimpy feet.

The key improvement this year was to consistently rinse feet (spray bottle), apply lotion, and put on clean socks right before going to bed.

[skibear]

Now if I could only find a way for my ass to NOT hurt from riding a bike one week out of the year. Hmm If only I could think of a way.

Toss the bike seat and replace with a wide "comfort seat" bike seat.
The ultra skinny seats that come with the bike don't hack it for
those of us with widebody asses! 150 lbs or more.

I added a extra wide seat from an exercise machine. No sore ass
untill Sat when I got spanked extra hard by The Little Bitch doing
spanks for beer from her cart.

[sun4all]

I coat my feet with bag balm when I get up in the morning and I put on clean socks. I keep my socks on unless I shower. Once I'm done showering, I put more bag balm on my feet and put on new socks. I put a bit of bag balm on my feet before I go to bed so that they don't dry out during the night. No socks in bed, though. This will prevent Playa foot; no vinegar baths neeed!

[bigbluedoggy]

I wear shoes and good hiking socks the entire time (except sleep and showering) and have no trouble with my feet at all. My hands on the other hand are just now returning to normal even with regular applications of lotions and the like... the playa callouses are rough!!

Doggy

[mrs yow]

I can wear sandals most of the time if I use vinegar on my feet every day. A small amount of vinegar in a spray bottle with water works well. A melted ice and vinegar foot bath is even nicer. I also pour a bit of vinegar in with my baby wipes, and even brush some of the mixture from the spray bottle through my hair. Nobody in my camp has ever told me that I smell like a salad. Maybe they are just too polite.

[BitterDan]

I wear socks and shoes the whole time (except when I am sleeping) and I have no problems with playa foot.