Poison oak oil on seats (from yesterday's "Car Talk" on NPR)

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bunmango

New member
so I was listening to "Car Talk" on NPR yesterday... they had a caller at the end of the hour who had gotten poison oak all over her skin and clothes, and decided that it would be a good idea to hop into the car. Needless to say, some of the oil rubbed off on the car seats and now she gets a nice case of poison oak whenever she drives.



The first thing that came to my mind when I heard this was whether or not any of you guys here on Autopia had to deal with this before ;) The guys on the show didn't help much either...
 
Those guys never help anyone, granted I dont listen often just when im driving cross country and cant get anything else on the radio.



As an aircraft technician I am astounded by the lack of mechanical knowledge those two have.



I know from experience that poison Ivy lasts a while once outside the plant, for fear of prosecution I cant say how I know it though :o



By the way it sticks to toilet paper well too
 
I used to like the show until I learned that it is NOT a live call in. People write in with their problems and if the producer likes the situation arrangements are made for the show to call at a certain date/time and everyone pretends as if the person calls the show.



This is a big moneymaker for NPR and herein lies my problem, if they were up front as to how the program works I would have no problem but .................
 
FalconGuy said:
I know from experience that poison Ivy lasts a while once outside the plant, for fear of prosecution I cant say how I know it though :o



By the way it sticks to toilet paper well too
Click to expand...



That's it...you're not invited to any NJ Autopia functions! :nervous2:



PS Do you work on Moonachie Ave.?
 
You guys miss the point of the show, it's purely for entertainment value. I download it every week, listen to it at the gym, very funny.
 
We heard that show 8 days ago. Maybe we get it first.



it's gotta be a mess, I can think of a few ways to clean it up. Never had poison oak, but have had poison ivy a few times.
 
I used to love that show just for the humor!!! Now I can't seem to find it on NPR. Does anyone know when it's aired in Ohio?
 
FalconGuy said:
Those guys never help anyone, granted I dont listen often just when im driving cross country and cant get anything else on the radio.



As an aircraft technician I am astounded by the lack of mechanical knowledge those two have.



I know from experience that poison Ivy lasts a while once outside the plant, for fear of prosecution I cant say how I know it though :o



By the way it sticks to toilet paper well too
Click to expand...



By saying you don't listen often and only when you are driving cross country and cannot get anything else on the radio, what you are saying in reality is that you don't listen, and are basing your perception on the few times you may have actually tuned in and listened to the show.



Actually... they have a wealth of automotive knowledge and run their own shop in their fair city of Cambridge, Massachusetts.



Click and Clack, aka the Tappet Brothers are their "alter egos" so to speak.



Here on Autopia, we read about detailing "horror stories". On Car Talk, we hear about all kinds of weird mechanical stuff.



Car Talk is informative and entertaining, so I think it falls in the genre of "infotainment".



Okay... now for the poison oak/ivy sumac. The oil that causes the reaction is called urushiol. Some people have an immunity to it, but once you become sensitized, that's it (personal experience with a severe case of poison ivy! )



It can be diluted and removed by washing it off the skin and clothing by using dish detergent, much like using Dawn to strip away wax off a car finish. As far as the car goes, cleaning the upholstery with a Dawn solution, then extracting and recleaning with the proper interior cleaning products should take care of the problem in the car.



The young lady should keep an eye out for this type of plant in the future and recognize it.



"leaves of three... beware of me!"
 
I didn't say they weren't entertaining, I said they have very little mechanical knowledge, I stand by that coment.



I drive to florida 6-8 times a year, 22 hours each way, plus a lot of other cross country trips. I have heard enough of the show to base my opinion in fact, im sure to the non mechanics in the audience they do sound smart after all they aren't fixing cars just telling people what to try next.



On the shows I have heard they offer such poor troubleshooting that even a sears technician would know better. Like you said they own a car repair shop, they arent' techs. To each his own
 
FalconGuy said:
Setec Astronomy, I do work on Moonachie ave. Is it part of your commute?
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No, I used to be a "Falcon Guy" back, um, before you were born or something. Certainly another lifetime for me. I would have asked if you work in the "white castle" but I don't think they have that anymore (office building up on 17, actually in Hasbrouck Heights). I used to work in the Pan Am building, if you guys even refer to it that way now. I'm presuming that you work in what we used to call the Jet Center, since last time I was by it looked like they built some more buildings down there.
 
some changes since you have last seen TEB, Dassault built a new all glass building off Billy Diel Road, really beautiful all waterfalls and such. The old FAA building was knocked down and now they have an incredible hangar to deliver airplanes in. The new airplane, the 7X is built and flying as a test bed towards certification, absolutely beautiful.....



Im an instructor on the 900EX and 50EX.



The place has changed, very little small planes, if your not buying 40 grand in fuel they dont want to see you on the ramp. other than that its the same, Falcon doesn't operate the jet center anymore, all maintenance goes to either Little Rock or the newer facility they bought in Wilmington. Very little maintenance is available at TEB, its just too profitable to charge 20K a month to park a plane never mind working on it. My buddy pays 22k per month to SHARE a hangar with Cosby's G4.



Small world, everyone always things my sig means Ford Falcons, your the first to figure it out.
 
i had a bad case of poison ivy once and had to research it. supposedly the stuff can stay potent for 15 years or something horrible like that. It's actually an oil. If you get it on u're skin u can wash it off within 15 minutes, if it's longer then you'll get the bad rashes and stuff.



if u burn the plant u can make the poison airborn and then if you breath it u can infect u're lungs!



not sure if anyone went into the details of this stuff, thought i'd share, I had a horror story going on for like a week when i had it.



i started with the creams, which were useless, then i moved onto the full oatmeal, vinegar, lemon juice, and boiling water technique......sounds horrible but after itching for 30 hours straight that boiling lemon juice looked like heaven.



Also, it only takes the amount of oil that fits on the tip of a needle to infect you. The worst part is when the oil gets in water and then washes down stream and infects anyone in the water. Thats how I got it, i had it on my face, legs, and arms.



Not sure about the techniques to get an oil like thing out of cars but those are some things to consider when dealing with it.
 
our first aid supplier sells Tecnu liquid poison ivy soap that might work-you might be able to find it at a drug store or walmart. On skin I found that hydrogen peroxide drys it out pretty fast.
 
Gonzo, you really do not have a problem with the format of the show, not telling people that it is a recorded series, that no one really calls in to the program with a problem??
 
A lady once called in to the show and was having a problem with her heat not working. They told her to check her heater core and went on to explain how the engine heats the coolant and then routes some to the heater core.



The car was an older 911.
 
RJJ said:
Gonzo, you really do not have a problem with the format of the show, not telling people that it is a recorded series, that no one really calls in to the program with a problem??
Click to expand...



Actually, People do call 1-888 cartalk with their problem, the producers pick the most interesting ones and then Tom and Ray call them back to be on the show.



It's called artistic license, and no, I don't have a problem with it.
 
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