Stealth Tooth Brushing?

[cherterr]

Okay.  I've used my tiny cup of water for tooth brushing, and been camped where I could just spit out the door or on the ground.
Great.  No problem.

NOW.. tell me what to do if I'm 'stealth' (about the spitting part!) LOL  :huh:

Thank YOU.

 

[Almost There]

Okay.  I've used my tiny cup of water for tooth brushing, and been camped where I could just spit out the door or on the ground.
Great.  No problem.

NOW.. tell me what to do if I'm 'stealth' (about the spitting part!) LOL  :huh:

Thank YOU.

I use a 2 1/2 gallon water jug for collecting all my gray water in.
It travels in the step well at the side cargo door.

To easily pour water from the plastic dishpan into the jug I carry a 6" wide funnel.

When spitting toothpaste in to the bushes doesn't work I spit (carefully) in to the funnel and then pour the rest of the glass of water I'm using in the funnel as well - it rinses the white spit off the funnel.

One more reason I like having a vinyl floor - when I miss the funnel it's easy to clean up...

 

[lterry]

Toothbrushing in a van is a little more tricky than some other things you have to alter for vandwelling. I have a sink and I still find it a little difficult. I mean rinsing your toothbrush, your mouth, your face...I have no advice, I just came to sympathize with you.

 

[gcal]

If you are stealth, you probably are using a public toilet armt some time during the day. Couldn't you just brush, there?

 

[rvpopeye]

I don't even use water..
Put a small amt of toothpaste on brush (about half what they show on the box is plenty !) , brush teeth , use a half piece of paper towel to wipe my face , then the brush and then spit in the towel and throw away.

 

[SoulRaven]

I use hydrogen peroxide instead of toothpaste and spit into my garbage can.

I don't feel a need to rinse my mouth, just spit a few times after I'm done. Instead of rinsing out my toothbrush I dry it with a tissue, add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide, and dry again.

 

[cherterr]

You guys are so cool.  Something gleaned from all:

 Almost There - I'm more determined than ever not to have grey water on board.. lol  At least not more than a tiny container for a few minutes!!

lterry -  "...I have no advice, I just came to sympathize with you."  OMG.. speaking of spitting.. I laughed so hard my coffee was in danger.

gcal - Perhaps I should have not used 'stealth'.  Perhaps boondocking would have been a better word choice.  I just meant 'stealth' in that I don't want anyone seeing spittle. (Including ME!!)

rvpopeye - Ahh.. paper towel.. hmm.  Not bad.  I'm minimal on paste, and water already.. so.. maybe less rinsing, and a paper towel.  I like it! :idea:

Bitty - Hydrogen Peroxide.  Hmmm.  Must do a search for alternative tooth brushing methods.  Thanks for making me think.  (Not too sure I'm fond of the bubbles/fuzzy mouth, but I will give it a shot. :idea:

 

[One Awesome Inch]

I use a spray bottle to rinse and brush over my garbage can. Works perfect.

 

[phillipaaron]

My method:
1. Brush teeth
2. Swish and spit into coke bottle for just this reason
3. Rinse toothbrush in small cup of water, wipe with paper towel, repeat a few times.
4. Done.

*Spray bottle is a good idea.

 

[speedhighway46]

I have become pretty comfortable brushing my teeth at McDonalds; Walmart; rest stops; truck stops; and anywhere with a restroom.

As I move around each day I generally know what my agenda is and my final destination; whether I'm driving one hour or six.

I've never had a problem doing this; never even gotten a comment from someone entering the restroom while I'm foaming at the mouth.

Works for me! Plus I get to rinse out my toothbrush nice and clean!

 

[DreamTransit1]

I'm with SH76. I'm a city stealther, so I'm
used to relying on public and businesses open to the public restrooms for all kinds of hygienic activities.
A few thoughts on the brushing aspect of oral hygiene....
Forget for a minute the subjective nature of how your mouth feels after a brushing,
and let's also forget how you perceive others think about your breath etc.
The medical/dental reason to brush is to destroy the bacterial colonies in dental plaque before they have the chance to do permanent damage to teeth and gums.
Thoroughness is much more important than frequency, so if you brush REALLY good once every 48 hours you'll be fine.
There is only one ingredient in toothpaste that adds any value over just using a simple mild abrasive such as baking soda. And that is Fluoride. Since the late '50's it was included because of the positive effect it had applied topically to teeth in altering the crystalline structure of enamel.
There has been a lot of talk over recent decades of it's possible harmful effects because it is after all... a poison. The current body of scientific research not only backs up that it is not harmful to humans in the recommended dosages, but that it also is definitely toxic to the microbes that cause tooth decay and gum disease!
Hydrogen Peroxide will help debride the plaque , but it's no substitute for a fluoridated toothpaste, since both the physical alteration of the enamel structure and the death by chemical poisoning of bacteria are missing.
My recommendation?
Brush THOROUGHLY once per day, but don't freak if you miss a day here and there. And use a conventional fluoridated dentifrice. Be sure to floss every single day.
Source?
Been practicing dentistry for 42 years. Van camping for 47.
Have 32 teeth!

 

[rvpopeye]

Hey , the tribe has a dentist !

 

[Reducto]

I have one old bath towel set aside for cleaning up messes such as spilled drinks, water tracked in, and on occasion for spitting into when brushing teeth. I hang it to dry.

It's probably gross, but it's quiet and as long as I'm in a reasonably dry climate it dries quickly.

 

[DreamTransit1]

7792[/ATTACH] rvpopeye pid='201855' dateline='1463962600']Hey , the tribe has a dentist !

But not a very traditional one!

 

[GotSmart]

I have seen many people in academic and business settings brushing their teeth in the "men's lounge " and locker rooms.

Don't give it a second thought.  

PS< (Their poo stinks just as bad.)

 

[DreamTransit1]

I'll go into a restaurant and brush at the men's room sink. When another customer walks in I'll say with a foamy mouth: " Very important to brush after every meal". They feel guilty, most folks don't know about the 48 hour window.

 

[Oberneldon]

I have a gray water container in my Prius (large laundry detergent bottle with handle) stick a funnel in it.

It's ready for brushing teeth. I use a small squeeze bottle for water to rinse mouth and brush/funnel

Brent

 

[lambchopxoxo]

But not a very traditional one!

My dentist needs to see that photo ... he'll love it

 

[TrainChaser]

Fluoride doesn't do anything for teeth. ALCOA just wanted to get paid for dumping their chemical waste. Fluoride is what Hitler's gang added to the water in the Jewish Ghettos (and later in the concentration camps) to keep the inmates docile and stupid. It also robs us of what tiny bit of iodine we're getting (we desperately need much more).

You've read that our IQs are going down? Fluoride was added to our water in the 1960s, and iodine was basically removed from our diet and touted to be 'toxic' (also not true) about the same time. Our IQs started dropping in the 1980s.

Soon after the changes in the 1970s, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, breast cancer, autism, prostate and heart problems started increasing substantially about the same time, and are still increasing.

Just remember that doctors don't CURE much of anything -- they just treat your symptoms until you die.

Do your homework -- you'll see.

 

[slynne]

Sometimes, such as this very morning, when I am late for work, I just brush without toothpaste at all. Sometimes I will throw a little baking soda on the brush but I basically brush and go. No rinsing. *shrug* I get good feedback from my dentist at my cleanings so it seems to work ok although I too didn't know of the 48 hour window and usually brush especially well at night when I have more time.