Best mechanics hand cleaner?

[Jimmy9190]

Permatex Grease Grabber (sold at Auto Zone) works very well for heavy grease and dirt. Joe's liquid hand cleaner (sold at O'Reilley's) woks well on grease and oil and smells like bananas. Neither one will dry out my skin like a petroleum based cleaner does. Fast Orange is good for lighter grease/dirt/grime.

 

[MrHorspwer]

I'm not going to say that it's the "best" hand cleaner, but dish soap with some coffee grounds is pretty good. The dish soap is naturally good on oil/grease and the coffee grounds give a good amount of abrasives.

Where it really works best is on smells. My dad taught me the combo after he had been handling fish. It completely zaps the fishy smell. It works equally well if you've gotten gas, gear lube, or any other stinky fluid on your hands.

 

[DBMaster]

Nitrile gloves. Never thought if using them until I asked my Honda mechanic how they got their hands (and nails) so clean. I thought gloves would make the work harder, but in fact, made it easier. The ones with textured fingertips are especially nice as they allow gripping of small fasteners when hands are oily. I have had very little need of hand cleaner since I started using them.

 

[supton]

Ditto. I use gloves, even cheapo ones that need replacing every 15 minutes saves gobs on hand cleaning time. After that, dish soap.

I managed to convince the wife to change the soft soap dispenser at the kitchen sink to one that dispenses dish soap instead. Works great.

 

[tom slick]

I like Lava liquid soap.
http://www.lavasoap.com/products/lava-liquid/

And always wear gloves.

 

[Cujet]

I work on Large corporate jets, helicopters, turboprops and a few piston powered aircraft.

I get quite dirty at times. Yes, it's often clean work, however there are tasks that push the limits of filth.

I think the most effective hand cleaner is:

GoJo Cherry gel with pumice.

http://www.gojo.com/united-states/brands/gojo/product.aspx?sdid={D62721CC-B7CE-452F-B094-8598302309B8}

 

[Errtt]

Lava Bar Soap.... been using it for years because I bought a bunch.
I'm down to probably about 60-70 bars (guessing).

 

[sprintman]

So it looks like Gojo Cherry Gel, Fast Orange, or Kresto. What's your choice if price irrelevant?

 

[dave123]

Kresto hands down best
Cupran best for oil base paints and stains nothing better period.

 

[yucca]

I just use the Joe's hand cleaner products.

 

[whip]

I'm surprised it took three pages for Gojo to get mentioned. It's what I use. It cleans really well, and is easy on the hands.

 

[DBMaster]

I also like lava soap, especially combined with a brush. The most effective hand cleaners (Fast Orange) use the same ingredient, pumice. I try to minimize my usage of these products as I have dry skin on my hands and it exacerbates the problem, thus the use of gloves. I keep some cornstarch body powder on hand because after the first set of gloves needs to be changed it is pretty hard to get the next set on over sweaty hands without it.

 

[JHZR2]

I use a product called worx, which is a green rough soap, and works best.

 

[Mamala Bay]

I use a coconut base soap with the Salux Nylon cloth. The Salux makes a huge difference.

 

[paulo57509]

The best hand cleaner I ever used was this no-name stuff that the waste oil collection guy used to give my Dad back in the 60's-70's when he owned his shop.

Now, I just use whatever is available; GoJo or Fast Orange, which I've been out of for the past few months. I've been spritzing my hands with full strength Simple Green which works pretty well.

 

[GreeCguy]

Originally Posted By: Cold_Canuk
When I was a kid we used diesel fuel on the farm, then soap.......


+ 1, and ag fuel at that. Now I use Dawn dishwashing liquid and a garden hose.