What To Look For
Disposable gloves are typically used for food preparation and cleaning, unless you are in the medical field--in which case, gloves are usually provided by the company. In either case, you can choose from three common types of disposable gloves: latex, vinyl or nitrile. If you choose latex, look for gloves that have powder on the inside for easy on and off. For cleaning and food service, look for industrial grade gloves as opposed to medical grade. If you are allergic to latex or if an allergy is unknown, you will want to choose vinyl or nitrile gloves, nitrile being the more popular of the two, according to Top Grip Nitrile Gloves
Common Pitfalls
When shopping for disposable gloves it can be difficult to find gloves that are not made from latex rubber. Even if stores carry other types, they usually only come in packages of six or less. Gloves from different manufacturers may not all fit the same, you may have to try a few different styles or brands before finding one that has the best fit and is adequate for the job.
Where To Buy
For personal home use you probably won't need to purchase to purchase more than one box of 100 at a time. The best place to buy a few good pairs of cleaning gloves is Walmart. Walgreens has a few choices of medical grade gloves as well as food service varieties in boxes of 100. Online source Unisafe Direct sells disposable gloves in a box of 100 or a case of 1,000 gloves. Unisafe has a large variety of all three types of gloves and will send samples upon request. They sell high-quality gloves at the best prices. With Unisafe's online guide you will be able to select the right glove for you.
Cost
Several types of latex gloves are available from Unisafe.com and Walgreens at about $5 per box of 100, with bulk prices at Unisafe ranging from $40 to $90 for 1,000 gloves. Three types of vinyl gloves are available at about $3 per box or $35 to $80 for 1,000. Unisafe has seven Nitrile glove products to choose from ranging in price from about $5 per box to between $55 and $107 for bulk orders of 1,000 gloves or more. Prices are as of 2010.
Insider Tips
All medical-grade gloves are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and will have the word "Exam" on the box. If the word "Exam" is not on the box then they are considered to be industrial-grade gloves. Industrial-grade gloves are accepted in the food service industry. Nitrile gloves are commonly used in any industry where the workers come in contract with chemicals.
