Home Made Hand Sanitizer

[dottiedodah]

Just saw this on Good Housekeeping Site : Fill small bottle 1/3 to 1/4 with vodka ,top up with Aloe Vera gel . Use on hands as necessary !

That's no good, vodka is only 40%.

You need 100% rubbing alcohol, diluted 2:1 with water or aloe gel.

The end product needs to be 60%+alcohol.

I mean, anything will help, but 60% is the aim.

It needs diluting so that it stays wet on the hands long enough. If it evaporates immediately it won't have time to kill all the bugs.

Did think of this but vodka is only 40% hand sanitizer needs to be 60% or above

Useless "hack" from good housekeeping there.......

dangerous hack.

Nonsense.

I also saw someone on FB last night selling an "all natural" alcohol free hand sanitizer, ni ingredients list provided, of course.

Soap and water, folks.

I've been making it for some time with surgical spirit, aloe vera gel and essential oils. You'd want two-thirds-ish of surgical spirit, 20-30 drops of which ever oils you'd like and fill up with gel.

It needs a good shake and is a liquid, not a gel - but it's nice, my family prefer it to gel because you don't get a sticky feel, and you can chose the scent. I like cinnamon oil in mine.

is that really from the British magazine Good Housekeeping?

If so, I'm surprised, because it is quite some distance from an effective recipe, and they usually test things over and over again.

One needs to be careful when using homemade products idpf going near naked flames shortly after. The risk of accidentally flambéing your hands might be small, but it is real

I think they said that this was obviously not quite as effective as the real thing ,but as we are running low maybe better than nothing . Soap and water then .Luckily I have some stocks of hand sanitiser left .BTW I am no "hack"! Just saw this in the Independent ,and it had a link to GH .Just thought I would pass it on if any use .

Don’t ask for rubbing alcohol as it’s banned from sale because it can be used in homemade explosives and you get funny looks, use surgical spirit.

All the medical experts I've heard on the radio these past 2 weeks have said soap and hot water is the best thing. I'll save my vodka for sanitizing my throat!

@dottiedodah no one called you a hack. These types of “tips” are called “hacks” or “life hacks” & are 9 times out of 10 utter rubbish.

NotTheMrMenAgain is it ok to use any essential oil at the concentration? I once had a terrible time after putting "soothing" oil on my pillow then accidentally rolling onto it. Ouch.

OP don't worry, folk aren't calling you a hack, "life hack" is a term used for various bright ideas to save time/money etc like - use paper and vinegar to clean glass! Usually things the older generation would have known but we forgot down the line.

Now, where do I buy rubbing alcohol?

Clangus00 /VenVidiVoxi Thanks . Have only been on SM for a year or two and didnt realise this was what a "hack "was! As I said I just saw it as a tip ,not to replace hand Sanitiser but as a makeshift until some more comes through(If it ever does of course)! Soap /water obv good but I think this is more when out and about really .

VeniVidiVoxi ouch, ouch, ouch! You got neat essential oil on your face/in your eye? That must have been......stingy? I did something similar years ago with Olbas Oil

I'm not an expert on oils but I've used lots of different ones and haven't had a problem. 20-30 drops sounds like a lot but in a small bottle/squeezy thing it's very diluted. A mix of lavender and tea is good - they're both anti-bug and help with the surgical spirit smell.

As PP said, don't go looking for rubbing alcohol - go to a chemist and get a bottle of surgical spiritual.

Tea tree, not tea. Although tea is always a good idea, generally.

"Now, where do I buy rubbing alcohol?"

Any pharmacist should stock surgical spirit (supermarkets generally don't unless big enough to have its own pharmacy)

But will probably run out shortly as people tumble to its usefulness

Oh ffs

Soap and water.

Ffs use soap and water

Definitely not a great "hack" I wouldn't be wasting vodka on my hands in this time of crisis

Soap and water is fine.

It’s like we’re going back to the days of the plague. Next we’ll be hanging flowers around our neck saying the Coronavirus won’t infect us coz we smell nice 🙄

another one.

its 60%+ for a reason. anything less can not breakdown the virus.

So a bit of alcohol, is not better then no alcohol.

If you cannot wash your hands with soap and water and cannot get hold of (or make 60%+ alcohol) hand sanitiser. Then when out try not to touch your face, if you can wear gloves. until you can wash your hands.

do not use something inadequate and carry on as normal, touching your face and eating when out, as it is as good as nothing

Re: essential oils, the real ones should never be used neat, always diluted.

The crappy oils, sometimes pretending to be essential oils are often diluted already and have a short life before going nasty, or are actually fragrance oils which are not much use unless you just want something to smell, and it most likely won't smell of what it is meant to be.

People buy and use oils that they really shouldn't be using without advice, some of them can cause problems if used incorrectly and none should be used directly on the skin unless they are already blended with a carrier oil when purchased.

It is worth noting that if you want to use essential oils without at least reading a decent book on aromatherapy (by a qualified practitioner) you should be very careful of the quality and origin of what you buy, and be very aware of what it can do to you.

A few drops in a home made hand gel won't hurt but do check the properties first in case of allergies, a skin test is advisable and in the current situation tea tree might be the most sensible oil although lavender is also used for pretty much everything, but don't use too much, essential oils are pure oil (if they are genuine good quality ones).

Just wash your hands with soap and water.

They missed out a step - put the vodka through a reflux condenser