Where you buy hand sanitiser?

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Help we are running out of hand sanitiser - where do you buy yours? I am not going to pay a tenner for 50ml bottle so please dont offer this. It breakes my heart that I bought my 3bottles of 200ml for 3quids 2months ago. Should have stocked up on it I know :(

Boots had some in on Sunday. Not fully stocked, but there was still some left at the end of the day.

its alcohol free too so hasn't made my hands fall off

Do you not know that it's only effective if over 60% alchohol? I do hope you aren't relying on that for any kind of protection @MichaelBen222189

You need the alcohol to kill the virus though

There are some alcohol-free alternatives which use Benzalkonium chloride, although they may not be quite as effective. The link upthread says it is a 'complex polymeric biocide and virucide' - I'm not sure if they're in wide use and I'd never heard of them but seems like they may be a thing ... review below for fellow chemistry geeks.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5456892/

Just bought a small bottle from Superdrug today, 62% alcohol, so might be worth checking there or online

Can people not in their wildest dreams imagine that some people may not be right near a sink and soap at all times of the day, always someone who has to chip in with 'just use soap and water'

Yes, of course - but there are threads on which when you ask this question there are still people who think they need the sanitizer before or after washing. I've no idea why.

Aren't you back to square 1 though if you wash your hands with soap, go out, and then touch a surface with the virus on it?

The manufacturer's website states that it is tested and meets all the relevant British and European standards for killing viruses and bacteria. I can't imagine alcohol is the only substance effective at killing viruses etc?

Our local independent chemist had some in last Saturday so picked some up then. It had a big sign up saying they had some in and masks. Might be worth trying the independents rather than the chains.

Aren't you back to square 1 though if you wash your hands with soap, go out, and then touch a surface with the virus on it?

Yes, exactly the same as if you use hand sanitizer. If you're using the alcohol-based gels properly all the alcohol should have evaporated.

I hope no one is labouring under the delusion that these gels confer longer term protection. There are some products which are supposed to (don't know if any tested against CV) but not sanitizer gels.

Thanks MichealBen. ive ordered from the link you put on here

I ordered 4 on the 12th off superdrug in individual orders. ALL of the separate parcels were supposedly "lost in transit". Sure HERMES, i believe that.....

Thank you all. I ordered some online. I dont trust just water and soap as it was EFFECTIVE then maybe 40 000 people would have not died over space of a month!!

Your choice, but that's not what the science shows. You do have to wash your hands properly (John Campbell has a video of proper technique).

Unfortunately people in general don't wash their hands well enough - one of the reasons the common cold is common, I guess. We're not used to bugs that can kill us any more.

I dont trust just water and soap as it was EFFECTIVE then maybe 40 000 people would have not died over space of a month!!

That's because people don't do it often enough. Nor well enough. I used to date a surgeon once. Watching him wash his hands was sort of an inspiration and a bit of an art ...

I'm not saying good hand washing is 100% as effective as a good sanitiser. It may not be. But it's normally good enough. Also, good hand hygiene alone - sanitiser or no sanitiser - is not going to prevent deaths. Your hands being squeaky clean will really only help in the sense that you're less likely to get infected by touching stuff with the virus on it and then your face. Or that of others. It's not reliance on soap and water that have killed 40k people - it's a lack of social distancing, a lack of systematic testing, contract tracing and isolating the infected, people sitting too closely on top of one another, etc.. And, most of all, the fact that there isn't an effective vaccine or established and effective treatment protocol quite yet.

I'm not saying good hand washing is 100% as effective as a good sanitiser.

All the reputable sources say proper handwashing is better than sanitiser. The reputable suppliers of hand sanitisers say so! And if you're going to use it (of course use it if you can't wash) that also has to be done properly.

All the reputable sources say proper handwashing is better than sanitiser.

Even better! I had no idea!

I’ve never bought it before, and I certainly can get hold of it now. I live in a virus hotspot too.

I bought four tiny bottles of hand sanitiser from Wilco months ago to have in my handbag. Cost 50p each.

I've only used it once so far. I've always washed my hands often and thoroughly. I've upped it even more to the point I have sore hands, but slapping on a barrier cream or ointment helps a lot. As well as washing hands, if I'm out I have gloves on. Used them all through winter and will continue using them. Never, ever, pull them off using my mouth or other such disgusting things and alternate with another pair, so regularly washed.

When in the office, didn't touch door handles, keypads etc, with bare hands.

So, hand sanitiser is not essential for most people.

Can’t that should read

I went into an independent chemists today, they had quite a few bottle of it on the counter - at £5.99 For 50 ml.
I declined and washed my hands extremely thoroughly when i got home..

£5.99!!!

50p for the same size at Wilco was a bargain.

Sorry. Wilko not Wilco.

I got a couple of large bottles in Superdrug the other day for £3.99 each 70% alcohol

I saw a few 300ml bottles of Carex sanitiser in Boots at the weekend so I bought one. It was like a mirage. Express Chemist sometimes have some in stock and you can set up email alerts.