What a rampaging infection starts wreaking havoc around our world, nothing beats a good old hand washing. We were taught to do it as children but may have forgotten it along the way. Nevertheless, it represents the best way and the first line of defense against germs and viruses.
But sometimes, some water and soap are not close at hand. You can’t really carry a bar of soap and a water bottle with you all the time. Hand sanitizers are the next best thing. But during the time of great demand and shortage, it will start so you have to resort to different methods.
Making it by yourself is one of the ways to do it. Luckily, disinfecting your living area is not as expensive. Some of the leading antiviral sanitation companies in London offer their services for a starting price of £99. But if you still want to do it yourself, you can start by making your own DIY hand sanitizer.
Here is how you need to do it.
What Ingredients Do I need?
Let’s start things off with the required ingredients. The things that you need are isopropyl or rubbing alcohol (99% alcohol volume is preferable), some Aloe Vera gel, and some essential oil like lavender oil or tea tree.
The main thing when making your own sanitizer is to keep to a proportion of 2:1 of alcohol to Aloe Vera. This means that you will get a solution that has at least 60% of alcohol. According to the CDC, this is the least amount of alcohol concentration needed to kill most germs.
However, when it comes to COVID-19, you need at least 70% to kill the virus.
How to Make it
Take ¾ of rubbing alcohol or isopropyl, a ¼ cup of Aloe Vera gel and 10 drops of essential oils that you have in hand. Mix all of the mentioned ingredients together into a bowl. It is preferable to use one that has pouring spout.
First, mix the mixture with a spoon and then beat it with a whisk so you get a gel-like solution.
After you are done, simply pour the mixture into a separate bottle. Make sure to find a small one that you can carry around with. Also, be sure that it is handy for usage so you can take it out and apply it any time you wish.
How to Use a Hand Sanitizer?
An important thing about using hand sanitizer is that you first have to remove dirt from your hands. If your hands are dirty or greasy, you should wash them first. Apply the gel and rub it between your palms until it dries. Simply putting it on will not work. You need to let it dry for it to kill all the germs that are possibly on your hands.
Some mixtures take as much as 60 seconds to dry. But be sure to rub it on your hands between 30 or 60 seconds so you are sure the effects are going to stick. It will kill all the germs and you can be sure that you will be safe and healthy.