Professional Opinions on Home-Made Sanitiser Formula Sought

Nothing wrong with metho over ethanol around here. Australia used to use methanol as a denaturant but that was many moons ago. Drunks would drink the stuff to give themselves methanol poisoning knowing they would then be admitted to hospital and given the only treatment available for methanol poisoning, being the application of ethanol via a drip - heaven on a stick for them but unsustainable from a public health standpoint. Lots of the damage would be permanent...

So now we use non-toxic denaturants which just make metho smell and taste absolutely foul and which can't be fully distilled out from the ethanol. Principally denatonium - the most bitter substance known - so bad it even puts off the drunks. So methanol is now 95% ethanol, with most of the rest being water and a tiny amount of denatonium and/or other denaturants. For specifics, see the MSDS from the relevant supplier. A mix with >70% metho would be fine - the rest is just stabilising / moisturising etc - not an active ingredient.

But yes, this virus is lipid (fat) enveloped so while alcohols work to dissolve that fat and inactivate the virus, the much better option is simple soap and water - soap is just more effective although both will work - eg surgeons still scrub their hands with soap and water before entering the theatre. Sanitiser should only really be for when soap isn't available but use whatever floats your boat I guess. Barrier type moisturisers like sorbolene (hydrocarbon derived) are usually effective if the constant soap / alcohol / detergent /etc use proves too much for the natural oily defences of the skin on our hands... although wearing gloves is also a good option for this if circumstances permit to let the acid mantle replenish.
 
This on the ABC News app:
Hand sanitiser has rapidly been selling out in shops for weeks, but there are concerns that variations in alcohol levels mean some are not providing adequate protection.
"It's dangerous in that they may not work anywhere near as well as you'd expect," Peter Collignon, professor of infectious diseases at the Australian National University, said.
Across Australia, there are thousands of products that are marketed as hand sanitiser, but not all are equal. The least effective are sanitisers that contain no alcohol.
Experts say the gold standard is a sanitiser with 60–80 per cent alcohol — the level required to kill the virus if it is on your hands.
Ultimately, the best way to stay safe is to stay home — and when it comes to keeping hands clean, washing them thoroughly in warm soapy water is more effective than any hand sanitiser.
"None of them are helpful unless you're minimising your touching practices and using good hand hygiene," Professor McLachlan said.
"So, making sure you're avoiding high-touch surfaces like ATMs, handrails, lift buttons, using other parts of your body like elbows, knees or feet to open doors, and also not touching your eyes, face and nose.
These are the things that are so important."
 
60-80% alcohol is the optimal level?
Sweet, brb need to refresh the glass.
Not sure how my GP will feel about it though, hen again, he enjoys a single malt ;)
 
Well. In western Sydney I am starting to see sanitizer in shops again. So something must be working.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top