DIY: How to Produce Hand Sanitizer for your Home
As the world battle Coronavirus (Covid-19), the importance of handwashing has been emphasized as a major method of preventing the spread of infectious disease. The use of Hand sanitizer has also been advised for every home and workspace.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has advised we adopt the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if water and soap option are not available. The outbreak of covid-19 has increase demand for Hand Sanitizer in stores worldwide, leading to a sharp price increase and scarcity in some clime.
Below is the DIY guide to producing homemade hand sanitizer.
INGREDIENT
Making your own hand sanitizer is easy to do and only requires a few ingredients:
- Rubbing alcohol/Isopropyl (99 percent alcohol volume) Don’t use other types of alcohol (methanol, butanol) they are toxic and could cause skin irritation
- Aloe vera gel (It prevent the hands from drying out from the alcohol)
- Essential oil (optional) e.g. lavender oil, or use lemon juice where not available
- Vitamin E oil (optional) adds moisturizing properties to the hand sanitizer
The key to making an effective, germ-busting hand sanitizer is to
Ensure you stick to a ratio 2:1 proportion of alcohol to aloe vera. This keeps the alcohol content around 60 percent. This is the minimum amount needed to kill most germs, (CDC Recommendation).
READ: Coronavirus Self-isolation Guidance for Nigeria
Instructions
- Ensure the alcohol used for the hand sanitizer is not diluted
- Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
- mix, using a clean spoon and whisk, until all the ingredients are thorough and well blended.
- Make sure your hands do not touch the mixture until it is ready for use
To produce larger quantity of hand sanitizer, download the World Health Organization (WHO) formula for hand sanitizer.
