Stores in many parts of the world are still running low on supplies of several staple products as a result of coronavirus-related stockpiling behavior. One of the items that has been hard to acquire – except at exorbitant prices – is hand sanitizer. While a number of distilleries have been working to plug the gap by shifting their focus to the creation of sanitiser alongside their usual alcoholic beverage ranges, this hasn’t kept up with demand.
Fortunately, the process of creating your own batch of hand sanitizer at home is quite simple, and as long as the resulting alcohol content is above 60%, your home-created product should be just as effective as the store-bought variety.
To do this, you require the following ingredients:
- Ethanol or isopropyl rubbing alcohol (as close to 100% alcohol content as possible)
- Aloe vera gel
- (optional) Lavender oil or another essential oil to mask the fragrance.
- A sterile pump bottle and sterile hand mixing whisk.
In short, you need to mix 2/3 alcohol with 1/3 aloe vera gel, and to add a couple of drops of essential oil if you wish. Keep to that ratio if your alcohol source is at least 90% alcohol. If you only have access to a solution with a lower alcohol content, such as a 70% isopropyl mix, then significantly reduce the reduce of aloe vera gel, to ensure that the end result is still at least 60% alcohol, to maintain its effectiveness in destroying harmful pathogens.
The video below provides more information about the process:
