Considering Alcohol-free Hand Sanitizer

I was just looking into this same thing a few days ago. Another con i discovered with BAC based sanitizers is benzalkonium chloride may be associated with antibiotic resistance in MRSA.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_rub#cite_note-2
I've noticed that hospitals use alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and this may be why since MRSA infections are a growing problem in hospitals.
I bought some PET bottles with fine mist sprayers from midwestbottles.com in different sizes. The PET is a little more rigid than the HDPE and will hopefully limit leakage. Then i just use plain old isopropyl alcohol. Less than a dollar for 16 ounces. I get 99% so that i can fill the bottle with undiluted alcohol and then top it off with water when the bottle is about 2/3 full. As long as the concentration is 60% or more alcohol it is still effective. This way i can bring a smaller bottle. Dehydrated hand sanitizer! You can't do that with the retail hand sanitizers since almost all brands are already diluted to 62%.
With no additives there should be nothing to get on your contacts once the alcohol evaporates.
And if I'm in a state that sells everclear, i take that since it also serves as fuel and beverage.

There are two nasty "bugs" that are antibiotic resistant. One is the above mentioned MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus) and the other is Colostridium difficile. The first responds well to alcohol hand sanitizers; the second is resistant to alcohol and requires soap-and-water scrubbing or bleach to kill. This per my son-in-law-the-ER-physician (also a backpacker) who is my primary source for medical info. My hope is that I won't encounter either one on the trail, since these bacteria are found primarily in hospitals and care facilities.

I never take soap on the trail because even so-called biodegradable soap is harmful to aquatic life. I may scrub my hands with sand or gravel on the creek bank to remove grime, but afterwards I use alcohol hand sanitizer.

If you use contacts, I'd suggest rinsing your hands with purified water after sanitizing, or (as my son #3 does), wait a few minutes to be sure that all the alcohol has evaporated from your hands before working with the contact lenses.

Joshua and Mary: I think you're right about the plain liquid alky evaporating then being fine, as it's the gels that leave residue (which prevent the alky from evaporating too fast). I also researched the liquid alky and it's actually faster acting (almost immediately), while the gels require 30 seconds to act. Liquid alky does present the same problems with possible leakage though.

I forgot to mention that both types of alchol can be a surprise on nicks and cuts, while the BAC won't sting at all (and is better to treat wounds).

And now I just read that a 3% solution (OTC) of Hyd. Peroxide can also be used as a hand sanitizer! Now I can get would treatment, hand sanitizer, and synthetic fabric deodorizer all in one package. Let the research/experimenting continue!

Hi Simon

> I'm considering the switch to benzalkonium-chloride-based (BAC) hand sanitizers for backcountry
> use mainly because I wear contact lenses, and residue from alcohol hand sanitizers a

I wear contact lenses in the bush too. But I have never used any 'sanitisers' at all. (We just don't use them in Australia.) I wash my hands with water and a little bar soap, away from any watercourses, and have never had any problems at all.

Have you tried just plain soap and water?

Cheers

I DO wash my hands with soap and water. Although I trust treated water for consumption, I'm not entirely trusting of treated water for my eyes. And I don't always have enough (hot) water for thorough washing and rinsing of my hands. (I also may have my kitchen setup at a different location and time from actual removal of contacts).

So a typical scenario might be: wash with Dr. Bonners to remove the grime/sunblock/insect repellent, a rinse of hands with treated water (typically not hot) then a thorough rub-down with BAC for sanitation. Then I remove, rub (I use a daily cleaner), rinse, then store my lenses. If my hands a pretty clean to begin with, I skip the soap and just do a rinse with treated water; the rest is the same.

BTW, I tried the liquid iso-pro alchohol route as a test (rub on, let air dry for two minutes), and I still felt the sting. BAC has no sting, and I will now use this on trips in the future.

Simon, thanks for the info in BAC, I too wear contacts and have felt the sting. In the southeast there's not always enough water to do a good "clean" wash and rinse, carrying extra contact solution has been my best bet, until I read this thread.Now I can cut down on the amout of rinse solution and carry a .5oz of BAC to use just before I do the contact thing and it's multi-tasking.

I'll go back to see if you posted a link for BAC, if not I'll do a search.

I found it at the local drugstore Germ-X

JJ: Here's the link to the odor-free BAC at Amazon Soapopular

$20 for six 100 mL bottles, or $30 for six 250 mL bottles (2.5X more), which is what I will order next time.

Shipping is free for both combos above, but not all the combos offered include free shipping.

"I wash my hands with water and a little bar soap, away from any watercourses, and have never had any problems at all."

I also do that and never had any problems at all too, it is safe and convenient.

My family switched to BAC several years ago and love it. No reason not to use it. Band-Aid sells it as an antiseptic spray for small cuts, so as far as I'm concerned it's as safe and effective as alcohol. My brother is a biochemist and also says it is safe and effective; they use it in his lab all the time. My understanding is that hospitals are using it more, not less, because of it's ability to continue killing germs on hands several hours after application. One company that I used to buy it from (before I switched to the cheaper and more readily available Band-Aid brand), sold it to hospitals.

The big issue with using alcohol is that it strips away your skin's oils that keep the skin from drying out. This is the primary reason alcohol-based hand sanitizers add lotion (that muck up contacts). Try pouring some rubbing alcohol over your hands, scrub away until it evaporates, and later in the day you will feel like you have dry, scaly skin. I wouldn't recommend this as a primary sanitation method for the outdoors.

Bronners soap is fine for hand washing, but since I can also use BAC as a first aid antiseptic, I just bring it along as my go-to cleaning agent.

As for antibiotic resistance, BAC is an antiseptic, not an antibiotic. It completely kills the microorganism, just like alcohol. While it is true that this then allows resistant strains to re-colonize your skin, you'd have to be in a hospital or other place where you would pick up these resistant strains, or be immunocompromised to begin with. This is very different than antibiotic soaps, which disable the microorganism but still keep it alive, providing evolutionary pressure to adapt resistance. That was what I understood after doing some research about it a few years ago and speaking with my brother about it.

…

@mike

wher can I get this spray bottles???

FYI… Linda works for XXX so she is probably biased.

Thought this might be of interest to y'all. When scrubbing into surgical cases in the hospital, we use a BAC scrub. They use it over the iodine scrubs of old. I'm assuming if it works for that, then it should be just fine for using in the backcountry.

Yes, Linda, you need a disclaimer whenever posting about a product or service in which you have a vested interest in.

I also do what Roger does. I prefer actually washing away the dirt, grime, and germs, rather than spreading them around with sanitizer. Now, sanitizer certainly has its uses though.

Ryan:

Curious, how did you know that about Angie? And yeah, if one is affiliated with a product that one is discussing/recommending, that should be disclosed.

The product sounds good to me, except for the 'pleasant smell'. That can be an issue in bear country — and if mosquitoes find the smell 'pleasant' as well.

This looks similar

Ben, if you go to "Contacts" on that webpage, she is listed there.

Plus, her post really sounded like a sales pitch!

These can also be found at walmart in the camping section

OK, it’s been over a year since I started this thread, and I have some updates.

First, I still use BAC product for trail and home use, but now use the Office Max “Smart & Silky” brand, “Kids Foaming Hand Sanitizer” fragrance-free, color free product. It’s only 0.10% BAC (vs. 0.13% of other brands), but seems to work just as well. Its main attaction is price: $5 for 8.5 oz., and less when on sale.

For dispensing, I use a generic ~0.25 fl. oz. spray bottle that provides 75 sprays. For 4 sprays/use 5X/day, that’s about 4 days of use, YMMV. The dollar store pen-like bottles (also available at drug stores for alcohol hand sanitizer and breath sprays) hold less and weigh more when empty. Even without the cap (which you can try removing on the pen-like bottle), there are no accidental sprays or leaks.

Another dispenser I like is the AMK Hand Sanitizer 0.5 fl. oz. bottle. It comes with a 0.13% BAC product that has a slight fragrance. The bottle (which has no top cap but has a simple but effective lockout mechanism) can be refilled if you pull off the bottom cap. I’ve done this dozens of times using gentle pressure with Vice-Grips.

Ben,

^ what Travis said..

Thanks, Ryan and Travis. Mod has deleted her post. Too bad, because had she been more forthcoming, she could have contributed positively. Oh well…

First posting, spam, deliberate no disclosure … what do you expect?

She can always contact us to discuss.

Cheers