Finally, a DIY hand sanitizer that is actually effective and easy to make! Learn how to make a spray or gel sanitizer.

Table of contents
With the current health scare, now is the perfect time to share a recipe that I’ve been meaning to show you for a while: how to make a homemade hand sanitizer.
Over the years, I’ve seen numerous recipes on the internet. Most of them bother me because they give a false sense of security. Just because a person has been using a homemade hand sanitizer without getting sick, doesn’t mean that it actually works.
If you’re going to go through the hassle of making a hand sanitizer (albeit very easily), why not make sure that it’s actually effective?
Possible Sanitizer Ingredients
There are many substances that can work to help sanitize. Some are practical to use, others not so much. Also, some are safer and/or easier to find than others.
Alcohol
Most commercial hand sanitizers are alcohol-based. That makes a lot of sense because alcohol kills bacteria. It’s effective against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, including multidrug-resistant pathogens.
It’s not just effective against bacteria, though. Alcohol also kills yeasts and, in percentages above 60%, has been shown to reduce rotavirus, adenovirus and rhinovirus titers. For more resistant viruses like enteroviruses and Hepatitis A, a slightly higher percentage of alcohol (70-80%) may be needed.
Note
While some recipes online do use alcohol, most use concentrations way too low to actually be effective as a hand sanitizer.
Use a concentration of at least 60% for your homemade sanitizer to be effective. 70% is even better to ensure effectiveness against more types of viruses.
Chlorhexidine
Chlorhexidine is a disinfectant and antiseptic often used in clinical settings. In dental school, we occasionally prescribed chlorhexidine rinses to people with infections of teeth and gums.
While it’s often red in color, I’ve seen it sold in colorless versions which could theoretically be used to make a hand sanitizer.
Unfortunately, studies have determined that chlorhexidine alone isn’t especially effective as a hand sanitizer (by European standards, at least). a 4% solution wasn’t any more effective than soap. (Hans-P. Harke (2007), “Disinfectants”, Ullman’s Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry (7th ed.), Wiley, pp. 10–11)
Higher percentages may be carcinogenic, and long term use of it as a rinse isn’t recommended. That doesn’t mean that you can’t use it, of course, but alcohol is probably a more practical, effective, and safer(?) choice.
Iodine
Iodine is similar to chlorhexidine. It’s often used to disinfect in a clinical setting. While it may be used in surgical hand scrubs, it isn’t an ideal ingredient to use in a daily hand sanitizer.
Not only are iodine products normally a red color that stains, but when used at effective percentages, iodine often causes skin irritation. Not only that, but it shouldn’t be used by pregnant women (under 32 weeks) or those with thyroid problems.
There are just too many toxicity concerns to use it safely and effectively.
Triclosan
One ingredient that has been commonly used in non-alcohol hand sanitizers is triclosan. (Yes, the same triclosan I talked about in my recipe for homemade toothpaste.)
Triclosan causes several concerns, though. When combined with chlorine from water, it can form dioxins that are thought to be a carcinogen. It also poses environmental concerns as it accumulates in sewage sludge.
Even if you did want to use it (Why would you?), it’s not an ingredient that is readily available for home formulation.
Benzalkonium chloride
Another ingredient commonly found in alcohol-free hand sanitizers (perhaps the most common one), benzalkonium chloride has been associated with MRSA antibiotic resistance. It can also be irritating to the skin at concentrations greater than 0.1%.
Not only that, but, again, it isn’t an ingredient that is readily available for home use.
Essential oils
Many DIY formulations use essential oils. Some claim that they, alone, are effective at killing microbes.
While it’s true that many essential oils have antimicrobial properties, in my opinion, they aren’t potent enough to actually work their magic in a hand sanitizer.
Consider this-
Essential oils aren’t potent enough antimicrobials to be used even as preservatives in homemade cosmetics. You would need to use such high percentages to try to conserve your homemade lotions, that you’d be using concentrations that would be irritating to the skin (at best).
Compare them with alcohol. Having alcohol at 20-25% of a recipe is generally enough to preserve that product. On the other hand, 20-25% isn’t a high enough concentration for a hand sanitizer. By that, I mean that it isn’t enough to actually be effective at killing pathogens in a quick-use topical application.
So, if small amounts of antimicrobial essential oils aren’t even potent enough to use as a preservative, how are they going to be strong enough to even further and kill microbes in a hand sanitizer?
Add to that the fact that many essential oils are irritating to the skin, even at very low percentages. Some cause allergic reactions. Others cause light sensitivity. Most have to be used with caution in products made for young kids.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t use essential oils in your homemade hand sanitizer. You definitely can add them to help boost antimicrobial properties (and/or add a lovely scent).
Don’t expect to use them as the main active ingredient in your hand sanitizer, though!
Aloe gel
Aloe gel is one of the most common ingredients in homemade hand sanitizers, likely because it already has a pleasant gel-like consistency. It’s also an ingredient that is naturally soothing to the skin.
People like to use aloe gel because it’s generally considered an “all-natural” product. What most people don’t know, though, is that aloe is notoriously difficult to preserve. If you check the ingredients, many aloe gels aren’t quite as natural as you would hope.
In the interest of avoiding alcohol, people have formulated hand sanitizers with aloe gels (that often have PEG’s, parabens, and/or propylene glycol). They then mix that gel with essential oils and consider it finished. Just because it sounds “safer,” “more natural,” and “healthier” doesn’t mean that it is.
Without alcohol (or another effective active ingredient), it isn’t effective as a hand sanitizer.
Again, I’m not saying you shouldn’t use aloe gel in your formulation. What I am saying is that if “all-natural” is important to you, take a good look at the aloe gel you choose. Also, keep in mind that an effective hand sanitizer probably won’t have aloe gel as the main ingredient. It will need a high percentage of a true antimicrobial or disinfectant of some source.
You could formulate a hand sanitizer using aloe gel, but it may not be as easy as it sounds. (More about that in a minute…)
Effective ingredients for a homemade sanitizer
If you’ve read to this point, you can probably guess that the main active ingredient of my hand sanitizer is alcohol.
Non-alcohol sanitizers generally use ingredients that I prefer to avoid. They aren’t as effective as alcohol-based sanitizers. Plus, they have the added problem of being susceptible to contamination themselves.
Sure, they may be effective at killing some pathogens when used on your hands, but if they become contaminated with bacteria, they can become more harmful than helpful.
Ethyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol
In pharmacies and the first aid section of many supermarkets, you can generally find cosmetic grade alcohol in varying percentages. For this recipe, it’s easiest to use higher-grade alcohol (like 96%), but you could use anything above the 70% range.
Here in Spain, the alcohol sold in the pharmacy section is generally ethyl alcohol. In other countries, isopropyl alcohol is more common. Either will work for this purpose, so use whichever you can find or feel more comfortable using.
This study found all types of alcohol to be effective antibacterial agents. While isopropyl alcohol was slightly more effective, it also has the drawback of having a stronger scent.
Is denatured alcohol safe to use?
When writing my posts on how to make a glycerin soap (and the vegan glycerin soap), I’ve had people comment about how methanol is added to denature some alcohol to keep people from drinking it. From what I’ve read, methanol is only added to industrial-grade denatured alcohol and not added to pharmaceutical grade alcohol.
Warning
Only use pharmaceutical grade alcohol on your skin or in your cosmetic products. Do not use industrial-grade alcohol that has been denatured with methanol.
Glycerin
Glycerin is a humectant. That means that when used in skincare products, it helps draw moisture into the skin.
Because alcohol can be drying to the skin, adding a humectant can combat that dryness and keep your skin feeling soft. Glycerin definitely improves the feel of my homemade hand sanitizer.
It may also help keep the alcohol from evaporating as quickly. While it probably only adds about a second to the drying time, every little bit may help. Prolonging the time that the alcohol is in contact with your skin is one of the main ways to boost the effectiveness of your hand sanitizer.
Essential oils
Going back to essential oils…
Yes, I like adding a couple of drops of certain essential oils to my hand sanitizer. I do it mostly to add a nice scent. If they do help boost the antimicrobial activity, though, so be it!
I sometimes use lavender, sometimes use tea tree, and sometimes use lemon oil. (If you’re worried about the phototoxicity of lemon essential oil, choose a steam distilled oil vs. an expressed oil. Or don’t use it when you’ll be out in the sun!)
If you don’t want to use essential oils, that’s perfectly fine too.
Remember: the main active ingredient is the alcohol, NOT the essential oils!
Spray vs. gel vs. foam format
Hand sanitizers are sold in several different forms. after much experimentation, I decided that a simple spray was best.
It wasn’t just to keep things easy, though…

Making a gel
Because most hand sanitizers are sold in gel form, I tried to make a gel sanitizer recipe.
It seemed easy enough: Add a thickener to an alcohol mixture (of over 60% alcohol) and call it a done deal. Right?
Wrong!
Guar gum
I first tried thickening up my alcohol mixture with guar gum. To help prevent lumps in my sanitizer, I mixed the gum powder with glycerin. I added the glycerin and guar mixture to a mixture of alcohol and water.
Nothing happened.
Not only didn’t it thicken, but the gum powder settled to the bottom.
Something in the alcohol prevented the guar powder from thickening.
Guar gum settled to the bottom in alcohol Making a gel with water and guar gum… Adding alcohol turned the guar gum gel into a rubbery mess.
Just in case, I decided to change my technique. This time, I made a gel with water and guar gum. Once the gel was stable, I slowly added alcohol to that.
At first, it seemed to work. As I added more alcohol, though, the mixture separated. The guar gum became a gummy solid mess while the alcohol remained separate in a liquid form below it.
Xanthan gum
Working with xanthan gum was slightly more promising. I followed both of the above techniques for making a gel with xanthan gum instead of guar gum.
Xanthan gum seemed to incorporate the alcohol better. That was until I increased the alcohol concentration too much. Once I neared concentrations that would make an effective hand sanitizer, everything separated and fell apart.
Xanthan gum with alcohol Closeup of xanthan gum with alcohol showing the separation
Gelatin
Because one can successfully make Jell-o shots with gelatin and alcohol, I figured gelatin might be a more effective thickener for my gel.
Unfortunately, with the high concentration of alcohol needed for a hand sanitizer, the gelatin became a stringy, solid, rubbery mess.

Agar agar
Often used as a “vegan gelatin,” agar powder can be used to make certain types of natural gels. I even found a blogger with a recipe for an agar thickened hand sanitizer. (Interestingly enough, there was no photo or video to accompany the recipe.)
So, I felt more confident that the agar powder would work its magic and I’d finally have a natural gel sanitizer. Just to be safe, I started with the “established recipe” I found online. I boiled some water and dissolved some agar powder into the boiling water. After boiling for several minutes, I removed the mixture from the heat. As it cooled, I started to incorporate my alcohol.
While it stayed stable much longer than the gelatin, eventually the agar gel separated from the alcohol too. At lower concentrations, this may have worked. It didn’t work at the high concentrations needed for a hand sanitizer, though.
Calcium acetate
In the search for a way to make an alcohol gel, I found that some people made a DIY fuel gel using alcohol and calcium acetate.
While calcium acetate sounds exotic and hard to find, most of the tutorials began with making the calcium acetate itself.
To make calcium acetate, 1 part calcium carbonate (either the store-bought powder or from a piece of chalk) was reacted with 4 parts white vinegar (Acetic acid). Carbon dioxide is given off and the remaining liquid is supposedly a calcium acetate solution.
To make a more concentrated solution, I heated the liquid over a stove until most of it had evaporated.
I then added 1 part of the reduced liquid to 9 parts of the alcohol.
Finally, I made an alcohol gel!
The problem?
While it was a fun experiment, I didn’t end up making the type of gel I’d want for rubbing on my hands. The gel was quite solid, and some of the alcohol separated from the gel. (It was a bit like cottage cheese.)
I did play with setting some of it on fire before trying something different…
Aloe gel
After all of my unsuccessful experimentation, I decided to go back to using aloe gel. When there are so many recipes online combining aloe gel with alcohol, that must work well, right?
I figured that instead of using 2 parts aloe gel to one part alcohol (which isn’t strong enough to be effective), I’d do it the other way around. By adding 2 parts alcohol and one part aloe, I’d end up with over 60% alcohol. Yes, the consistency would be less thick and more liquidy. But, at least it would be an effective product.
Long story short- it didn’t work! As I added more alcohol, the mixture, once again, fell apart!

I ended up with a gummy, stringy mess floating in a bunch of alcohol.
In my mind, I knew that it was going to depend a lot on the thickener of the particular aloe gel used. Perhaps, this would work with an aloe gel that uses a more synthetic type thickener. It definitely isn’t going to work for all aloe gels, though. If you’re looking to make a “natural hand sanitizer,” it’s very unlikely that you’ll be able to form a gel this way.
Warning
If you plan on making a gel hand sanitizer using aloe gel, know that not all aloe gels will work. This may be possible with some but definitely won’t always work. (It’s less likely to work with the more natural brands.)
What finally worked: carbopol
While it’s not a completely natural solution, if you are set on making a sanitizer in gel format, there is one option that works.
I was just about to give up when I saw that alcohol gels could be made with carbopol. Carbopol is a water soluble polymer that works as a gelling agent. It is often used to make gels with alcohol.
That said, the place I ordered from warned about trying to make a solution with alcohol at higher than 40% of the mix. I almost didn’t order it, because I knew I needed the alcohol content to be above 60% for the gel to be effective. Because I had read elsewhere that it would work, though, I decided to buy it and give it a shot.
I figured after all I had gone through to try to make a gel for you, I’d be mad at myself if I hadn’t at least exhausted EVERY effort to get you a successful solution.
After some experimentation, I was able to make a gel. It wasn’t a thick gel, but it definitely is more viscous than the spray and it clings to your hand better and for longer. That, of course, means that the alcohol has more time to do its job of killing microbes. Perhaps adding a bit more carbopol would thicken it further. (I followed the recommended percentage dosing.)
Dissolve the carbopol in water. Add triethanolamine. Finally! A successful gel!
Making a carbopol gel
To make an alcohol gel with carbopol, you first dissolve the carbopol in the water. It takes a while to get the particles to dissolve. (Ideally, you’d want to use a magnetic stirrer and keep it stirring until the carbopol is fully dissolved and while adding the alcohol.)
Warning
Be careful not to breathe in the carbopol powder when mixing.
Once the carbopol is dissolved in the water, add the alcohol. The mixture will be very thin. That’s because we need to adjust the pH for the carbopol to work!
Add some triethanolamine to bring the pH up. You should notice that it thickens up immediately. If the carbopol wasn’t completely dissolved, it may take longer for the mixture to gel. It should thicken up further as the carbopol completely dissolves over the next hours.
Now you can add the glycerin and any chosen essential oils.
Store your gel in a silicone tube, pump dispenser, or small bottle with a flip cap top for the most convenient dispensing!
Foaming hand sanitizer
If making a gel was going to be nearly impossible, I thought I’d be clever and make an easy, foaming hand sanitizer instead.
In the past, I’ve used foaming dispensers for my homemade liquid Castile soap. I’ve also used them with my homemade micellar water to make a foaming facial cleanser.
The idea was to add a small amount of surfactant (either liquid soap or a detergent-based surfactant like the ones I talk about in my guide to natural surfactants) and dispense it with a foaming dispenser.
Normally, this works really well.
In the end, none of the surfactants I tested worked well at making foam from an alcohol mixture. The alcohol prevents the surfactants from foaming as usual.
So, while you can definitely dispense either of the hand sanitizer recipes from a foaming dispenser, it won’t really give you a foamy texture.

Make a spray
After all of my experimentation, I understood why most of the “natural companies” have chosen to make hand sanitizer sprays rather than bothering with gels or foam.
I can’t think of any natural thickener that would work effectively to make a high-concentration alcohol gel. (If you can, I’d love to hear about it!)
Dr. Bronner’s makes a hand sanitizer spray that only includes alcohol, water, glycerin, and essential oils.
Those were the main ingredients I was going to use anyway!
Why make your own?
Because all of the natural and effective hand sanitizers I’ve found are sprays and use simple ingredients, it’s really quite easy to make a similar product at home. Not only can you save yourself a lot of money, but you can choose which essential oils to use (if any).
Plus, with the mass hysteria that has hit some areas, I’ve heard that it’s actually difficult to find and buy hand sanitizers some places.
Video
Recipe

Hand Sanitizer Spray
Materials
For sanitizer spray
- 70 g 96% alcohol Use pharmaceutical grade alcohol
- 5 g glycerin
- 25 g distilled water (or a hydrosol or floral water)
- .25 g essential oils optional, a few drops, for scent
For hand sanitizer gel
- 28 g distilled water
- .3 g carbopol
- 66 g 96% alcohol
- .1 g triethylamine
- 4 g glycerin
- .25 g essential oils optional
Instructions
For sanitizer spray
- Mix together all ingredients.
- Pour into a spray bottle.
- Use, when needed, to sanitize hands by spraying over all surfaces of hands and rubbing together to completely cover them.
For hand sanitizer gel
- Weigh out the water and the carbopol. Mix them together until the carbopol is fully dissolved in the water.
- Add the alcohol and mix.
- Add the triethanolamine to raise the pH. This allows the carbopol mixture to gel.
- Add glycerin and essential oils.
- Pour the gel into a bottle with a flip-top cap, silicone travel tube, or pump bottle for easy dispensing.
Notes
How to use these hand sanitizers
To keep viruses and bacteria from making you sick, wash your hands frequently, especially after touching surfaces that have likely been contaminated by others. (That’s just about any public surface.) Frequent hand washing is still probably the best way to keep from catching a viral or bacterial infection. (Learn to make your own soap!)
That said, hand sanitizers can be used when you don’t have access to soap and water or when it’s inconvenient to wash your hands. You could consider wiping your hands with some homemade reusable wipes first when you can’t wash off visible dirt.
Hand sanitizers work best when:
- Your hands are already clean (aren’t visibly dirty).
- The sanitizer is in contact with your hands for at least 15 seconds.
- They have at least 60% alcohol.
To use, spray the sanitizer on your (clean) hands. Rub your hands together to completely cover them with the solution. If it immediately evaporates, spray again. Ideally, the solution should be in contact with your hands for at least 15 seconds.
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Carla Osuna
Hello! I am wondering what type of carbopol you used? And where you found the carbopol and the triethanolamine? I am excited to try this recipe!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Carla,
Mine was Carbopol 940. I found both locally here in Spain from a place called La Despensa del Jabón. (Online)
Mario V
What is the volume result from the gel recipe? How many ml do you get from it?
28 g distilled water
.3 g carbopol
66 g 96% alcohol
.1 g triethanolamine
4 g glycerin
.25 g essential oils
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Mario,
It’s very close to 100ml.
Tina Green
Hi – I think I may have had a break through using Xanthan gum. If you blitz it into the aloe first to make it really thick and then blitz it into the ethanol after it has set it seems to work!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Tina,
I’m glad to hear it worked for you.
I haven’t been able to get it to work no matter how I do it.
At one point, I got it really thick and by adding alcohol, I ended up with pretty much a rubber ball! Ha!
Some people say it can be worked in with a proper blender. I can’t see that actually working with mine, so it may have something to do with the particular xanthan gum. (There are different variations available, so that may be what’s causing the change in different people’s experiences?)
Tina G
Hi – I just had a breakthrough – if you blitz the Xanthan gum with the aloe it will thicken. After it’s done it’s thing you can then blitz it with the alcohol and it stays thick. I’m hoping it doesn’t “melt” overnight but so far so good…
Vicky M
I’ll try that but how much xanthan gum do you use.
Marlis
Hi, I am intrigued by your article, thank you! I’d like to know if you have ever mixed chlorhexidine gluconate with alcohol together in a hand sanitizer. I have been able to find 91% isopropyl alcohol, a high quality aloe vera gel with tree tree oil, and I have leftover 4% CHG solution from surgery in December. It seems that what I am trying to make is homemade 3M Avagard. Any suggestions for the ratio of alcohol to CHG and then ratio of aloe vera gel? Just trying to make my hand sanitizer “enhanced” with what I have on hand. Would appreciate your thoughts.
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Marlis,
No, it’s not something I have given a try. From what I read, chlorhexidine was mostly discouraged for use in a sanitizing gel, so I didn’t look into trying to source it. It’s not something I have on hand- nor do I know enough about it to feel comfortable advising you on its use. I’m sorry.
Emm
Hiya, Tracy!
Pharmacy student here (please don’t think I’m trying to sound snooty by coming on here to add my 2 cents, it’s just in my training right now to disseminate knowledge!). I wanted to point out a few things since I do have experience in chemistry (though, not a Masters or PhD to give me real credibility) just basic chemistry knowledge above high school level.
First suggestion – always consult an experienced pharmacist or laboratory chemist when working with things that require effective concentrations like hand sanitizer. I really appreciate how you mention in this post effective concentration, most people are just mixing their DIY hand ‘sanitizer’ without realizing that they could be doing more harm than good and giving themselves a false sense of security in what they’ve put together.
Second – one of the likely reasons why gelatin didn’t work is because alcohol denatures proteins and you of course already know that gelatin is … animal protein! I mention this because isopropyl alcohol is used in the DNA sequencing process to denature the hydrogen bonds that hold DNA in its double-helix (like a zipper made of teeny magnets, right?). The same process when we cook eggs and the whites turn … white. It’s denaturing of the proteins, but instead of the bond forces being overcome by adding a more polar molecule (alcohol), energy in the form of heat causes the bonds to degrade and instead of the proteins sliding around freely, they reconnect into a solid structure, like throwing a handful of magnets they just stack. This is what happened to the gelatin in alcohol. You pointed out that gelatin is used to make jello-shots as well as the fact that Everclear is being rumored as safe to use as a sanitizer because of its high alcohol content … but when the concentration got high enough, foop! Magnets. Spirits with high enough alcohol concentration to be an effective sanitizer, would have to be 130 proof or greater, not leaving room for adding any gelling agents. I checked, Everclear is one of the few spirits that comes in 120, 151, 189, and 190 US proof … so, yeah, 151-proof and higher are the right strength, theoretically, but I’d at least do the protein test with it first?? The distilleries currently making ethanol for hand sanitizers do a lot of QA to make sure they’re putting out 99%< purity for hand sanitizer manufacture. I don't know if grain alcohol undergoes the same sort of QA?
I am really busy at the moment (full-time student and now homeschooling my young one while all my classes went to distance format as well, thanks pandemic!), I haven't had much time to look into any at home methods of testing DIY hand sanitizers for effective concentration, everything reliable I've seen so far only points to commercial testing (CDC info). I would theorize that if you were to take a bottle of what you know is good sanitizer (manufactured) and if it denatures proteins, that would be one sort of sciency way of testing for appropriate strength of a DIY sanitizer: if it is also able to denature proteins, then it is *likely* to be sufficient strength. However, I'd caution about relying on that measure alone, since hand sanitizer manufacture is actually FDA regulated as an API – Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient and has to undergo frequent batch testing.
Third, I asked an old friend who used to work in the QA laboratory for a company that makes shampoos, lotions and hand sanitizers about their process and she said: they started out with isopropyl or ethanol at 98.9% (or greater!) and mixtures included aloe *powder*, not gel. This was where I had my Aha! moment … the reason why most DIY hand sanitizers aren't working is because manufacturers DON'T start with 70% or 91% isopropyl alcohol, the consumer product strengths. And, unless all of the water is dehydrated from aloe, the aloe plant cells cannot absorb enough liquid to help maintain the gel matrix. I'm not saying that I've proved any of this experimentally myself, but in training for pharmaceutical compounding, I'm pretty certain of the science. Additionally, most commercially made hand sanitizers contain more than just aloe and isopropyl alcohol for a reason, as well as being made under sterile conditions to prevent contamination.
Lastly, (sorry this has gotten really long, but it's important to not cut corners explaining all of the science behind what's going on) I would highly caution against adding alcohol to anything above room temperature. Alcohol evaporates quickly at room temperature (we all know this, right? That's why it's a quick, easy semi-alternative to soap and water), but when heated it evaporates almost instantly. Did you ever do the experiment in general chemistry lab where you mixed water and alcohol in an insulated container (we used to use styrofoam, bad for the environment, but science is both good and bad) at room temperature and stick a thermometer in it? The temperature of the liquid goes up as the water and alcohol mix together, the total volume decreases almost instantly because the alcohol evaporates faster than water does. So, add more heat to that and the alcohol evaporates off even faster, leaving you with … just water. For the commenter above who said they stirred for 3 hours, well, the reason why the gel finally formed was because all of the alcohol evaporated out of the mixture … yep. She now has gel water. Every. Time. (Think: baking with liquors, final cake has no alcohol content because it all gets baked off).
Please don't think that I'm being intentionally critical, like you, just trying to spread some real science knowledge out there. I wish I were as cool as Bill Nye, but I'm just not that charming.
Cheers!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Emm,
Of course not! I appreciate your feedback and agree with most (if not all) of what you said.
I also appreciate the explanation of your thoughts on the subject!
Once this all blows over, I want to experiment with a few more thickeners that I’ve since read about. They are quite hard to buy right now, though, due to current demand.
Here, the common alcohol sold in pharmacies is a 96% ethanol. That’s closer to the 98.9% you mentioned.
Obviously, if you start with 70%, you don’t have much room to work in anything else and still end up with an effective sanitizer. You may as well just spray that directly on your hands. 😉
And, yes, of course- it’s a good point that the hygiene used when making these sorts of things is important, despite the alcohol percentage. That’s true of any of the cosmetic DIY’s here. I have been meaning to write a post dedicated to that subject alone.
Sally
I have not been able to find aloe, etc in our area, but I do have some ultra sound gel left over from my tens unit days. Is it possible to use that as handsanitizer? Would I follow the same instructions as though I were using aloe? I have a gallon of the stuff and have often wondered why I didn’t get rid of it. It is still sealed. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I hate wasting my alcohol if it doesn’t work so I thought I would ask just in case anyone else has tried it. Thank you!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Sally,
While I can’t say for sure, I would imagine that it would work, and may work better than some (most?) aloe gels. I think that ultrasound gel normally uses thickeners that are compatible with alcohol. (I’m pretty sure someone has already told me they used that, but I don’t remember if it was in the comments, by email, or on the comments on my video.)
The problem is that it may depend on the gel as not all will have the same exact ingredients. (That’s the same problem as with the aloe gel.)
I’d try with just a small amount, to see what happens, but I think you have a very good chance of it working.
Cynthia Phillips
I’ve been scouring the internet trying to figure out what happened with my sanitizer. And finally found you! I used 91% isopropyl alcohol and what I thought was a fairly pure (and even organic) aloe that I got on amazon. It turns out it has xantham, potassium sorbate, ascorbic acid and citric acid and it gave me a white blob. I named him Bob, but it was very frustrating. After that, I made a mini test batch with a little aloe I had left from Walmart and the alcohol. While it didn’t seem to mix great, it didn’t create a blob either. That aloe contains some other additives, entirely different from the first.
My next trial will be a spray involving alcohol and glycerin. I haven’t had the heart to throw out batch one, but since it has some small floaties in it that I can not identify and I’m no longer certain of the amount of alcohol, I am certain that I must. Sigh.
Thank you for all of the great information here. And any thoughts on what created Bob would be awesome lol.
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Cynthia,
I feel your pain!
Yes, I think the more natural aloes are going to be the ones that are more prone to clumping up because they use thickeners like xanthan gum.
I wish I knew the science behind it so I could better understand it. Without doing more research into the chemical composition of xanthan gum, though, I don’t really know why the blob forms. I’m assuming it’s mostly the solids of the gum, though. For all practical purposes, the liquid is probably still usable as a spray, but I guess now isn’t the best time to play with unknowns.
Mel
I just ordered Hyroxyethyl cellulose 60g into
740mls of Metholated spirits
200mls water
60mls aloe gel .
I’m waiting for it to set fingers x
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Ooooh- I’d love to hear how it goes.
I WILL try that too- once this blows over and I can get my hands on it! 😉
mei mei
If it’s going on your skin, please, be smart.
Don’t use Methanol (metholated[sic] spirits) or Isopropyl.
Both are much more toxic to humans than Ethanol.
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Here in Spain, I’ve never seen either for sale.
The alcohol sold at pharmacies and supermarkets is always ethanol.
I doubt anywhere would sell methanol in a section for use on skin, but I think isopropyl is common in some countries. I haven’t extensively studied isopropyl as it’s not something I use.
Larry Licari
I haven’t made this yet as I have ordered the carbopol and triethanolamine and am still waiting for the carbopol to come in.
This was a wonderful site as it kept me from trying my top two ideas of Aloe gel mixture and my second choice of Agar. From what I can see, the carbopol and triethanolamine is the best mixture. I will let you know how if come out but my plan is to offer it to free to health care people for personal use as many have stated that they could not find gel in the store after working their shifts. I figure it should cost me about $1 US for about 100 grams. Well worth helping to protect our health car heros!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Larry,
That’s so kind of you! I hope it works well for you.
I’ve since seen it said that hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose is the ideal thickener for alcohol gels. I found a place in Italy that normally sells it. I put my name on their waitlist, and they’ve advised me it was in 3 times since this COVID situation began. I try to order within the hour of them announcing having it in, and it’s already sold out!
They have advised that it’s hard to find and difficult to keep in stock right now.
I really want to update this post with more ideas, but I’m guessing some of the options are pretty hard to find anywhere right now.
Maybe when this all blows over, I’ll revisit this and add new options! 😉
Good luck with it and stay safe!
Larry Licari
Hmm, there are ads all ove Amazon here for hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, ($12 US) I just ordered some and it says it will be here in 2 days. 50 gram package. My guess is that it will react more like the agar.
Have you had any issues getting Isopropyl? I haven’t checked the landscape out there to see what’s available but I have about 9 liters already since I use a lot for avain necropsies (which I haven’t been doing lately).
My biggest concern is how big of a batch my magnetic stirrer will make before getting bound up but I guess I can always use my capuchino frother :).
I hope this blows over soon, I miss Italy and it looks like my plans of going back in Sept aren’t going to pan out.
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Larry,
I hope you’re wrong- about not being able to go in September. I optimistically think (hope) that things will be more normalized by then. It’s so hard to know, though.
Here in Spain, I’ve never seen isopropyl for sale. The supermarkets and pharmacies all sell high strength ethanol. (Same goes for most online sales.)
It appears that the hydroxypropyl methylcellulose is easier to find on your side of the puddle than it is here.
I’d love to hear how your experimentation goes. For now, I’ll just have to wait.
Our confinement here is so strict that I haven’t left my house since March 14th anyway, so I haven’t really needed a hand sanitizer. See, there’s a positive to the negative. Ha!
I never brought out my magnetic stirrer because my batch was so small. So, yes, I went with the milk frother.
I must admit that in a couple of trials I was too impatient to completely incorporate the carbopol before moving on, but it eventually incorporated itself later on anyway. 😉
Kelsea
For the aloe Vera gel and alcohol to really work you have to stir it for more than 3 hours until it turns clear. The longer you stir the thicker it becomes.
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Perhaps, but, again, it will depend on the thickener used for the particular aloe gel.
I have compared many aloe gels, and they use a variety of different thickeners.
So, while it may work well with one aloe gel, it may not work with another.
Also, most people aren’t going to have the patience to stir for 3 hours. 😉
Jim
As a follow up to my last post (Apr. 5, 2020):
Clean up containers and utensils before they dry out – it’s very difficult to remove when dry.
Squirrel cage mixers are available at hardware stores in the paint department.
If TEA is used to adjust the pH, the resultant gel will remain clear. NaOH makes it cloudy.
If you add too much pH adjuster, it will suddenly suddenly become runny, like water (that will destroy the long chain polymer matrix). Some food colorings may also destroy the matrix.
“Fish-eye” blobs may form in the mixture, if the Carbomer 940 is added too quickly. Pick-out or strain the blobs out and replace blobs with an equal amount of Carbomer powder (or start over).
Never use methanol (wood alcohol, methyl alcohol) for anything that will come in contact with people!
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Jim,
Thank you so much for your observations.
Yes, I had read that the pH and thickness follow a curve- that after a certain point, the gel will thin out again.
When this all blows over, and it’s easier to find other thickeners, I plan on trying with some others. I found a supplier in Italy that recommends several others (including hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose), but they keep selling out within minutes of getting it back in.
As it’s something I don’t “need” right now, I’ll leave it for those who do- and will experiment and update the post with more ideas in the future. 😉
Your comments will also help me in my revisions, so thank you!