DIY: Homemade Hand Sanitizer

With the news of the novel coronavirus spreading, keeping our hands—and homes—clean is more important than ever.

For the former, washing your hands with soap for at least twenty seconds is best. But for the times you don’t have access to a sink, and if, like us, you’re having trouble getting your hands on hand sanitizer, you can make your own with rubbing alcohol and aloe vera gel. (The CDC says the mixture needs to be at least 60 percent alcohol in order to be effective.)

And as an added bonus, buying the ingredients and making batches in bulk is less wasteful than stashing a dozen tiny plastic bottles of Purell.

Here’s how to do it, via a recipe spotted over on Real Simple.

Materials

• 2/3 cup 99 percent rubbing/isopropyl alcohol (you’ll need a higher ratio of alcohol to aloe if you can’t find 99 percent rubbing alcohol)
• 1/3 cup aloe vera gel
• essential oils (optional)

Method

1. Stir the rubbing alcohol and aloe together in a bowl. The aloe will protect your skin from getting dried out. (This is a good time for hand cream, too.)
2. Optional: Add in a drop or two of your favorite essential oils. (Always take care using essential oils, and test them on your skin before using.)
3. Decant into a pump bottle and/or reusable travel bottles for bringing with you wherever you go.

To use, the CDC recommends adding hand sanitizer to the palm of one hand and rubbing it all over the surfaces of your hands until dry. Read more about their recommendations here.

And or more at-home how-to’s, see our Domestic Science section.