Looking for the no-rinse, no water hand sanitiser in a refill or family/bulk pack. Ideally 1L or more. Getting a bit sick of paying $7/200mL for the detoll brand at Coles and wasting so much packaging. We go through a lot between baby & camping trips. Don't care which brand but prefer alcohol-based.
Hoping someone has a good lead! Thanks in advance.
I dislike the cheap no-name ones, including the Aldi offering, they smell like methylated spirits. I'd recommend Aqium Gel (correct spelling) which is what they use in hospitals here in Melbourne at least. It is the good stuff made with 66% pure ethanol + water. Try Chemist Warehouse or similar discount pharmacy supplier, http://www.chemistwarehouse.com.au/searchresults.asp?searchs… they have the 1 litre pump pack for $12.99 ($1.30/100 ml).
ooh cheaper than aldi.
Here's what I think is going on with the runny gel. The ingredients are (in decreasing order of concentration):
Glycerin is a good solvent. Many things will dissolve into glycerin easier than they do into water or alcohol. Glycerin is highly "hygroscopic" which means that it absorbs water from the air. Example: if you left a bottle of pure glycerin exposed to air in your kitchen, it would take moisture from the air and eventually, it would become 80 per glycerin and 20 percent water.
I'm sure the open pump packs I have are "self-diluting" themselves after being left for a while. The smaller airtight "purse packs" or unopened bottles bought at the same time are still gelled. The graininess could be some airborne pollutant being dissolved into the solution.
Thanks. We have a couple of the 1L Aqium's here actually. I dislike them because they have gone "grainy" and the viscosity has changed strangely.. having said that they are a few years old now so I guess they just don't keep for extended periods. I should give it a go again now we're going through so much more. That is a great price too, cheers!
I've noticed the end of a container here has gone a bit "runny", but I've not seen it go grainy and I can't see why it would, unless it was contaminated in some way perhaps? I think it went runny because it was near a window and exposed to heat/sunlight.
Anything that uses an ingredient other than ethanol (like metho) is deliberately adulterated with a pollutant that discourages you from drinking it (like LPG which is otherwise odourless is made to stink so you can detect if it is leaking). It might be cheaper for the manufacturer to use that, but it isn't as pure, you are getting less active ingredient and you are leaving a residue which leaves an unpleasant smell behind. My friend who is a nurse told me they have to be careful leaving Aqium around unattended as alcoholics being treated will drink it.
I should add I've only seen the big containers go runny, perhaps they are intended for "industrial" applications and intended to be used up quickly.
Thanks for the in depth explanation, very interesting. You're right, one of our Aqium's was in direct sunlight/heat for much of each day, the other indirect light but high heat (in the car). Both are runny but the former grainy also. I'm with you on it not being intended to be kept for long periods, and I'm sure it's meant to be kept away from heat/sunlight now.
Woolworths has there own brand hand sanitisers on special at the moment. Seems the same as the Dettol ones to me but Im no hand sanitiser connaisseur.
50ml bottle $1.50 - $3.00/100ML
200ml bottle $2.99 - $1.50/100ML
Thanks - that is a good price, especially if it's like the dettol brand one. I'm so surprised Coles don't produce their own.
Im no hand sanitiser connaisseur.
Dettol… splash of lemonade, ice and a slice….. does it for me :)
Aldi brand:
TRICARE ® Hand Sanitiser
250ml ($1.60 per 100ml) $3.99