Hand Sanitizing Gel or Liquid: Which is Better?

Hand sanitizers have already been around even before COVID-19 happened. It always comes in handy, but even more so during the pandemic. Admit it or not, you have used hand sanitizers not only for your hands but also on any object that your hands touch. They are more in demand these days and are available in supermarkets, groceries, online variety stores, pharmacies, and so on. 

Using hand sanitizers has become the norm. It usually comes in liquid spray or bottle form. However, hand sanitizing gels are also available although not as common as liquid form. Nonetheless, the question remains: which is better, hand sanitizing liquid or gels? 

Hand sanitizing gel and liquid: What’s the difference? 

First of all, hand sanitizers are primarily made of alcohol to get rid of germs and bacteria on your hands. Some liquid sanitizer brands also contain a moisturizing agent called glycerin to keep hands from getting too dry after every use. Meanwhile, gel sanitizers contain polyacrylic acid and polyethylene glycol which congeals the alcohol solution to that familiar gel texture. 

Hand sanitizers are specially made to kill bacteria and germs on your hands. But contrary to popular belief, hand sanitizers do not kill germs and bacteria immediately the moment it touches your hands. Its germ and bacteria-killing formula would take some time to take effect, and the sanitizer’s composition has something to do with that. 

On the one hand, gel sanitizers have thickeners which makes drying time a little longer than liquid sanitizers. This also means that the former’s germ-killing formula takes longer to take effect as compared to the latter. Since liquid sanitizers do not have thickeners, it dries up faster and kill germs and bacteria faster. 

Which is better: Hand Sanitizing gel or liquid?

In general, both gel and liquid hand sanitizers are effective in killing bacteria and germs. Some even use them to sanitize objects such as doorknobs and handrails, among others. Keeping our hands and every object we touch clean and sanitized is important especially now that COVID-19 is still around. 

Between the two types of sanitizers, a lot of people would prefer liquid sanitizers to gel ones. As mentioned, liquid sanitizers dry and kill germs faster which is the main purpose of sanitizers in the first place. On the downside, liquid sanitizers are prone to spills than gel sanitizers, especially if you forgot to close the bottle lid properly. 

Nonetheless, it should not matter whether you choose liquid or gel sanitizer. More important is the alcohol content. According to CDC, alcohol content that is below 60 percent won’t be effective enough to kill bacteria and germs.

Homemade sanitizers may not also be as effective as those well-established sanitizer brands. You can still use homemade sanitizers but perhaps you have to apply now and then to ensure its germ-killing efficacy. The same applies when you opt for gel sanitizers. 

These are some things you should consider when choosing between liquid or gel hand sanitizers. What’s most important is to keep them in handy at all times. You can buy sanitizers in an online variety store in Franklin TN.