How to Kill Coronavirus with Household Products

We know that COVID-19 is an emerging pandemic these days; scientists don’t know much about it. But more research comes with every passing day. For example, it can live on surfaces for up to nine days and survives in the air for a few hours.

Virus particles are shed through saliva and fluids coughed up from the lungs. And that the virus can also be shed from our feces.

The spreading rate of coronavirus is very high. The infected person can spread the virus through coughing, touching other people, or leaving the virus on surfaces.

So, it is suggested to wash hands after being in public places to reduce the spread of coronavirus. The survival of this virus varies according to the type of the surface.

The number of hours coronavirus survives in air and on different surfaces

	H-CoV	SARS-CoV-2	SARS-CoV-1	MERS-CoV-1
Air	3	3
Paper		96
Cardboard	24	8
Wood		96
Copper	4	8
Glass		96		120
Ceramic				120
Plastic	72	216	48	144
Steel	48	48	48	120
SARS-CoV-2: causing COVID-19 SARS-CoV-1: causes SARS outbreak in 2003 MERS-CoV-1: caused MERS outbreak in 2012 H-CoV: other human coronaviruses -: no data available

So, how good are the cleaning products already in your cupboards at killing SARS-CoV-2?

There is some good news in the list below.

Soap and Water

It’s not fancy, but soap and water works. Soap and water are your first defense force to remove the virus from surfaces.

Soap lifts the virus from surfaces and can be rinsed off with water. The soap removes the viral particles that have attached themselves to surfaces — whether it’s your hands, face, or countertops — and suspends them in the water so that they can be washed away. So, you always need to wash your hands when you come from outside, such as shop, market, hospital, pharmacy, etc.

Hand Sanitizers

The main ingredient in hand sanitizers that will kill SARS-CoV-2 is ethanol, the same alcohol in surgical spirits. But its concentration in the sanitizer is very important – it has to be over 70 percent, or it will not kill the virus effectively.

Is making your own hand sanitizer a good or bad idea?

Many scientists have a different point of view about this.  You may not get the concentrations right. And if your solution doesn’t have a high enough concentration of alcohol, it won’t be doing you any good.

Alcohol

Alcohol is present is hand sanitizers, so alcohol is the main ingredient that kills viruses.

Alcohol, in many forms, including rubbing alcohol, can be productive for killing many pathogens and bacteria. You can dilute alcohol with water (or aloe vera to make hand sanitizer), but be sure to keep an alcohol concentration of around 70-75% to kill coronaviruses.

Many hand sanitizers have a concentration of about 70% alcohol, and Lysol contains about 80%; these are all effective against coronaviruses.

Solutions of 70% alcohol should be left on surfaces for 30 seconds (including cellphones – but check the advice of the phone manufacturer to make sure you don’t void the warranty) to ensure they will kill viruses. Pure (100%) alcohol evaporates too quickly for this purpose.

Bleach

Bleach is very effective at killing the coronavirus, as well as virtually every other germ on the face of the planet.

Bleach works by destroying the protein and what’s known as the (RNA) of the virus – this is the substance that gives the blueprint for making more virus particles when you become infected. Be sure to use the bleach as directed on the bottle.

The active ingredient in bleach – sodium hypochlorite – is efficient at killing the virus.

Make sure you leave the bleach to work for 10-15 minutes and then wipe the surface with a clean cloth.

The problem is, it’s stinky, it’s hard to use, and it can damage what you’re trying to clean.

It is important to take care of your skin while using bleaching powder.  To save your skin, you should wear gloves — and don’t mix the bleach with anything but water.

According to the CDC, a sanitizing bleach solution can be made by the following method:

Use six tablespoons (1/3 cup) of bleach in a gallon of water or 4-5 teaspoons of bleach in one quart of water.

You should keep in mind that bleach is a harsh cleaner. So if you go this route, do a little test before you clean an entire surface with your homemade bleach solution. Be careful not to let it splash onto anything else. Bleach can also damage paint, and over time, it can corrode metal. So be cautious if you use it.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide is not as strong as bleach, so it’s less likely to cause damage, but it can discolor some fabrics. Don’t dilute, use it straight. Hydrogen peroxide decomposes into water and oxygen. According to EPA.gov, 3% Hydrogen Peroxide kills Coronavirus.

Surgical Spirits

Surgical spirits are made up of alcohol and ethanol. Ethanol has been shown to kill coronaviruses in as little as 30 seconds. Like bleach, alcohol destroys the protein and RNA that the virus is made up of.

Moisten a cloth with some neat surgical spirit and rub it over a surface. It will evaporate, and you will not need to wipe it off.

 

Originally posted 2020-04-02 01:59:57. Republished by Blog Post Promoter