According to the guidelines set out by the WHO, the ingredients you need for DIY hand sanitiser and fairly easy to come by. Provided you have a decent-sized (1-litre) glass or plastic bottle with screw-threaded stoppers lying around, you can bottle the mixture yourself. For those with a heavy-duty production in mind, you could also use some 50-litre plastic tanks (preferably in polypropylene or high-density polyethylene, translucent so as to see the liquid level) or stainless steel tanks with a capacity of 80–100 litres. But don’t stress too much, our guide to homemade hand sanitiser is developed for in-home use, not for those looking to start a new business.

When getting ready to begin the process, remember to be careful. While these ingredients aren’t likely to cause serious harm, it is still advised that you take careful consideration. After all, you are working with alcohol, which is highly flammable, so maybe avoid having a smoke or cooking dinner while you make your DIY hand sanitiser. This method, as explained by WHO, will make enough homemade hand sanitiser to keep you going.

While the homemade hand sanitiser recipe is relatively simple in nature, the impact it has can be enormous. There are a lot of things going on underneath the surface. If you’re wondering how hand sanitiser works, the active ingredients of ethanol/alcohol kill the protein that surrounds the virus, stopping it before it can infect you. The glycerol acts to moisturise your hands simultaneously, as alcohol can dry out your skin. Finally, the hydrogen peroxide kills any remaining bacteria that might have grown while you made the recipe.

Research has readily confirmed that hand sanitiser is indeed effective against the spread of germs. While it is far from a cure for viruses, it can certainly play an important role in the prevention of contamination.

So, if you’re caught in a situation where the disinfectant aisle is bare, think about whether your next DIY project might be homemade hand sanitiser. It’s easy to make and extremely valuable to have in situations like the one we find ourselves in currently.