Keeping ourselves and our environment clean and free of germs has always been important but the global pandemic has really hammered home just how vital it really is. Good hygiene habits can significantly slash the odds of becoming unwell, protecting both you and your loved ones.
Most people have a particular product that they rely on to clean their homes, and use an alcohol-based hand sanitiser to get rid of germs while on the go. The chances are that the products you pick do an okay job - but is okay really enough when there’s better protection available?
Just like other technology that's moved on, cleaning products have too. Alcohol disinfectants are reaching the end of their useful life because there are more effective cleaning products that will keep you safer for longer.
Here are the facts you should know.
Evolving technology
If you’re a techno geek you may love the arrival of new technology, and constantly seek out the newest gadgets and devices. For you, new technology is something you embrace and get excited about.
However, technology is part of modern day living and even if you consider yourself to be technologically-challenged you probably use new types of technology without even realising it!
Back in the 1980s, the rotary phone was the gadget that every household had, but where are they now? First eclipsed by cordless, press-button phones and now replaced by the latest smartphones, rotary phones are firmly a thing of the past.
In the same era, all the cool kids had their Sony Walkman, a portable cassette player complete with a pair of striking orange over-the-ear headphones. Teenagers today don’t always recognise what a cassette is, let alone the device they used to be played on. CDs, then MP3s and finally streamed music have all made cassettes and portable tape players completely obsolete.
The list of old technology now defunct is endless: VHS players, faxes, floppy disks, typewriters - there are many items which were once considered a real luxury that have since been replaced by something more efficient and effective that we all use everyday.
And there are some technologies which haven’t quite yet expired, but are rapidly approaching the end of their useful life. DVDs, GPS units and overhead projectors are all examples, along with alcohol disinfectants. Put simply, there are now better solutions available so why carry on with something which just isn’t quite as good?
Alcohol disinfectants
Let’s be clear from the start: alcohol disinfectants have done a great job. They’ve been a useful way to keep germs at bay and over the years, they’ve helped us in many ways. But the same could be said about phone boxes, and where are they now? The truth is that alcohol disinfectants have their benefits, but they’ve been superseded by newer technology which is better all-round.
There are a lot of products on the market which include alcohol in their list of active ingredients. However, to be effective against enveloped viruses such as Covid-19 (and others) there must be at least 60 per cent alcohol content. Official guidelines suggest looking for a hand sanitiser which has 60-95 per cent alcohol content.
The difficulty with that is that alcohol evaporates very quickly; the more alcohol contained in a product, the more quickly it will disappear. A disinfectant requires contact time to reach maximum effectiveness, so the rapid evaporation of alcohol can be a real problem. The other issue is that once it’s evaporated, to be protected you need to reapply the disinfectant. This can lead to repeated cycles of disinfecting to stay safe.
For this reason, alcohol disinfectants aren’t recommended for use on large surfaces, and although they aren’t toxic, care must be taken about what products they are used on. For example, they can harden rubber and degrade glue, potentially causing damage to the items you are trying to protect.
Most of us became very familiar with the sting of alcohol hand sanitiser during the pandemic, another unpleasant but common side effect. Even though brands add moisturisers to counteract the alcohol content, alcohol disinfectants are drying and irritating to sensitive skin.
Without knowing there is better and new cleaning technology available, most people just put up with the constant disinfecting cycles and the physical discomfort of repeated applications of hand sanitiser.
But there’s no longer any need to carry on accepting a second-rate result. Just like in the past, there’s new technology available which will make life much easier.
Easy, effective protection
What if you were to discover there was a hand sanitiser that you only had to apply once every 24 hours to stay protected against bacteria and viruses? How useful would it be if there was no need to keep reapplying drying hand sanitiser every time you or your child touch a surface which may be contaminated?
And how about a surface spray that kills 99.9 per cent of viruses and bacteria - and that is clinically proven to keep them away for 21 days?
It may sound like the stuff of fantasies but these products are available now. And their effectiveness, efficiency, affordability, and ease of use is why alcohol-based disinfectants are reaching the end of their lifespan.
Fine Guard products don’t contain any alcohol. This means that when the hand sanitiser is applied there’s no painful sting, and no chapping from continued use. Following testing in over 140 laboratories worldwide and testing by independent government labs, including in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan – it was found that just one application is enough to keep the skin protected for 24 hours - and its formula is gentle enough to use on sensitive skin, including children.
Dermatologically tested and non-toxic, Fine Guard hand sanitiser is water-based but uses a revolutionary technology to safely bond to the skin. This creates an invisible shield that repels bacteria and viruses, keeping hands safe for 24 hours. During this period, you can wash your hands with soap as normal and this won’t affect the protection.
The Fine Guard PureSurfaces offers a similar type of technology to bond to surfaces and form an antimicrobial shield which lasts for 21 days. Imagine not needing to disinfect your kitchen for three weeks! It saves time and effort, while also providing superior protection for you and your family.
There’s even Fine Guard FabricBooster which can be sprayed onto any type of fabric to repel 99.9% of bacteria and viruses, and to keep the fabric safe for 48 hours. It doesn’t stain and can even be used on white fabrics for strong and lasting protection.
Don’t settle for second best
When it comes to the health, safety and wellbeing of you and your loved ones, you shouldn’t have to settle for second best. Alcohol disinfectants have served their purpose but the arrival of more powerful and longer lasting technology means that you don’t have to put up with all the disadvantages any more.
To find out more about the range of Fine Guard products and how they work, take a look at our website today.
