What Can You Use Instead of Alcohol Wipes?
Alcohol wipes are highly effective at killing bacteria, viruses, and fungi. They have a fast contact time, meaning they only need exposure to the germs for a short time to be effective. Because of how well they work and their convenience, wipes impregnated with alcohol are a go-to cleaning supply for hospitals, examination rooms, nursing homes, schools, animal care facilities, and all environments where hygiene has to be a top priority.
But there are times when alcohol wipes aren’t the best option. In this article, we’ll look at the disadvantages of alcohol wipes and what to use as an alternative.
The disadvantages of using alcohol wipes
Corrosivity
Because of the way they work, alcohol wipes can be damaging to certain materials. While they’re best used on hard, non-porous surfaces like stainless steel and glass, the molecules that break down the cell walls of germs can also break down the structures of materials like wood and acrylic. Even rubber and plastics can be damaged by alcohol over time.
This is why it's essential to read the label of any alcoholic product you use to ensure it fits your intended use. You might not be able to use alcohol on the surface at all, or you might but only under certain circumstances (like rinsing it afterwards with water, for example).
Irritant Properties
While alcohol can be used to sanitise your hands and in alcohol prep pads to sanitise the skin before giving an injection or making an incision, it can also be quite harmful. Alcohol is very dehydrating, and too much exposure can cause the skin to dry out, flake, and crack. Eczema can occur due to too much hand gel use or cleaning your hands with rubbing alcohol.
Likewise, using alcohol to clean a wound can cause more harm than good, as the alcohol can burn and damage healthy tissues. The vapours from alcohol wipes can also irritate the lungs of patients with respiratory problems.
Flammability
Alcohol is highly flammable, and it becomes even more dangerous when impregnated into the flammable wipe material. Because of this, you should never use alcohol wipes near flames or very hot equipment.
Quick Evaporation
One of the benefits often touted about alcohol is that it has a swift contact time. This is great for quickly sanitising surfaces and devices. But alcohol also has a very fast evaporation time. Any disinfectant needs to stay wet on a surface for the prescribed contact time in order to be effective, but if alcohol evaporates too quickly, it could lead to a less successful result.
Because of this, alcohol wipes might not be effective in warm or breezy environments.
Non-Sporicidal
While alcohol has a broad kill spectrum capable of eliminating various bacteria, fungi, and virus strains, it is ineffective at killing spores.
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What to Use Instead of Alcohol Wipes
If you want to get disinfecting benefits of alcohol while avoiding one of the disadvantages above, several alternatives work just as well.
Hydrogen Peroxide (Bleach)
The water-based chemical compound hydrogen peroxide is an efficient antiseptic. More commonly known as bleach, hydrogen peroxide is found in many different cleaning products because it has a broad kill spectrum, capable of killing bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Hydrogen peroxide can also kill spores, something that alcohol cannot do.
Because of this, hydrogen peroxide is an excellent agent for use on hard surfaces to keep spores and other potentially harmful agents at bay. Hydrogen peroxide has bleaching properties, though, so take care to use it on certain materials.
Medical professionals sometimes use hydrogen peroxide to clean wounds. The effervescence of hydrogen peroxide helps to dislodge dirt and bacteria in wounds. However, this should only be done by professionals, as misusing hydrogen peroxide to clean wounds could cause further damage.
Quaternary Ammonium
Quaternary ammonium works similarly to alcohol: by breaking down cell walls and denaturing the cells to kill them. Quaternary ammonium is effective against bacteria, viruses, and fungi and can be found in numerous cleaning products.
But quaternary ammonium is safer than alcohol in several ways. It’s not as corrosive as alcohol, so quat-based wipes can be used on plastics, rubber, metals, and skin without the worry of damage or irritation. Quaternary ammonium is also safe to use around patients with breathing difficulties because there aren’t any harsh vapours for them to breathe in.
Quat is not flammable like alcohol, so it’s safer to use quat-based wipes around heat and flames. PDI Sani-Cloth® AF wipes (formerly known as PDI Sani-Cloth Universal Wipes) contain quaternary ammonium, which is what makes them as effective as alcohol wipes but without the negative properties.
Povidone-iodine
Iodine has been used as an antiseptic for hundreds of years because it is so effective at killing germs. Povidone-iodine is a water-soluble iodine compound used most commonly today to prepare the skin for surgery and irrigate wounds.
Povidone-iodine is a well-documented, board spectrum antimicrobial. It can help to promote the body’s natural healing processes thanks to its effectiveness against biofilms, effect on inflammation, and good tolerability.
Wound Washing
The best thing to use is clean water and soap when it comes to wound cleaning at home and often washing minor and superficial wounds. Harsh chemicals can damage delicate wound tissue unless they are being used by a trained professional.
Using fresh running water and mild soap to clean and rinse the area can sufficiently remove enough bacteria and exudate to clean the wound.
A sterile saline solution is a good alternative if there's no running water nearby. Normal Saline is a kind of salt water with the same concentration as the body’s blood and tears. Because of this, it's very gentle on the body’s tissues. It won’t irritate the skin or dry it out.
Are alcohol-free wipes antibacterial?
Wipes that don’t contain alcohol can be just as effective as those that do. Active ingredients like hydrogen peroxide and quaternary ammonium work in much the same way as alcohol and have been tested to be just as effective in many cases.
Brands will carry out efficacy testing on their products to prove how well they work. If you’re unsure, check the product packaging for evidence of this testing. Usually, they will say “99.999% effective” or something similar. Alternatively, you may be able to see a list of the germs the product is effective against.
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