KoreaScouter 13 Posted January 19, 2003 Share Posted January 19, 2003 Do you carry those little bottles of gelled alcohol hand sanitizer with you? A dollop of that stuff makes a great fire starter... KS Link to post Share on other sites
red feather 10 Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 Sounds interesting. What brand do you use for this? yis Link to post Share on other sites
eisely 13 Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 KoreaScouter, Is that government issue stuff? When I was in Viet Nam we found the government issued bug repellant spray useless for keeping bugs off of your skin, but it made a great blowtorch. This stuff also worked well for cleaning grease pencil markings off of plastic surfaces. Link to post Share on other sites
KoreaScouter 13 Posted January 20, 2003 Author Share Posted January 20, 2003 Eisely; No, they sell it at the store, in little one ounce bottles, or pump bottles for your bathroom. There's lots of different companies marketing it (Purel, Dial, and others). Look over next to where the antibacterial hand soap is. The key to this stuff working as a fire starter is to make sure it's at least 40% ethanol... KS Link to post Share on other sites
eisely 13 Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 Cool...or perhaps I should say hot. Link to post Share on other sites
frankj 10 Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 Does this mean that the large squeeze bottles of gelled firestarter I use to get my pellet stove going would work as a hand sanitizer? Link to post Share on other sites
KoreaScouter 13 Posted January 21, 2003 Author Share Posted January 21, 2003 Maybe...depending on the ingredient list. I'd hold both bottles next to each other and compare... KS Link to post Share on other sites
scoutldr 726 Posted January 26, 2003 Share Posted January 26, 2003 Just saw an alert go out to the professional safety community...a recent incident occurred where (a nurse, I think) had just used hand sanitizer when a static spark ignited her hands. Sounded at first like an urban legend, but after reading this thread, I don't think so. CDC has just recommended to the health care community that alcohol based hand sanitizers are much more effective than soap and water. We use this stuff almost exclusively now when camping, and I will instruct everyone to make sure their hands are thoroughly dried before getting near fire or spark. There is even talk of the airlines banning the stuff on airplanes, although I don't see it being any more a danger than, say a bottle of aftershave. Link to post Share on other sites
frankj 10 Posted January 26, 2003 Share Posted January 26, 2003 The gelled fuel starter is made from denatured alcohol, and it seems to work as a hand sanitizer. 16 ounces for about 2 bucks. Link to post Share on other sites
KoreaScouter 13 Posted January 26, 2003 Author Share Posted January 26, 2003 We don't permit any hygiene near our dining fly/kitchen areas...another good reason why! KS Link to post Share on other sites
scoutldr 726 Posted January 27, 2003 Share Posted January 27, 2003 Please don't teach your scouts to use denatured alcohol or other solvents (flammable ones at that) to clean their hands. In addition to the obvious fire hazard, it can lead to defatting of the skin, resulting in a nasty, cracked dermatitis and infection. Only use hand cleaners designed for that purpose, which also contain moisturizers. Link to post Share on other sites
SamEagle 10 Posted March 16, 2003 Share Posted March 16, 2003 This is a little late, but I thought I'd share. One of my friends did a science experiment judging the effectiveness of hand sanitizer vs. Joy dishwashing detergent in killing bacteria. After a week in a petri dish, the Joy had actually grown bacteria, while there was nothing in the sanitizer. So, hand sanitizer it is. Link to post Share on other sites
BSA470Firstaider 10 Posted April 19, 2003 Share Posted April 19, 2003 I work in a gov. kitchen in the summer and one thing we've had to take over is a saniserve certification program. The purell type waterless hand sanitizer(either made with ethanol alcohol or benzalkolium chloride) is fine to use AS LONG AS your hand are visually clean. If they have dirt, or meat juices you have to use soap and water. And the firestarter bit STUPID I'm not trying to be rude but your putting a chemical gel that is flammable and can actually harm your skin on your hands then cooking dinner. Sorry for the rudness but this was something that needed to be corrected. Link to post Share on other sites
BSA470Firstaider 10 Posted April 19, 2003 Share Posted April 19, 2003 I work in a gov. kitchen in the summer and one thing we've had to take over is a saniserve certification program. The purell type waterless hand sanitizer(either made with ethanol alcohol or benzalkolium chloride) is fine to use AS LONG AS your hand are visually clean. If they have dirt, or meat juices you have to use soap and water. And the firestarter bit STUPID I'm not trying to be rude but your putting a chemical gel that is flammable and can actually harm your skin on your hands then cooking dinner. Sorry for the rudness but this was something that needed to be corrected. Link to post Share on other sites
KoreaScouter 13 Posted April 19, 2003 Author Share Posted April 19, 2003 If using hand sanitizer as a fire starter, the idea is NOT to squirt it on your hands first, but to upend the little bottle, squeeze out a thumbnail-sized drop where you want your fire, then light it. Hand-sanitizer-as-a-fire-starter is a backup method, like using an analog watch face as a directional device... KS Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now