There’s a new urgency to dealing with highly resilient viruses today. We’ve seen the destructive power of them once they’re left unchecked. With so much at stake, a simple to manufacture disinfectant, hypochlorous acid (HOCL), has taken a frontline status in major industries’ enhanced disinfection protocols. Hypochlorous acid solution is not just potent; it is also simple to manufacture, with the proper equipment, and home and business owners can produce it cost-effectively.
Powerful Virucidal Results in Less Time
Unlike many of today’s manufactured disinfectants, hypochlorous acid has been around for millions of years. That’s because our bodies produce it, as a powerful virucidal, to help fight germs and viruses that infect us during sickness, illness, or injuries. And today, HOCL making machines deliver that same virucidal power to businesses, factories, offices, health care facilities, restaurants, bars, and gyms. You can now produce unlimited qualities of it, right on your premises!
When HOCL comes in contact with a virus, it immediately starts attacking its (the viruses’) outer protective protein layer. This allows the disinfectant to quickly neutralize the pathogen, rendering it incapable of doing further damage to humans, pets, plants, food supply, or the environment. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has even recommended HOCL for broader use in the fight against COVID-19.
Research[i] also determined that hypochlorous acid solution is capable of inactivating a broad spectrum of microbes and viruses in under 30-seconds, and that includes coronaviruses. At 200 PPM, noroviruses infected inert surfaces can be decontaminated in just 60-seconds. But the power of HOCL goes beyond higher-concentration solutions. According to research, even at 20 PPM, which is a 10-fold dilution from the earlier noted solution, HOCL was proven to decontaminate surfaces that contained a variety of viruses in 10-minutes.
Longer Shelf-life – Easy to Store
Typically, it’s best practice to store cleaning supplies in cool, dry, and protected places – like storage cabinets or in locked supply closets. However, operationally, due to the hectic logistics of the real world, that’s often not the case. And HOCL is ideal in dealing with those real-world situations too.
Because it is such a sturdy disinfectant, hypochlorous acid has a longer-shelf life, and can withstand adverse conditions. For instance, scientists deliberately exposed the solution to sunlight, and were amazed that it only started showing signs of chlorine reduction after exposure for four or more days. And when stored per the recommended guidelines (in cool, dark places), the disinfectant only started showing signs of chlorine reduction after fourteen days. Studies has shown unopened containers with HOCL has a shelf life of up to 12 months with an average shelf life of 6 months before it loose efficacy.
So, what does this mean for real-life situations, when cleaning crews are busy sanitizing and disinfecting surfaces, furniture, machinery, utensils, and touch surfaces? Well, it means that, even if disinfection teams inadvertently leave their supply of HOCL disinfectants in the open, for a day or so, it’s unlikely to get compromised. And, it also means that, because it has such a long shelf life, when protected and stored properly, businesses will have lower costs on wasted or discarded hypochlorous acid solution.