Using isopropyl alcohol to clean the body?

[XERTYX]

Ok so I have read in a few threads that rubbing alcohol can be used in a spray bottle to take a quick waterless shower.

I'm sorry if there are numerous threads on this topic before but as a newb to this method I want to ask a few questions as well as share some observations from trying this method. 

A: This should be self explanatory but as alcohol is a disinfectant and it stings on broken skin whether Male or female it shouldn't be applied near any openings in the body. Something less obvious for guys that have never applied hunting cover scent on their shorts before... your "boys" DO NOT LIKE THE FEELING OF ALCOHOL! 

2: Alcohol dries the skin and strips it of essential oils. This is true. BUT I have found one positive thing about this. I had acne before oxypads were a thing. Maybe they had them. Maybe not. I didnt. I used a cotton ball soaked in seabreeze astringent on my "T zone" to clean my face. I spritz alcohol on a clean washcloth and it removes SO much grease and dirt from my face.

C: A damp alcohol cloth and the body spritzed with alcohol removes so much grease and filth. It works a treat to clean up quickly.

Experiences, fact driven opposition to using alcohol for hygiene, and other relevant opinions are welcomed.

 

[highdesertranger]

I find it dries and cracks my skin leaves it almost like what I would call a burn. same with the Iodine solutions, on the ranch I was the cutter and would frequently get the Iodine solutions and isopropyl alcohol on me, burns like all hell. highdesertranger

 

[XERTYX]

Thanks bro. Honest feedback. Everyone is different. Also I'm not in a desert. Nor a ranger.

For my skin type and humidity it works for me. Fairly well in warmer months. I very nearly have to moisturize in the winter.

This is stimulating. Please. Anyone to add jump in.

 

[maki2]

I had to do a lot of health and safety stuff in an industrial place where solvents of many types were used. So having worked with the professional industrial Health and Safety advisers on what to say to workers....

Here is the "skinny" on it. Solvents do penetrate the skin. Just beneath the skin is the subcutaneuos fat layer. That fat layer is what moisturizes your skin. Over time if you use solvents on the skin you can cause permanent damage to the fat cells in that layer. What happens if you do that damage is your skin will be overly dry and may develop cracks and fissures which are not at all pleasant to live with.

So for the strong solvents such as denatured alcohol, MEK, acetone, paint thinners and more you need to wear gloves and keep it off your body.

For the diluted alcohol such as you would purchase in the drug store health aisle. Occasional use is OK at the full strengths such as for first aid use. For more frequent use such as a daily cleanser much would depend on how much water you add to it. Of course if you already have dry skin then you ought to have enough common sense to know that you are much better off avoiding the use of any de-fatting cleansers as part of your normal hygiene routines.

I like to use moisturizing soap so I wash myself using microfiber wash cloths. You can get a stack of 50 of them for $16.00 on Amazon. Use, hang to dry, they dry quickly. Then toss them into the laundry bag. You will have plenty on hand for fresh cleansing cloths everyday to last you between trips to the laundromat. They make good dish towels too.

 

[DedlyWombat]

I've never tried this as a full-body solution, but I use it on my face several times a day, both in my apartment and while traveling.

I have fairly oily skin, so my glasses start sliding down my nose every couple of hours. Washing up with soap and water is far better, but a washcloth followed by a towel turns out to be abrasive compared to alcohol on a paper towel, especially if I wash my face more than once in a day.

When in the U.S. I buy the 91% isopropyl alcohol at Wally-Mart and keep that handy while driving, along with a good supply of the super-beefy paper towels you can get there. Good hand sanitizer too, and it doesn't stink like the "real" hand sanitizers. Also fine for wiping down a steering wheel, shift lever, door handles, and whatever. Leaves no residue. Find and dandy.

 

[MrNoodly]

It disinfects but it's not great for removing dirt.

 

[reppans]

I'm a backpacker and outdoor enthusiast - I EDC 190 Grain Alcohol (e.g. Everclear) and small nesting alcohol stove. Aside from stove fuel, and dehydrated vodka, I use it diluted as a general purpose solvent, cleaner, sterilizer, so yes occasionally as a full body wet wipe with paper towel.

I prefer a shower though since I want to wash my hair and can do with <1L of water a bit of Dr Bronners.... in the minivan or just bushwhack into the woods for a few mins. Hate sleeping in my dried up sweat.

 

[Dingfelder]

Nothing beats a real shower, but I find rubbing alcohol is fantastic for keeping the grease down. I'll use it anywhere and everywhere on my upper body. For some people, it may dry the skin, but I have always had oily skin, so for me there is no worry about losing any skin oils -- they'll start coming back in 15 minutes, no problem, and from that point forward, the battle is once again on.

It doesn't remove any more oil from the skin than comes off in every pass of your towel or washcloth, though. It will loosen oils just great, but they're still there and ready to dry back onto your skin. So for a thorough cleansing, I go over an area first with RA and a paper towel or a RA-impregnated baby wipe, then quickly use another with no alcohol to help wipe away and absorb the grease.

This is important with armpits, too. You may kill some germs, but a single pass probably won't get rid of all odors. You need to give them a chance to absorb into a clean cloth or towel on another pass or two. Which is another thing ... you can't keep wiping over the same areas with the same cloth or towel, or patch of it, and still expect to keep cleaning. You need a new surface area, or you'll just be spreading the nasties around. They can still be oily, or stink, even if you killed 'em dead with rubbing alcohol. You want to get rid of them, not give 'em a tour.

 

[lenny flank]

Hand wipes are essentially paper towels and alcohol.

I have found that alcohol-gel hand sanitizer works as a quick waterless shampoo. Drop a plop of sanitizer on your hair, spread it around, and then use a towel to rub it off. I wouldn't use it every day, but it works OK as a temporary fix.

 

[Gr8ful]

I use soap cloths in this link but buy the 100 pack for $35/shipped. You won't believe that one of these & 4 tsps of water (4 bottle caps) & you have a great all over soapy bath & it just dries up & the soap disappears. Works great for me. https://www.soapcloth.com/SoapCloth-Dry-Hygienic-Wash-Cloth-10-Pack-p/scdhwc-10.htm

 

[XERTYX]

**UPDATE**



I have compiled a short list of recommendations that may or may not be complete based on my experience using isopropyl alcohol.


Spraying alcohol on your body is cold. More than I'm prepared for. Every time.

A more wasteful approach I've found is to spray a white cotton washcloth folded hamburger style with alcohol and then wipe my face, arms, underarms, then legs moving to a fresh clean surface as the situation dictates. Respraying constantly whenever the cloth surface becomes soiled, and or when wet skin doesnt smell like alcohol. I'm using 70%.

If you're outdoorsy in any way pay extra attention to your knees and ankles if you always wear shorts.

You'll be amazed how much crud this cuts off between showers.

 

[abnorm]

I use Alcohol for personal cleaning...……...I don't use it Full Strength ……..I dilute it with water in a spray bottle....about 1:5 parts water

and WallyWorld sells some large cloth "Flour Sack" towels in kitchenware...…..soft, smooth "diaper" material......28" square



and for an in-between showers SHAMPOO:


...…I'll spray my hair WET with the solution...….Massage my scalp...….and vigorously dry my hair and scalp with a fluffy towel 

Squeaky Clean !

 

[B and C]

I only use alcohol to drink (not isopropyl) or sanitize stuff. Never on my skin or scalp, too drying.

 

[Dingfelder]

Yeah, very much skin-type dependent.

Like many other cleaning solutions, really. I've been recommended many soaps that advertise themselves as part soap, part moisturizer. I find myself greasier after using them than before. Dove soap, for instance. So many others. If they can't even not leave me greasy, I have zero faith in their removing my own natural ... errrr ... grease. And I don't want their own grease either.

A lot depends on your skin type. If you have naturally dry skin, you are going to find a blessing what other people find gross or counter-productive or in some other way bad, and if you have naturally oily skin, it will be the reverse.

 

[Cammalu]

I use Alcohol for personal cleaning...……...I don't use it Full Strength ……..I dilute it with water in a spray bottle....about 1:5 parts water

WTH Doug! All that trouble when you have an on demand hot water shower a few feet out your door???? [emoji16]

 

[Dingfelder]

Spraying alcohol on your body is cold. More than I'm prepared for. Every time.

On another note, I do not spray it on my body.  Yep, that IS cold.
I either run a little into the waterproof plastic bag that baby wipes come in and then shake it around a little, sealing in a sandwich or freezer bag for long-term storage when not in use, or spray onto a paper towel. 
The cold and saturation level is easy to control that way, but one surprising thing that some may not think of -- spraying casually can be a bad idea.  On a hot day recently, I had a fan going pointed at me.  It was so hot I didn't really notice it as a fan ... it was more like an unseen element in the background keeping things feeling more normal.  So I sprayed a papertowel with alcohol a couple quick times ... and got a fair amount of rubbing alcohol inhaled, going down my throat and into my lungs.  

Not great but not super unpleasant at the time ... however, my chest was rattling and I was coughing stuff up for a couple of days.  Even having to wake up to do it.  I was wheezing a bit.  It wasn't horrible but I did feel weaker and somewhat disabled.  

So watch out when you are spraying the stuff.  Rubbing alcohol might have effects on your immediate environment if it gets picked up by a breeze or your fan.  Or on your sinuses, lungs, eyes, whatever.  It's so easy to forget an open window or a fan going on a hot day.  Spray rubbing alcohol -- or anything! -- only when you are pretty darn sure where it's going and how much of it is going there.

 

[Gypsy108]

I would prefer to use vinegar instead of isopropyl alcohol for the skin. (diluted with water) Also in hospitals they prefer you wash your hands with running water & soap, instead of alcohol based dispensers for contagious (dangerous) germs.

 

[Day Dreamer]

I use a combo of distilled water, a little ethanol alcohol and some essential oils. Works great for everything from air freshening to body spray.

 

[travelaround]

I'll stay with vinegar, soap, and water . . . I think alcohol would be too drying.

 

[Day Dreamer]

Just to clarify I use Everclear.

Other types of alcohol are toxic. Use food grade ethyl alcohol.