Physan-20 Kill Coronavirus?

[katsucats]

So... I would not suggest that anyone inject disinfectants, Physan or not. Of course any such disinfectant is rough for the skin, but is 0.4% diluted Physan really more dangerous than 70% alcohol? Sure, prolonged exposure to Physan may be problematic, but we all know what prolonged exposure to alcohol does. Apples to apples.

With that said, I'm not an expert, so I'll accept any answer if someone more knowledgeable could directly compare the typical 70% alcohol hand sanitizer vs Physan. I have spilled 1% (3 tablespoon to gallon) Physan here and there and thankfully have not gotten any organ failures. But again, I've also gotten plastered from Vodka.

[estación seca]

I would not voluntarily put Physan on my skin. I only put 70% alcohol on my skin when soap and water are not available.

[SouthPark]

Totally! I definitely wouldn't put physan on my skin, and wouldn't allow physan to get on me.

The isopropyl alchohol spray could probably be used. Just spray, then put the bottle down, then rub hands together to get the liquid all over, then allow some time for it to act and do its thing before resuming regular activities.

Otherwise, just use the regular gel hand sanitiser hehehe

Originally Posted by hypostatic

Alright, so there is a BIG "danger" warning on the Physan bottle. On the back, it says to not get it on your skin:

Please do not use this to decontaminate surfaces that you plan on touching soon after

That says it all hehehe. Just don't do it! Good information hypo.

[katsucats]

I wanted more specific information. Of course I would not put any of this on my skin voluntarily. I would only put it on by spillage or for disinfecting. It's like I would not drive voluntarily lol. I would only drive if I have to go somewhere.

But anyways, in case anyone is interested, here are the facts that I found. There is an OSHA-GHS criteria from 1-5 (1 being the most toxic). Undiluted Physan 20 is rated 4 for acute toxicity for oral ingestion, and 4 for acute toxicity for dermal, and 1 for eye damage (!). These numbers mean that a lethal dose of Physan 20 is between 300-2000mg/kg if you eat it, and between 1000mg/kg if you touch it. Specifically it is 506mg/kg if you eat it, and somewhere near 2000mg/kg or above if you touch it.

This is actually somewhat better than 70% ethyl alcohol, since while hand disinfectant isn't on the GHS criteria list since its oral LD50 is 7040mg/kg, you also never use Physan 20 undiluted. At 3 tablespoons per gallon necessary to kill viruses, that's about 1% by volume. The oral LD50 of that would be 50600mg/kg, and the dermal LD50 of both the Physan 20 and ethyl alcohol would be below the scale.

So, while Physan 20 is bad for eye damage and prolonged inhalation, I would not worry about spilling some diluted solution any time soon.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by kvet

I'm hoping for a sixth finger.

As they say ------ why stop at 6, when you could go for 7? hehehehe

[Ray]

The straight stuff can be corrosive, especially to mucus membranes. When diluted, I only worry about getting it in my eyes or inhaling droplets.

I keep a spray bottle of diluted material in the medicine cabinet to spray on my electric toothbrush (the junction where the brush head attaches to the base) and the cutting heads of my in-the-shower shaver. Both can hold water and grow mold - but not any longer.

[SouthPark]

Or just use this hehehehe ..... just do not drink it hehehe

vodka link

[voyager]

I used Physan20 for many years when I kept orchids in-home.
I used it 2 to 3 times a week when I fertilized my orchids.
I never had any problems from it, although I was very careful to keep it off my hands and skin in general.
When I was using it in-home, I checked it out, finding that it was also used as a food preparation/hospital disinfectant and similar potential human contact applications.
I was convinced it was quite innocuous and never gave it much thought.

Nearly 10 years ago, I had Glacoma surgery in one eye with a glacoma eyedrop medication prescribed for the other.
That medication worked very nicely for many years.
Then, I moved to Hawaii and obtained a new Rx from a local Ophthalmologist.
It was different from my other eyedrop medication.
Within weeks My eye became quite irritated, cornea itching, burning, and other irritations.

I looked up the compositions of my older Rx and the newer one.
The newer one used a preservative called benzylcane, or benzylkonium which is, a dilute addition of ALKYL DIMETHYL BENZYL AMMONIUM CHLORIDE.

I actually got into a disagreement with the Hawaiian Dr. to get my medication changed back to what I had been getting before.
He got has nose-out-of-joint, and I never trusted his judgement on anything again.
Been on the old RX for another many years again with no hint of complications.

Running across this thread brought that back to the forefront of my mind again.

I had never seen a tie to BAC and corneal harm potential before.
Makes me very glad I insisted on changing back to the old Rx.
Plus, I checked into OTC eyedrop moisturerizers.
Many of them use benzylcane as a preservative.
The only ones I will ever use do not contain benzylcane/benzylkonium.

[msarro]

TIL I really should be wearing gloves when I use physan 20. Normally I just hold plants when I am spraying them which invariably leads to my hands getting physan on them, which I wash off afterwards with soap and water.

I spent so much time working with StarSan (a food grade sanitizer) that I probably picked up some bad habits... oh well, I'm still alive and don't seem to have any chemical burns. I'll pick up some gloves though before my next batch of orchids show up.

edit:
Oddly enough the physan website says smokers should dip their hands directly into the solution to avoid TMV...

Cigarette smokers have tobacco mosaic virus on their hands. Dip hands in solution before handling plants or anything connected with the plants. It is a good idea to have a container of PHYSAN 20 solution always available as a hand dip. Allow to air dry.
Use: 1 Tablespoon PHYSAN 20 per gallon of water.

Orchids - Physan

[Roberta]

I wouldn't want to get Physan in my eyes, or drink it, but it is pretty non-toxic unless you are a fish. (It is deadly to fish, attacks the coating on their gills).