Pandemic Tip #1 – Purell Refills

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This may be my first and hopefully, my last pandemic tip — how to create your own Purell Refills. As a family caregiver, I already had several Purell dispensers mounted to the wall in my bathrooms. When the pandemic hit, the dispensers became even more important making it amazingly easy to remember to use the hand sanitizer. The problem soon became that Purell diverted its production to hospitals and no longer provided the refills. Note: The specific Purell refills I use are pictured below. You may not be able to refill other types of dispensers.

Better Late Than Never

The sad dispensers hung on the walls empty of hand sanitizer, and I began to think I’d have to remove them. I attempted to contact Gojo Industries several times through different channels to ask when I could expect Purell refills to become available again, but never got a response. Then, Kristen Bell entered my life with her Hello Bello hand sanitizer and I thought I could move past my Purell addiction. The Hello Bello product was easy to find, easy to order, reasonably priced , trustworthy but a little runny. Nevertheless, I couldn’t bring myself to remove the Purell dispenser so I embarked on a quest to find a solution — a way to refill the dispensers.

Amazingly, the solution was quite simple. I found that I could remove the dispenser cap from the refill, add gel sanitizer to the container, replace the cap, and restore the dispenser to its former glory. To remove the cap, simply carefully pry it off using a small screwdriver. Be careful not to break the lip or the little alignment posts. If you get it started, the dispenser cap will just pop off. Replacing the cap is even easier. Just put the container on a solid surface, replace the cap and push down firmly until it snaps in place.

Caution – Not All Hand Sanitizers are Created Equal

Finding a reputable and safe hand sanitizer in the midst of a pandemic is not that easy. The FDA maintains a list of sanitizers that you should NOT use. These sanitizers usually don’t contain enough alcohol, or the wrong type of alcohol, or include other harmful ingredients. Mostly, the problematic sanitizers come from outside the US. After searching for several weeks and trying some products that were just not usable for one reason or another, I finally found what appears to be a reliable sanitizer on Amazon — SaniPure Hand Sanitizer Gel. It’s made in the US, has the right amount and right type of alcohol, isn’t on the FDA list, includes aloe and vitamin E, and doesn’t smell weird. I don’t like it as much as the original Purell but it works in the dispenser, and I can live with it. My revived Purell refills have made my dispensers indispensable again!

How how the pandemic made you more resourceful? I’d love to hear your tips! Leave your thoughtful comments below.

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