Lysol / spray disinfectant: This might blow your mind, but...

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CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
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Lysol has an air sanitizing spray.

And I'm willing to bet there is not a significant difference between the disinfectant spray and the air sanitizing spray. Both can be used on surfaces to disinfect. Why can't the disinfectant spray neutralize airborne particles? Perhaps there is a significant difference, I can't be bothered to research it more than I have right now, but it isn't that big a stretch of the imagination.

The bacteria that thrive in the human body do not thrive in the air. They die. What possible reason could anyone have for attempting to disinfect the air after they poop? Poop stench is not an airborne illness and most airborne illnesses would be dead by the time you're done spraying that stuff anyway.

Using a surface disinfectant like Lysol as air freshener is dumb. Almost equally dumb is desiring an "air disinfectant" except in certain very limited scenarios (live with someone immunocompromised). Get a high-grade hospital Hepa filter or something if you care about air quality.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
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You are just weeding out the weak bacteria and breeding stronger ones...
 
Mar 11, 2004
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Recent study shows that airborn particulate sprays, regardless of intention (disinfection, smell, etc) are actually bad for your health (or rather does not lessen illnesses at least). As with anything it'll depend on factors (including of course, dosage/exposure), but keep that to a minimum. But there have been people that killed themselves from inhaling too much body spray (frequent excessive spray in small enclosed rooms).

They do make these one things that are like a wax that slowly evaporates. Curious what they're made of and how they would compare. But they do a decent job of masking smells without needing to spray regularly. Won't disinfect but if you're needing to disinfect you need some sort of air filtration system.
 

destrekor

Lifer
Nov 18, 2005
28,799
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The bacteria that thrive in the human body do not thrive in the air. They die. What possible reason could anyone have for attempting to disinfect the air after they poop? Poop stench is not an airborne illness and most airborne illnesses would be dead by the time you're done spraying that stuff anyway.

Using a surface disinfectant like Lysol as air freshener is dumb. Almost equally dumb is desiring an "air disinfectant" except in certain very limited scenarios (live with someone immunocompromised). Get a high-grade hospital Hepa filter or something if you care about air quality.

Um, that's plain wrong.

Yes, bacteria that thrive in the human body do not tend to live long outside of the body. But there are some hardier bacteria that do live long enough to be a concern, and there are also plenty of viruses that will live quite a while on surfaces.

And do you know germs get onto surfaces? They get deposited from the air. Thus, they start in the air. That happens during flushing.

And ironically enough, the toilet seat is the least filthy thing in the bathroom. Germs get aerosolized during flushing and during volatile explosive diarrhea, and they get stirred up so much that they deposit onto surfaces further away than from the toilet. A toilet seat is hardly the surface you need to worry most about, so disinfecting it is mostly trivial in comparison to other bathroom surfaces.

Also, the purpose of air sanitizing sprays is not to technically disinfect, rather, they neutralize by encapsulating or destroying scent-producing molecules.

Hint: I'm sure you're aware, something being smelly isn't a product of some scientific force like gravity or electromagnetism. Scent is a product of molecules. They can be organic material, gaseous molecules, or root/byproduct chemical molecules. Any particular scent is produced by a molecular cocktail in the air.

So what you smell after a particular rough bathroom trip is a mixture of biological material aerosolized, various odor-producing chemicals, and bacteria or their byproducts. You may not always kill something when spraying the air with a neutralizer, but you are certainly breaking down the molecular cocktail that produces that awful scent. And sometimes, you do kill bacteria or viruses that could live some time outside the body. Norovirus is a particularly hardy germ that can live on surfaces for a long time. A good piece to read about norovirus: http://www.nbcnews.com/health/norovirus-why-washing-your-hands-isnt-enough-1C8143996

It isn't as simple as "people don't wash their hands" as most people like to imagine when it comes to diseases spread by fecal matter. Washing properly, vigorously for 30 seconds and getting under every surface of nails, is something most people fail to do. Many things might be whisked away in the encapsulated fatty acid bubbles, but some things are hardier than others.

I'm no germaphobe, but it is something to consider.
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
126
Um, that's plain wrong.



Yes, bacteria that thrive in the human body do not tend to live long outside of the body. But there are some hardier bacteria that do live long enough to be a concern, and there are also plenty of viruses that will live quite a while on surfaces.



And do you know germs get onto surfaces? They get deposited from the air. Thus, they start in the air. That happens during flushing.



And ironically enough, the toilet seat is the least filthy thing in the bathroom. Germs get aerosolized during flushing and during volatile explosive diarrhea, and they get stirred up so much that they deposit onto surfaces further away than from the toilet. A toilet seat is hardly the surface you need to worry most about, so disinfecting it is mostly trivial in comparison to other bathroom surfaces.



Also, the purpose of air sanitizing sprays is not to technically disinfect, rather, they neutralize by encapsulating or destroying scent-producing molecules.



Hint: I'm sure you're aware, something being smelly isn't a product of some scientific force like gravity or electromagnetism. Scent is a product of molecules. They can be organic material, gaseous molecules, or root/byproduct chemical molecules. Any particular scent is produced by a molecular cocktail in the air.



So what you smell after a particular rough bathroom trip is a mixture of biological material aerosolized, various odor-producing chemicals, and bacteria or their byproducts. You may not always kill something when spraying the air with a neutralizer, but you are certainly breaking down the molecular cocktail that produces that awful scent. And sometimes, you do kill bacteria or viruses that could live some time outside the body. Norovirus is a particularly hardy germ that can live on surfaces for a long time. A good piece to read about norovirus: http://www.nbcnews.com/health/norovirus-why-washing-your-hands-isnt-enough-1C8143996



It isn't as simple as "people don't wash their hands" as most people like to imagine when it comes to diseases spread by fecal matter. Washing properly, vigorously for 30 seconds and getting under every surface of nails, is something most people fail to do. Many things might be whisked away in the encapsulated fatty acid bubbles, but some things are hardier than others.



I'm no germaphobe, but it is something to consider.
That's a lot of words to essentially say that I was wrong and then go on to say almost the exact same thing I said. o_O

You're right they usually got onto other surfaces from the air, which is why you use a surface disinfectant to clean it. Trying to effectively clean the air that way is fruitless. I was responding to your statement about Lysol having a laughable "air disinfectant" product.

Also, people frequently point out that the toilet seat is often more sterile than the other surfaces, but that doesn't change anything when the seat is still warm after a sweaty dude with MRSA-riddled crotch zits just got off, and it's not like the particulates on the air magically fall everywhere BUT the toilet seat. :rolleyes:

I'm not sure why you go on to talk about odor neutralizing sprays when we're were talking about air disinfectant as opposed to surface disinfectant being ignorantly used like and air freshener. Chemicals don't distinguish molecules and react with them based on whether or not we can smell them, so it's a little more complex than that. As for the smells: they are almost always the byproducts of bacteria and not airborne bacteria itself that we can smell. Methane and sulfur, for example.
 
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OverVolt

Lifer
Aug 31, 2002
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People need to disinfect more with household un-branded chemicals like isopropyl alchohol and hydrogen peroxide which is usually less than a dollar for a huge bottle.

And less with disgusting chemical cleaners.
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
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People need to disinfect more with household un-branded chemicals like isopropyl alchohol and hydrogen peroxide which is usually less than a dollar for a huge bottle.

And less with disgusting chemical cleaners.

Those are chemicals too and are often/usually the same kind of things in "disgusting chemical cleaners." Water is a chemical.

I noticed you left out ammonia and bleach but that's probably because people often use these. They also often buy Windex and Clorox instead. :rolleyes: If Lysol is just Ethyl alcohol and a propellant in a spray can, what's the diff? I fail to see the problem, unless you are just admonishing people for spending too much. Then again, you implied that they were somehow more "disgusting."

That said, I can't stand cleaning with bleach. I hate the smell (makes me wretch) and I can't stand the scummy feeling it leaves on my skin.
 

Rakehellion

Lifer
Jan 15, 2013
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I didn't really think of it as a contention, but merely the whole claim of kills 99.9% of germs is usually a very tiny group of select bacteria, viruses and fungus (and occasionally protozoa).

So you just made up some bullshit to try to sound smart. Cool story.
 

natto fire

Diamond Member
Jan 4, 2000
7,117
10
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Also, people that can tolerate that overwhelming disgusting scent are subhuman, regardless of where you spray it. Oh hi, Ichinsan. :p
 

Ichinisan

Lifer
Oct 9, 2002
28,298
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Lysol has an air sanitizing spray.

And I'm willing to bet there is not a significant difference between the disinfectant spray and the air sanitizing spray. Both can be used on surfaces to disinfect. Why can't the disinfectant spray neutralize airborne particles? Perhaps there is a significant difference, I can't be bothered to research it more than I have right now, but it isn't that big a stretch of the imagination.
Of the living micro organisms in the air, practically none of them will contact a micro-droplet of the spray. Completely pointless. You're breathing that stuff in for no damn reason.
 

Ichinisan

Lifer
Oct 9, 2002
28,298
1,235
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Also, people that can tolerate that overwhelming disgusting scent are subhuman, regardless of where you spray it. Oh hi, Ichinsan. :p

I hold my breath when spraying anything, including arm deodorant. Inhaling fine particles is almost always a bad thing.
 

destrekor

Lifer
Nov 18, 2005
28,799
359
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Of the living micro organisms in the air, practically none of them will contact a micro-droplet of the spray. Completely pointless. You're breathing that stuff in for no damn reason.
Who says I'm breathing anything in? I spray right before I leave. I don't want to breath that crap, or anything that is sprayed. My deodorant I spray and walk away from where it was I was using it. Same with cologne and air freshener and really anything.

Though sometimes, like, say, after I find a pile of diarrhea from the dog, I will spray while I'm cleaning it up, because that is a godawful smell and risking death by chemical bombardment of the area seems worth it.
 

highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,973
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Wiki says active ingredient is benzalkonium chloride.
also known as hyamine is a synthetic quaternary ammonium salt. This compound is an odorless white solid, soluble in water. It has surfactant, antiseptic, and anti-infective properties, and it is used as a topical antimicrobial agent in first aid antiseptics.
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
69,691
13,325
126
www.betteroff.ca
I thought the point of those sprays was so you can mask the smell of poop, not to actually kill bacteria.

Personally I can't stand stuff like Lysol and Febreeze and for all I know it can probably cause cancer. Who knows what they put in there. Some of that stuff is pretty potent.

For poop I rather just turn on the fan than to spray potent chemicals in the air.
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
126
I thought the point of those sprays was so you can mask the smell of poop, not to actually kill bacteria.

Personally I can't stand stuff like Lysol and Febreeze and for all I know it can probably cause cancer. Who knows what they put in there. Some of that stuff is pretty potent.

For poop I rather just turn on the fan than to spray potent chemicals in the air.


That's the point of the OP: those are two different sprays. Lysol is not an air freshener. It's not a "poop spray." It's for disinfecting surfaces.
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
126
Wiki says active ingredient is benzalkonium chloride.

Oh. They were talking about air freshener when they said the active ingredient was ethyl alcohol earlier in the thread. Even so: what makes it more of a concern with that stuff than with alcohol?
 

highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,973
6,335
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Nah, it's his coworkers. Our sister went back to San Diego a couple years ago. It reminds him of our sister treating it like air freshener though.
Miss your old avatar but I understand people have to move on...:(...


j/k


thanks for keeping it as long as you did.:)
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
857
126
Miss your old avatar but I understand people have to move on...:(...


j/k


thanks for keeping it as long as you did.:)


What?! That was supposed to be retribution for crossing me and you weren't even annoyed?! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW ANGRY THAT MAKES ME!

Why bother making a custom avatar when I can steal one from Mayne? ;)
 
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