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Introduction & Overview
If you haven’t bought hand sanitizer in the last two years, what have you been doing? Back in February 2020 I really pushed myself to wash my hands more regularly, and sanitize when I couldn’t wash.
Things that make my hands feel particularly icky include shopping carts, handling money, and touching door handles. And those aren’t even exclusive to this pandemic, they always seem gross to me.
Hand sanitizer is a staple for most of us, especially in places like the grocery store or the car where we can’t always access a bathroom right away. I’ve been trying the Grove hand sanitizer for about 7 months now and I don’t recommend it for most people.
There are a couple scenarios where it might be a good choice for you but I have other recommendations for you. Recommendations that are probably available at your local Target.
Ratings
Overall Score
Function
Durability
Ease of Use
Appearance
Do I recommend this product?
In order for me to recommend something, I want it to score a 4 star combined average and the Grove hand sanitizer did. I love the way it smells and I think you would too.
But, this ultimately comes in a single-use plastic bottle and I hate that. For that reason I’m going to have to say no, I do not recommend this product. There are other products out there that come in aluminum packaging.
You could also try creating your own at home with sustainable ingredients of your own choosing. At any rate, the FDA suggests hand washing with soap and water is best anyways so just stick to the hand soap when possible.
When you need sanitizer on the go, find an aluminum option or try making your own at home and reusing on-the-go dispensers you likely already own.
The downside to aluminum in this case, is that it’s not flexible. Most travel sanitizers work by squeezing them and closing them when you’re done. Rigid containers like aluminum won’t let you squeeze them, so they typically have a pump.
If a pump won’t work for you while you travel, and you don’t have something you can reuse, then that might be the only scenario I say try this hand sanitizer.
Does it get the job done? (Function)
This hand sanitizer has 62% ethyl-alcohol. The FDA says a hand sanitizer needs 60% or more in order to be an effective hand sanitizer. I can’t see the tiny germs on my hands but based of the FDA’s word and Grove ingredients, there’s no reason this won’t get the job done.
In reference to the “moisturizing” side of it, it definitely has a different feel than other sanitizers. I would say it does moisturize, but obviously not like lotion. It really just feels less drying than normal hand sanitizer.
How does it last over time? (Durability)
I’ve had this for a very long time, since February 2021, and the scent hasn’t diminished at all nor has the feeling of my hands after using it.
Ease of use?
This could be user error, I can be a mess of a person sometimes, but I almost always squeeze way too much out. Without fail, I have to do the surgeon’s hands in the air move, pivot to the nearest person, and drop some onto their hands too.
Out of kindness, I’m blaming myself some but I’m still deducting a star because it really shouldn’t be so easy to do that.
Do I want to show it off? (Appearance)
It comes in plastic. Booooo. The sanitizer I’ve been using most is from Target and it came in an aluminum pump bottle. I’d absolutely prefer a recycled aluminum container to a plastic squeeze bottle.
What is Grove Collaborative?
In case you missed it, I’ve reviewed the brand Grove Collaborative. This is a detailed look at who the company is, what they’re aiming to accomplish, what they do, and more.
To cover it in a few words, Grove is a subscription based company that carries many many sustainable alternatives to what you’ll typically find on supermarket or grocery store shelves.
What options do I have to buy?
They currently only offer Blood Orange for the exact product I’ve discussed in this post. However, they do offer other scents for spray hand sanitizers. You can find those on their site.
Cost and Comparability
This item is VERY expensive. It retails for $8.95 per bottle when it isn’t on sale. The volume for each bottle is 7.5oz. You could easily find an alternative that offers more product for half the price of this item.
You are definitely paying a premium for ingredients here.
You may occasionally find this product as a free add on or on sale when you buy multiple. Those offerings may make this hand sanitizer a more affordable option for you every once and awhile.
Beware of Subscriptions
If you do choose to purchase this product, it is available for the Grove Subscription option. That means you can have it automatically shipped to you at an interval or frequency you choose.
If you want to read more about that, check out the “subscription” section on my post reviewing the Grove Dish Soap and Dispenser set.