South Florida residents, as well as the most people in the nation, are feverishly searching for hand sanitizer.  Here is a “Do It Yourself” procedure to make your own sanitizer at home.  It’s rather simplistic.  Prior to starting the hand sanitizer project, clean your work surface thoroughly, and make sure your hands and utensils as well. This sanitizer closely emulates the commercial kind, without all the chemicals and without the bad smell. Hand sanitizer should not replace hand washing; just use it when you really need it. Here's what you'll need:

Assemble ingredients:  

• 2/3 cup 99% rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) or 190-proof grain alcohol
• 1/3 cup pure aloe vera gel
• 8 to 10 drops essential oil, such as lavender, lemon, or peppermint
• Mixing bowl
• Spoon
• Funnel
• Plastic container 

Mix ingredients:

Pour the ingredients (with exception of the essential oil) into the bowl and use the spoon to mix them together. The mixture should be completely smooth.

• If you want the solution to be thicker, add another spoonful of aloe vera.
• Or thin it out by adding another spoonful of alcohol. 

Add essential oil:

Add one drop at a time, stir in.  After about 8 drops, smell the mixture to see whether you like the scent. If it seems strong enough, stop there. If you like a stronger scent, add a few more drops.

1. Use whatever scent you enjoy. Lavender, clove, cinnamon, peppermint, cinnamon,
2. Add move oil if desired  

Put into container:

Using the funnel pour the hand sanitizer into the container. A small squirt bottle works well if you want to carry the sanitizer with you. Save any leftover sanitizer in an airtight container.