Dettol First Aid Antiseptic 1L

Details

This is the antiseptic that most people recognize by smell before they read the label. It is a chloroxylenol-based liquid that turns milky when you add water, and it has been a first-aid and household disinfectant for generations because it does a broad job at a low cost: cleaning minor cuts and grazes, disinfecting surfaces, and adding to wash water where you want more than soap. The 1 L bottle is the size worth having if you are also using it for cleaning rather than only for first aid. Almost every use is diluted — check the label for the ratio, because they differ substantially between wound cleaning, general surface disinfection and laundry. Using it neat where the label calls for dilution is harder on skin than it is on bacteria, and it does not work better for being stronger. Two things worth knowing before it goes in the barn cupboard. Chloroxylenol is a phenolic compound, and phenolics are dangerous to cats — cats lack the liver pathway to clear them and can be poisoned by exposure that a dog shrugs off. Do not use it on cats, in their bedding, or on floors and bowls they will walk on and lick. It is also toxic to fish, so nothing rinsed with it should go into a pond or a stock trough with fish in it. Keep it out of eyes, and do not use it on deep, dirty, or puncture wounds that need proper assessment — a wash is not a substitute for a veterinarian or a doctor. Store it capped, upright, out of sun and out of reach of children.