Field Report

Field Report
All Terrain Hikers Hand Sanz
January 3, 2006

Manufacturer: All Terrain
Manufacturer URL: http://www.allterrainco.com/
MSRP: $2.99 US
Listed Weight: N/A
Tested Weight: 2.75 oz/78 g

Tester Name: Colleen Porter
Gender: female
Age: 30
Height: 5'8"/1.73 m
Weight: 140 lb/64 kg
Email address: tarbubble at yahoo dot com
Location: Orange County, CA

Backpacking History: I’ve been backpacking for 10 years, usually with my husband. We used to be heavyweights, but having children forced us to go ultralight, and now on my own my 3-season base weight hovers around 13 lb/6 kg. On family trips the weight usually doubles. I make some of our gear myself. Our 3-season backpacking haunts are the San Gabriel and Santa Ana mountains, the Sierra Nevada, and the Grand Canyon, and winters find us in the Mojave and Colorado deserts.

Product Description: A hand sanitizing gel that claims to use exclusively naturally-derived ingredients. I am testing it in a 2 oz/60 ml plastic squeeze bottle with a "press to open" style lid. The active ingredient is Ethyl Alcohol, and the inactive ingredients are purified water, wood cellulose, vegetable glycerin, aloe vera, Vitamin E, a grapefruit/orange/lime seed oil complex, and food grade colorant. It is slightly green-tinted.

Field Conditions: I have used the Hand Sanz pretty much everywhere I've gone for the last three months. I've stayed within southern California, but have used the Hand Sanz in both the high and low deserts (Mojave and Colorado) as well as my local coastal environment (I live 11 miles/18 km from the Pacific Ocean). Temperatures have ranged from about 40 F/4 C to around 85 F/30 C. Weather has ranged from cold & wet, to cold & dry, to warm & dry.

Performance: After three months of use, I have very little to say that wasn't said in my Initial Report. As far as the moisturizing properties of the Hand Sanz go, I'm not certain that it moisturizes so much as it provides a barrier that helps keep moisture from escaping from the skin. It absolutely leaves a coating on the skin that is imperceptible until my hands get wet. Water dissolves the coating and revives the slippery feeling that comes with the initial application of the Hand Sanz. Whether you want to call it a moisturizer or a barrier, it definitely helps. Autumn into early winter is the driest time of the year here in southern California, with extremely low humidity and the hot Santa Ana winds blowing in from the deserts. My nose has been cracking and bleeding inside due to the extreme dryness, but my hands are actually looking pretty good. I don't use the Hand Sanz every day, but I do feel that it has helped to preserve some of the vital moisture in my hands, especially when I'm away from home. The skin on my hands has not cracked at all; in fact it's not even looking dried out.

My sole (and very minor) complaint about the Hand Sanz is the initial texture & drying time of the gel - when first put on, it is very slippery. Almost slimy. It takes over thirty seconds for the gel to dry to the point that it feels tacky instead of slippery, and it takes just over fifty seconds for it to achieve what I would define as dryness. This is a much longer drying time than I am accustomed to. I timed the gel at home, on a day with 34% humidity and an air temperature of 64 degrees F/18 C. Doubtless it dried faster on days with lower humidity, but even when using it in the Mecca Hills, a wind-whipped section of the Colorado Desert, the drying time was still noticeably longer than I am accustomed to with hand sanitizing gels. This is really only a problem when I do something stupid like put it on in the car while I'm waiting for a light to change. I wiped the undried gel off on my pants before I grabbed the steering wheel, because with slippery hands I would have been even more of a hazard than usual.

The scent of the Hand Sanz is very pleasant - it's almost unscented. As the gel dries and the smell of the alcohol evaporates away, an extremely light scent is left behind. I wouldn't even call it a fragrance.

Summary: Hikers Hand Sanz is a nice product. I like it and will continue to use it. I feel it has helped to protect my hands from over-drying. Thank you, All Terrain and BGT, for the opportunity to test this product.

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Read more gear reviews by Colleen Porter

Reviews > Personal Hygiene > Toiletries > All Terrain Hikers Hand Sanz > Colleen Porter > Field Report

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