Does Vinegar Disinfect? Here’s What We Found Out

In a world afflicted with the ill-effects of global warming and environmental harm, the use of something biodegradable and natural to disinfect our homes can be the ideal option. However, there is a lot of confusion surrounding this and people generally aren’t sure what has the ability to disinfect and what doesn’t. We will help you get a clear and well-defined answer to the question – does vinegar disinfect?

What is a disinfectant?

This is where a lot of the confusion seems to originate from. Many people tend to confuse a disinfectant with a cleaning agent. Even though both are used for cleaning, they play different roles in the cleaning process. While a regular cleaning agent is used to remove visual blemishes and spots a disinfectant cleans at a microbial level. There are millions of microbes inhabiting the very places we come in regular contact with and many of them have the potential to be harmful. It is these microbes that a disinfectant can get rid of which is not always assured when using just a regular cleaning agent.

Is vinegar a disinfectant?

From the above definition, it is quite clear that anything that can combat and kill harmful microbes is a disinfectant. As vinegar does possess this ability, it is very much a disinfectant. What can vary is its efficacy. You see, the vinegar that can be bought off the shelf is only 5% acetic acid. This is potent enough to still be able to kill 80% of microbes and this number can be increased by a number of different methods. We will discuss those in the next section.

Methods of making vinegar even more potent for germs

Store-bought vinegar while being quite useful can always be improved upon as a disinfectant by employing a few simple methods. The first is to heat it up slightly so that the concentration is increased slightly. Keep in mind not to overdo it. Another more straightforward method is to use multiple passes of vinegar over the surface you are trying to disinfect or if possible, letting the vinegar sit on it for a little while. Another novel way to make vinegar lethal for most germs is by adding a bit of salt to it. Finally, if you want to get to that magic figure of 99.9% then you could consider using vinegar followed by a thyme oil spray. This has been proven by verified research to be as good as an industrial disinfectant.

Can you replace your disinfectant with vinegar?

It depends on how you use it. If you simply buy it off the shelf and apply it then you might need to use a regular chemical disinfectant once in a while. However, if you employ one of the methods mentioned above to boost the disinfecting power of vinegar then you can most definitely use it as your primary disinfectant. While large manufacturers will drum up their products as the most ‘green’ and bio-friendly option out there, the surest way of going eco-friendly is by making the disinfectant by yourself from natural ingredients and vinegar helps you do just that.