What To Do With All That Expired Hand Sanitizer (It’s Flammable)

Do you remember the Covid pandemic? Do you remember washing your hands four hundred times a day? Do you remember everyone wearing masks all the time? Do you remember the gallons and gallons (and gallons) of hand sanitizer that we bought?

Since then we've backed off on the constant hand sanitizer application, and are left with gallons and gallons (and gallons) of the germ-killing goo that's expired or about to expire.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic three years ago this month. We all remember the phrases, "social distancing, "flatten the curve," and "15 days to slow the spread." The Environmental Protection Agency is reminding Americans that all that hand sanitizer you may have panic-bought in the early days of COVID is nearing the end of its shelf life.

The EPA says that many of the active ingredients in hand sanitizer become less effective after three years, but they are also trying to educate people as to how to dispose of their gallons and gallons (and gallons) properly, safely, and correctly.

It's obvious that all of the empty bottles can be tossed into the recycling bin, but what about all of the full or partially used containers?

The first thing they want us all to know is that you should NEVER just pour the stuff down the drain. The sanitizer is 60% alcohol and is highly flammable. It's just common sense that pouring gallons and gallons (or even a few ounces) of highly flammable material into your plumbing is never a good idea. The EPA is recommending and hoping you find a hazardous waste disposal event in your area on the earth911 website and safely surrender your supply when you pick up a fresh and effective supply.

Then you can get back to enjoying working from your home office and all of your zoom meetings.

A classic it was. The World Baseball Classic came to a close last night in thrilling fashion. Japan edged out Team USA by a final score of 3-2. To commemorate the series, we've compiled this "World Baseball Classic Championship in 10 photos" gallery.

It came down to the arguably the two best players in the game facing off in the final out. Japan's Shohei Ohtani struck out USA's Mike Trout in the top of the 9th inning to secure the title. Ohtani and Trout are teammates with the Anaheim Angels.

The 2023 World Baseball Classic championship was held at LoanDepot Park in Miami, FL (the home of the Miami Marlins). Twenty countries were represented in the form of professional baseball. A tournament-style competition held over three weeks brought us to just Japan and USA still standing Tuesday evening.

Since its founding in 2006, there have been five tournaments held. Japan now has three titles with team USA being the most recent winner (2017) prior to last night.

Team USA took a 1-0 lead last night, with Trae Turner's solo home run in the second inning. Japan responded with three runs by the end of the fourth. Kyle Schwarber made it close in the eighth with another solo smash. Ultimately, it was not enough with Ohtani on the mound for Japan to close out the game.

The 2023 WBC was a great success. In conclusion, 47 total games were played. Almost 27,000 fans attended each game on average. This year's rendition made up for the disappointment of the 2020 tournament being canceled due to COVID. As a lead in to the 2023 MLB season, we saw the greatest players in baseball compete in exciting fashion.

Here is a look back at the World Baseball Classic Championship game in 10 photos.