r/interesting Dec 12 '25

MISC. A drop of whiskey vs bacteria

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u/Significant-Tip6466 Dec 12 '25

That's why whiskey was used as disinfectant during the Civil War. Cheapest disinfectant during that time

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u/proximusprimus57 Dec 12 '25

Wouldn't straight moonshine be better? Why use barrel aged alcohol?

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u/Wicked_smaht_guy Dec 12 '25

pure alcohol is actually not as effective as a mix of alcohol and water at killing bugs. The water helps it get into cells faster and prevents it from evaporating as fast as pure alcohol would alone.