Quick facts
- This article places eight surface disinfectant products sold for Canadian healthcare and dental use side by side on eight parameters: the Health Canada drug identification number (DIN), active ingredient, product form, label contact time, kill claims, dilution, material-compatibility statements and Canadian list price.
- Every DIN, active ingredient and product form in the table was read from Health Canada's published list of hard-surface disinfectants; contact times and kill claims come from the manufacturer or the brand's Canadian page; prices are Canadian retail listings read on 18 September 2026.
- Contact time is the parameter buyers misread most often. For products in this table it ranges from 30 seconds for bacteria to 4 minutes for the full claim set on the same product — and the label states both.
- A DIN is not a marketing badge. It is the number that says a disinfectant claim was reviewed before the product could be sold, and the same chemistry without that claim is regulated as a cleaner.
Eight surface disinfectants, eight parameters, one official source of truth: the DIN. Health Canada's published list of hard-surface disinfectants carries the drug identification number, active ingredient, product form and listed use areas for each authorised product, and the list read for this article contained 846 product entries. That list is what makes a neutral comparison possible, because it lets a buyer compare products on the number that cannot be invented rather than on the wording a supplier chose.
The distinction that matters most in this category is not between brands. It is between a disinfectant and a cleaner. Health Canada's guidance on disinfectant drugs states the principle plainly: chemical products for environmental surfaces "are regulated according to their represented use or purpose, and not based on their chemical compositions," and a product that makes no expressed antimicrobial claim on its label is regulated as a cleaner instead. A clinic that stocks a cleaner and believes it is disinfecting between patients has a documentation problem, not a stocking problem.
What does a DIN actually tell you about a surface disinfectant in Canada?
A DIN is an eight-digit number issued for a product that has been granted market authorization. The guidance document defines it as "a computer-generated eight-digit number assigned by Health Canada to a drug product which has been granted market authorization in accordance with the Food and Drugs Act and Regulations," and adds that the DIN "uniquely identifies the product and must appear on the marketed product label for all drugs authorized for sale in Canada."
For disinfectants specifically, the same guidance states that "disinfectant drugs require a pre-market assessment and assignment of a drug identification number (DIN) prior to being sold in Canada," and that as a condition of market authorization the applicant submits draft labelling that complies with the regulations. Its appendix on labelling considerations for disinfectant drugs lists dilution instructions, temperature, contact time and re-use applications as items that belong on the label.
That gives a buyer four things to read from one label, in this order:
| What the label carries | What it decides for the clinic |
|---|---|
| The DIN | Whether the product is authorised as a disinfectant in Canada at all, and the number you cite in your infection control documentation and in a supplier's quote |
| The active ingredient and its concentration | The chemistry family you are buying, and whether it matches the surfaces and equipment in the room |
| Dilution instructions | Whether the product is ready to use or a concentrate, and therefore whether mixing is a step in your protocol |
| The contact time and the claimed organisms | How long the surface stays visibly wet, for which claim — the number your staff have to be able to hold to |
Two consequences follow. First, a DIN lookup is a pre-purchase step, not a paperwork step: if a product you are considering is not on the Health Canada list, you are not comparing a disinfectant, whatever the catalogue says. Second, because products are regulated by represented use rather than chemistry, two products with nearly identical chemistry can sit on different sides of the cleaner/disinfectant line depending on the claims each one makes.
How do eight surface disinfectants compare on DIN, chemistry, contact time and form?
The table below covers four chemistry families — accelerated hydrogen peroxide, quaternary ammonium with alcohol, benzethonium chloride with alcohol, and sodium hypochlorite. Contact times are the label values published by the manufacturer or the brand's Canadian site, quoted as stated rather than averaged.
| Product (DIN) | Manufacturer | Active ingredient (Health Canada listing) | Form | Label contact time | Kill claims as published | Pre-cleaning stated? | Dilution | Material-compatibility statement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxivir TB Wipes (02283530) | Diversey Inc. | Hydrogen peroxide | Wipe | 1 minute; fungi at 10 minutes | Bactericidal, virucidal and tuberculocidal in one minute per Canadian distributor listing; fungicidal in ten minutes | One-step cleaner-disinfectant | Ready to use | Authorised use areas on the Health Canada listing include hospital/health care facilities, food premises, domestic and institutional/industrial |
| Clorox Healthcare Hydrogen Peroxide Cleaner Disinfectant Wipes (02406225) | The Clorox Company of Canada | Hydrogen peroxide | Wipe | 1 minute or less; C. auris 3 minutes; M. tuberculosis 1 minute | 50 bacteria and viruses in one minute or less, including 13 antibiotic-resistant organisms | One-step cleaner-disinfectant | Ready to use | Manufacturer states alcohol-free, bleach-free, non-corrosive, less residue, suitable for daily use on high-turnover hard surfaces |
| CaviWipes HP (02526352) | Metrex Research | Hydrogen peroxide | Wipe | 1 minute universal | Effective against 66 listed pathogens including multidrug-resistant organisms | One-step cleaner-disinfectant | Ready to use (0.51% hydrogen peroxide, alcohol-free) | Manufacturer positions the alcohol-free formula for alcohol-sensitive equipment surfaces |
| Oxivir Five 16 Concentrate (02332965) | Diversey Inc. | Hydrogen peroxide | Solution, concentrate | 1:16 dilution — disinfects in 5 minutes; 1:64 — virucidal in 5 minutes; 1:128 — non-food-contact sanitizer in 3 minutes; 1:256 — general cleaning | Virucidal, bactericidal and fungicidal at 1:16, including antibiotic-resistant bacteria | Rinsing not required unless floors are coated with finish | Dilutable concentrate, four dilution ratios with different claims | Manufacturer lists walls, stainless steel, glazed porcelain and other hard, non-porous surfaces |
| Super Sani-Cloth (02247354) | Professional Disposables International | Alkyl dimethyl ethylbenzyl ammonium chloride; benzalkonium chloride; isopropyl alcohol | Wipe | 2 minutes | Quaternary ammonium and alcohol formula; manufacturer publishes the 2-minute contact time as the product's overall figure | One-step wipe | Ready to use | Manufacturer publishes the contact time and the formula on the product page; check the label for the surface list |
| CaviWipes (02242209) | Metrex Research | Benzethonium chloride; isopropyl alcohol | Wipe | 3 minutes for TB and MRSA; 2 minutes for HIV-1, HBV and HCV | Tuberculocidal, bactericidal and virucidal at the stated times; low-alcohol formula (17.20% isopropanol) | Disinfectant and cleaner in one product | Ready to use | Manufacturer states compatibility with most medical device materials |
| Sani-Cloth Bleach Germicidal Disposable Wipe (02450410) | Professional Disposables International | Sodium hypochlorite | Wipe | 4 minutes overall | 50 microorganisms including Clostridioides difficile, norovirus and 14 multidrug-resistant organisms | One-step wipe, cleaning and disinfecting | Ready to use | Bleach chemistry: follow the label's material and surface instructions, and the manufacturer's handling guidance for hypochlorite |
| Clorox Healthcare Bleach Germicidal Wipes (02465671) | The Clorox Company of Canada | Sodium hypochlorite | Wipe | Bacteria 30 seconds; viruses 1 minute | Health Canada registered for 66 pathogens; sporicidal efficacy tested with a three-part organic soil load per the manufacturer | One-step wipe | Ready to use | Manufacturer states the product is suitable for hospital and food premises use areas listed by Health Canada |
Read rows seven and eight together and the point of the table becomes visible. Both are sodium hypochlorite wipes. One carries a 4-minute overall contact time; the other publishes 30 seconds for bacteria and 1 minute for viruses. Neither number is wrong, and neither is transferable to the other product. The contact time belongs to the specific product, the specific claim and the specific soil load the claim was tested against.
The same is true across chemistries. Three hydrogen peroxide wipes in this table publish 1 minute, but the claim sets behind that minute are not identical: one adds fungal kill at ten minutes, one adds C. auris at three minutes and M. tuberculosis at one minute, and one publishes a single universal minute across 66 listed pathogens. A purchasing document that says "one-minute hydrogen peroxide wipe" has purchased a chemistry, not a claim set.
Why do contact times range from 30 seconds to 4 minutes for products that look similar?
Contact time is a claim-specific value, and three variables move it: the organism, the organic soil the test applied, and the dilution at which the product is used. The diluted product shows this most clearly where a manufacturer publishes a ladder of claims at different ratios, as Oxivir Five 16 Concentrate does — disinfection at 1:16 in 5 minutes, virucidal at 1:64 in 5 minutes, sanitizer at 1:128 in 3 minutes, general cleaning at 1:256.
| Why two products differ | What it looks like on the label | What the clinic has to do about it |
|---|---|---|
| Different organism in the claim | One product states bacteria at 30 seconds and viruses at 1 minute; another states a single 4-minute figure | Read the claim you actually need. A 30-second bacterial claim does not shorten the viral contact time |
| Different dilution | A concentrate may disinfect in 5 minutes at 1:16 and sanitize in 3 minutes at 1:128 | Mix at the ratio that matches the claim you are relying on, and record the ratio in the protocol |
| Different soil load in the test | A sporicidal claim may be tested in the presence of a three-part organic soil load, which is a harder test | Pre-clean as the label directs; blood and body fluid are the conditions the claim has to survive |
| Different packaging | A wipe delivers and removes chemistry at the same time; a liquid leaves a wet film that dries faster on a warm surface | For wipes, change the wipe when it stops leaving the surface visibly wet; for liquids, apply enough to hold the time |
The practical rule is that the surface must remain visibly wet for the full contact time of the claim you are using. That is why wipe size and canister count are quality parameters: a small wipe on a large surface runs dry before the claim time is reached, and the protocol then fails silently, with a log entry that says the surface was disinfected.
How do you separate a cleaner from a disinfectant in a purchasing document?
This is the distinction that Health Canada's guidance draws, and it is worth writing into the specification rather than leaving to the catalogue.
| Category | What it carries on the label | What it can be used to claim | Where it belongs in a clinic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disinfectant | A DIN and a stated contact time with named organisms | Killing of the organisms listed, at the stated contact time | Between-patient surface disinfection of non-critical surfaces and equipment |
| Sanitizer | A DIN, with a stated reduction rather than a kill claim, or listing sanitizer use areas | Reduction of the bacterial population on the surface, at the stated time | Food-contact surfaces where a sanitizer claim is what is required |
| Cleaner | No antimicrobial claim, therefore no DIN | Removal of soil, residue and visible contamination | The cleaning step, before a disinfectant or as part of a one-step product that also carries a DIN |
| One-step cleaner-disinfectant | A DIN, with cleaning and disinfecting described in the same directions | Both functions in one application, at the stated contact time | Practice surfaces where the protocol has to be short enough for staff to complete between patients |
The reason to keep this table in a purchasing file is that cleaning and disinfection are two different jobs that can be carried out by one product. A one-step cleaner-disinfectant with a DIN can do both if the surface is not visibly soiled and the contact time is held. Where heavy soil is present, the label's own directions usually require cleaning first — and a protocol that skips that step is relying on a claim the label did not make.
What do dilution and material compatibility decide in practice?
Dilution and compatibility are the two parameters with the longest tail. A concentrate has a lower cost per litre and a higher cost per error: a ratio mixed wrong is a claim that no longer applies, and a record that cannot show the ratio.
| Decision | Detail to confirm | Where to confirm it |
|---|---|---|
| Concentrate or ready to use | Whether the protocol has a mixing step, who performs it, and how the ratio is recorded | The label's dilution instructions, then your own protocol document |
| Which set of claims you are buying | A concentrate may carry disinfectant claims at one ratio and only sanitizer claims at another | The dilution table on the technical sheet |
| Surface compatibility | Manufacturer statements about non-corrosive or alcohol-free formulas, and the list of surfaces named for the product | The manufacturer's data sheet and the Health Canada authorised use areas |
| Device compatibility | Whether the product is stated as compatible with the materials of the equipment in the room, notably alcohol-sensitive housings and screens | The manufacturer's compatibility statement, and the device's own cleaning instructions |
| Residue and rinsing | Whether the label requires rinsing, and on which surfaces | The directions for use |
| Sporicidal need | Whether the protocol ever requires a sporicidal claim, and which product carries one | The DIN listing and the product's claim set |
Two of the products above make their compatibility positioning explicit: CaviWipes HP is an alcohol-free hydrogen peroxide wipe that the manufacturer positions for surfaces where alcohol is a problem, and the Clorox Healthcare hydrogen peroxide wipes are described as non-corrosive with less residue. Both statements are manufacturer statements about their own products, and both belong in a purchasing file next to the product's authorised use areas.
How do you verify a DIN for a disinfectant you are considering?
The check takes a few minutes and does not require an account.
- Read the DIN from the product label — eight digits, printed on the marketed product. A catalogue page is not the label; ask for the label art or a photograph of the unit you will receive.
- Look the product up on the Health Canada list of hard-surface disinfectants, which publishes the DIN, product name, company, active ingredient, product form, the status of its claim against SARS-CoV-2 and the listed use areas.
- Match the use area to your setting — a product listed for hospital and health care facilities is the relevant category for a clinic; a domestic-only listing is not.
- Check the form matches what you are buying — solution, spray, wipe or gel, because the contact time and directions belong to the form.
- Write the DIN into the quote and the protocol, so that the number is traceable from the order to the disinfection record.
One boundary worth stating: the list used here covers disinfectants authorised for use against SARS-CoV-2 and is a subset of the Drug Product Database rather than the whole of it. It is a fast, official cross-check on DIN, ingredient, form and use area; the label remains the authority for contact time, dilution and directions.
What do these products cost per canister in Canada?
Price is not a quality ranking and should not be read as one. It is a map of where each product sits, and per-wipe maths depends on wipe count, which varies with format. The figures below are Canadian retail listings read on 18 September 2026, with the wipe count that came with each listing; undiscounted list prices on a distributor contract will differ.
| Product | Format and count | Listed price (CAD) | Per wipe |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sani-Cloth Plus, large wipes | Canister, 160 wipes | $15.99 | $0.10 |
| CliniEco Medical disinfectant wipes, hospital grade | Canister, 160 wipes | $16.99 | $0.11 |
| CaviWipes | Canister, 160 wipes | $20.99 | $0.13 |
| Oxivir TB Wipes | Canister, 160 wipes | $24.00 | $0.15 |
| CaviWipes HP | Canister, 160 wipes | $26.99 | $0.17 |
| Clorox Healthcare hydrogen peroxide wipes | Canister and bucket formats; no Canadian list price published on the pages read | Not published in the sources read | Not calculable |
| Clorox Healthcare bleach germicidal wipes | Canister and bucket formats; no Canadian list price published on the pages read | Not published in the sources read | Not calculable |
| Sani-Cloth Bleach | Canister, 75 or 160 wipes depending on the format ordered | Not published in the sources read | Not calculable |
Wipe count decides the comparison more than brand does: at these prices, the spread between the lowest and highest verified per-wipe figure is roughly 70%, and none of those products occupies the same claim set as the others. A buyer comparing two wipes on price alone is comparing two different sets of claims. For facilities buying for several operatories, the wholesale route is a different price architecture rather than a discount on the same one: CliniEco Medical lists a wholesale account for institutional pricing and a bulk quote request for larger volumes.
Surface disinfection is one link in a longer chain, and the links are not interchangeable. The disinfectant decision sits next to the cleaning step, the packaging decision and the sterilization monitoring record, and the daily monitoring routine at the end of that chain is what turns a wiped surface and a processed load into evidence. The monitoring end of that chain is covered by the 24-hour biological indicator 25-pack or, for a first evaluation, the five-pack trial; the wider reprocessing and monitoring catalogue is grouped in the sterilization monitoring collection.
Related reading
For the levels framework behind surface disinfection, see the Spaulding classification explained; for the number system itself, see DIN and NPN explained; for the dwell-time problem in practice, see the science of DIN-registered kill claims; and for a product-level selection view, see dental surface disinfectants: DIN, contact time and selection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a DIN mean my clinic can use the product on any surface?
No. A DIN means the product has been granted market authorization as a disinfectant drug and that its labelling meets the regulations, and it must appear on the marketed product label. Whether the product is the right choice for a given surface, device or room is a separate decision that rests on the label's contact time, its material-compatibility statements and your infection control protocol.
Why do two bleach wipes have different contact times?
Contact time belongs to the individual product and the individual claim, because it was tested against a specific organism set and a specific soil load. In this comparison one sodium hypochlorite wipe publishes a 4-minute overall contact time, while another publishes 30 seconds for bacteria and 1 minute for viruses along with a sporicidal claim tested with a three-part organic soil load. The numbers are not transferable between products, and the label for the product you are holding is the authority.
Can a clinic use a cleaner instead of a disinfectant between patients?
No. Health Canada's guidance describes chemical products for environmental surfaces as regulated by their represented use, and a product that makes no expressed antimicrobial claim on its label is regulated as a cleaner. A cleaner removes soil; it does not carry a kill claim at a contact time. Where a protocol needs both, a one-step cleaner-disinfectant with a DIN performs both functions provided the surface is not heavily soiled and the stated contact time is held.
What is the contact time for a concentrate like Oxivir Five 16?
The contact time depends on the dilution, because the claims shift with the ratio. Printed technical sheet values are: disinfection in 5 minutes at a 1:16 dilution, virucidal activity in 5 minutes at 1:64, non-food-contact sanitizer in 3 minutes at 1:128, and general cleaning at 1:256. Mixing at a ratio other than the one the claim was established at does not carry that claim.
Do I need to pre-clean a surface before using a wipe?
Follow the label. One-step cleaner-disinfectant products are intended to do both jobs in one application on lightly soiled surfaces, and several products here state that position explicitly. Where a product carries a sporicidal claim tested in the presence of a three-part organic soil load, that is a harder test and does not remove the need to follow the directions for use. Where heavy soil or dried organic material is present, cleaning first is what makes the disinfection step effective.
How long should I keep a disinfectant record, and what should it contain?
Keep the record your facility's infection control program requires, and make it answer four questions: which product was used, identified by its DIN; at what dilution; on which surface or room; and at what time, with the contact time observed. The provincially published guidance on reprocessing and environmental cleaning treats the record as part of the reprocessing chain, and the same principle applies whether the surface was wiped between patients or terminally cleaned at the end of the day.
Are hydrogen peroxide wipes safer for equipment than bleach or alcohol wipes?
Not universally. Compatibility is a product-specific and material-specific question, and the honest answer is the manufacturer's own statement paired with the device's cleaning instructions. Two products in this table are positioned specifically for alcohol-sensitive surfaces and for lower residue; bleach products have their own handling and surface instructions; and devices with screens, seals or optic components sometimes name the chemistry family they accept. Check the device instructions first, then match the disinfectant to it rather than the other way round.
CliniEco Medical holds MDEL #35334.
Sources
- Health Canada — list of hard-surface disinfectants with DIN, active ingredient, product form and listed use areas
- Health Canada — guidance on disinfectant drugs: DIN requirement, regulation by represented use, labelling considerations
- Health Canada — surface disinfectants for emerging viral pathogens
- PDI Healthcare — Super Sani-Cloth product page and 2-minute contact time
- PDI Healthcare — Sani-Cloth Bleach product page and 4-minute contact time
- Metrex — CaviWipes product page, 3-minute and 2-minute claims
- CloroxPro Canada — Clorox Healthcare hydrogen peroxide and bleach wipe DINs, contact times and claim sets
- Diversey — Oxivir Five 16 Concentrate technical sheet with dilution-to-claim table.pdf)
- Distributor listing — Oxivir TB wipes, DIN 02283530, contact times and Canadian price
- Canadian dental supplier listing — CaviWipes HP, 160 wipes per canister, CAD price
- Canadian dental supplier listing — CaviWipes, 160 wipes per canister, CAD price
- Public Health Ontario — provincial guidance on cleaning, disinfection and sterilization in health care settings
- RCDSO — biological indicator testing each day the sterilizer is used, with a control test
- CDC — guideline for disinfection and sterilization in healthcare facilities
- Journal of the Canadian Dental Association — sterilization monitoring practice in Canadian dental offices
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