The Facts behind
the Power of Copper
THE FACTS
United States EPA
Copper is the only solid surface material registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to continuously kill bacteria* that pose a threat to human health. No other touch surface material has this kind of registration. Our fabric copper purity is over 82%.
Pathogens
A pathogen is defined as an organism causing disease to its host, with the severity of the disease symptoms referred to as virulence. Pathogens are taxonomically widely diverse and comprise viruses and bacteria as well as unicellular and multicellular eukaryotes. Every living organism is affected by pathogens, including bacteria, which are targeted by specialized viruses called phages.
Survability of Pathogens
Viruses like Covid-19 can survive on a number of surfaces from hours to days, which is one of the key reasons for which the viral spread is still continuing. The virus can live for hours to days on various metal, glass or plastic surfaces. However, viruses like Covid-19 canno survive on Copper metal surfaces.
Contact Killing
The rapid killing by copper in laboratory experiments has shown that many bacterial species, such as:
Escherichia coliO157,Staphylococcus aureus,Salmonella enterica,Campylobacter jejuni,Clostridium difficile,Listeria monocytogenes, andMycobacterium tuberculosis,
are efficiently killed on copper surfaces.
Copper Alloys
Pennies is an example of a Copper alloy. Alloys are well suited where it is important to minimize bacterial* levels on touch surfaces. Because of their inherent ability to kill 99.9% of bacteria* within two hours, more than 280 copper alloys have been granted public health registration by the EPA.
Copper Kills
Copper destroys the replication and propagation abilities of SARS-CoV, influenza, and other respiratory viruses, having high potential disinfection in hospitals, communities, and households. Copper has been proven to kill pathogens such as:
- Scherichia coli O157
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Salmonella enterica
- Campylobacter jejuni
- Clostridium difficile
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Influenza
- Covid-19 SARS-CoV-2
- SARS
- MERS
Transmission
The best way to prevent getting sick is to avoid getting infected in the first place. The problem is that you can get infected anywhere. Think about your daily activities and where they take you… the world of transmission able spaces is overwhelming.
- Airplanes
- Office Buildings
- Ride Sharing
- Malls
- Schools
- Retirement Homes
- Family Homes
- Corner Store
- Restaurants
- Grocery Store
- Event Venues
- Any Place
Hard to Kill
Some viruses can remain viable and infectious in aerosols for hours and on surfaces up to days. Copper can kill but the microorganism has to come in contact with the copper in order for it to be killed. This is referred to as “contact killing.”
Most gram-positive bacteria, such as Enterococcus spp. (including VRE), Staphylococcus aureus (including MRSA), or Streptococcus pyogenes, survive for months on dry surfaces. Many gram-negative species, such as Acinetobacter spp., Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Serratia marcescens, or Shigella spp., can also survive for months.