I sprayed what is essentially diluted bleach on my face every morning for a month. Not the scary kind — hypochlorous acid, which sounds terrifying but is actually just your body’s natural immune response in a bottle.
The real test: Could this clear the angry little bumps on my chin without nuking my skin barrier like every other acne treatment does? Spoiler: it didn’t burn once.
It’s a $30 spray from Tower 28 Beauty that claims to calm redness and breakouts in one step. Sounded like marketing BS until I read the derm studies on hypochlorous acid for eczema patients.
Hypochlorous acid 0.01%
Kills acne bacteria on contact without nuking good bacteria — think hand sanitizer for your face that doesn’t strip it.
Hypochlorous acid 0.01%
Same ingredient they use in wound care. Your face is not a wound, but it works the same way.
Hypochlorous acid 0.01%
That’s it. Two ingredients total. Water and this. No fragrance, no filler, no bullshit.
Photo: Karly Jones / Unsplash
Literally two things: water and hypochlorous acid. That’s the whole list. No fancy oils, no trendy extracts, no niacinamide. It’s almost suspiciously simple — but that’s why it worked for my reactive skin.
- Water: Carries the active without stinging
- Hypochlorous acid 0.01%: Your body already makes this to fight bacteria
- Sodium chloride: Just salt — stabilizes the formula
- Nothing else: No preservatives, no fragrance, no alcohol
Photo: sarah b / Unsplash
Straight up water. No scent, no residue, no cooling sensation. Dries in 12 seconds flat — I timed it. You’ll forget you sprayed it, which is either great or worrying depending on your expectations.
Week 2 I stopped being careful and just blasted my face while half-asleep. That’s when I noticed: the red patch near my nose that usually takes a week to chill was gone in 3 days. Weirdest part — it made my sunscreen apply smoother.
Photo: Sonia Roselli / Unsplash
The chin bumps? 70% gone by week 3. The hormonal cyst on my jaw? Completely unfazed — this isn’t magic. Biggest win: zero irritation, which is more than I can say for every salicylic acid product I’ve tried.
Photo: Thomas Necklen / Unsplash
Already did. It’s not a miracle worker, but it’s the only thing I’ve found that stops small breakouts without starting a new problem. If your skin is dramatic, this is the chill friend it needs.