Regardless of social class, every laundry room in Latin America uses the same tool: the bucket. On the other hand, repellents are usually too expensive and are not usually found in houses of the poor. What if we could harness this essential item to not only protect the clothing, but also people's lives?

So we developed the Protective Bucket, a special bucket with a compound made of Perla Soft fabric softener and Permethrin, a repellent that adheres to the clothing's fibers and kills all mosquitoes that approach it. Whenever an outfit is put to soak in the Protective Bucket, it automatically turns into a weapon in the fight against the Zika virus.

Our design team created a special bucket with a suitable bottom to house a compound made of fabric softener PerlaSoft and Permethrin, a repellent able to adhere to the fibers of the fabric killing all mosquitoes approaching it. Permethrin on clothing has no smell and is harmless to humans, so it is used in US Army uniforms. The Protective Bucket is designed to avoid direct contact with the compound, with a removable cylindrical exchange cartridge. The openings throughout the plastic part let water circulate, dissolving the compound and gradually creating a whirlpool that seeps into the clothing. The protective compound was developed from a soluble base with particles of fabric softener and Permethrin in capsules, which are automatically released upon contact with water.

To launch the project, we developed an initial batch through 3D printing of more than 100 units, which were then distributed to the needy living in regions most affected by the epidemic. Each bucket can be used at least 50 times and the clothes remain protected for up to 40 days, or 7 washes.

This means that more than 50,000 pieces of clothing are potentially helping to kill the disease-transmitting mosquitoes. And the strategy worked: a new batch of 50,000 units is already in production. Protective Bucket: an idea that transformed a simple object that is part of the local culture into a tool that saves lives.