there is provided a water insoluble disinfectant composition comprising a tertiary amine quaternized with a water insoluble carrier to provide a quaternary ammonium salt . in the preferred modification of the invention , the carrier is a resin , most suitably a crosslinked polystyrene or crosslinked methacrylate resin . the compositions of the present invention are formed by creating an amine reactive labile active center on the carrier and reacting said activated carrier with the amine of choice to form a quaternary ammonium salt . ammonium salts having at least one alkyl moiety of c10 to c16 carbon atoms and at least one aryl moiety have been found particularly effective .