Which is smaller in physical size : a water molecule, or microscopic bacteria?

Question

If a glass or plastic container has surface scratches, could bacteria living in those scratches avoid being cleaned by water or a sanitizer solution?

Answer 1

a water molecule is much smaller than even the smallest bacteria.

Answer 2

A water molecule is in the shape of a triangle with 2 sides measuring 95pm (picometers) and one side measuring156pm. A common bacteria has a length of 0.5 micrometers. To put this into perspective, if you lined water molecules up on their longest side it would take 3205 of them to cover the length of this bacteria. If the bacteria were as long as a football field (100 yards) then a water molecule would be the size of a golf ball (1.12inches). Depending on the type of bacteria it could cling to the scratches after being washed. Your best bet is acetone or boiling water.  

Answer 3

bacteria are made of much larger molecules than H2O (and bacteria probably contain water molecules).

However, size is not the only factor in determining if they would be cleaned out.