Thread: Rinsing a brush when done shaving

Works for me. What sort of damage should it do, anyway?

Originally Posted by RobinK

Works for me. What sort of damage should it do, anyway?

Well I don't know. If it's so great why not just stick your head in one instead of wasting water in a shower and all that shampoo?

Then let us know what happens. Take a bullet for the team.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Well I don't know. If it's so great why not just stick your head in one instead of wasting water in a shower and all that shampoo?

Then let us know what happens. Take a bullet for the team.

.... I wouldn't use an ultra sound on my delicate expensive badger. No way.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Well I don't know. If it's so great why not just stick your head in one instead of wasting water in a shower and all that shampoo?

I did consider your suggestion, but decided to alter the experiment a bit so you could benefit from the findings, too. Borrowing a hamster from a friend (he actually is not aware that the animal was borrowed for experimental purposes, but those devils have been breeding out of control, and he has frequently expressed his intention to get rid of some of them), the test subject was placed into an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner (Brookstone 120W), which was filled only a third full of water. The ultrasonic bombardment was initiated for a period of 10 seconds. The lid was removed and the creature was observed to be extremely panicked. The lid was closed back and the bombardement continued for another 10 seconds. After this time interval, the creature appeared partially stunned and was relatively motionless. The test subject was then returned to its original enclosure. It could not be induced to run on its wheel.

It can therefore be induced that such ultrasonic devices do indeed have a detrimental effect towards living tissue, and caution should probably be excercised.

However, hair is not a living tissue. So go crazy.

I don't know about sonication of hair in particular, but I do know that it's used to break apart cells to get at their contents since the cavitation produces extremely high (but very localised) temperatures and pressures. Hair may be made from dead cells but I don't see how an ultrasonic bath would affect dead cells less than it would live ones.

As such, I feel the question that needs to be answered is how *much* damage is being caused over a typical cleaning cycle and whether it's substantial compared to the miniscule-but-present damage caused during every day use. Assuming we sonicate for 1 minute each time, and twice a year as per what decraew does for, say, 25 years, that comes out to a total of 50 minutes. Other than that it should be a straightforward test, just need to make sure that the hairs are hanging in the bath and not sitting on the bottom.

I've got some loose hairs from a new brush, but the people in my lab will go nuts and kill me if I run the ultrasonic for 50 minutes. Decraew, maybe something to try if you've got a loose badger hair or two?

Excellent observations, Blank. Many thanks for this. However, we did try this not only with the aforementioned hamster, but also with a plebeian brush prior to employing the method with a good brush. To wit, I let a TGN type knot sit in a generic US cleaner for several hours while watching a tv report on creationism. It was very entertaining. The report, not constantly switching on the cleaner, mind you.

The cleaner, it should be noted, came in a beautiful bright pink often found in costume brush handles. This may or may not have had an impact on the experiment.

Originally Posted by RobinK

I did consider your suggestion, but decided to alter the experiment a bit so you could benefit from the findings, too. Borrowing a hamster from a friend (he actually is not aware that the animal was borrowed for experimental purposes, but those devils have been breeding out of control, and he has frequently expressed his intention to get rid of some of them), the test subject was placed into an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner (Brookstone 120W), which was filled only a third full of water. The ultrasonic bombardment was initiated for a period of 10 seconds. The lid was removed and the creature was observed to be extremely panicked. The lid was closed back and the bombardement continued for another 10 seconds. After this time interval, the creature appeared partially stunned and was relatively motionless. The test subject was then returned to its original enclosure. It could not be induced to run on its wheel.

It can therefore be induced that such ultrasonic devices do indeed have a detrimental effect towards living tissue, and caution should probably be excercised.

However, hair is not a living tissue. So go crazy.

Robin, you really should have used the hamster as a lathering tool for a period of time and then observed the cleaning effects of the ultrasonic cleaning.

To me this whole thread is crazy, what's wrong with a good rinse and standing/ hanging to dry.

Originally Posted by edhewitt

To me this whole thread is crazy...

I found it to be quite informative: I now know Robin actually has a sense of humor.

Originally Posted by CZMark

I now know Robin actually has a sense of humor.

Oh he has, only it's German!

After reading this thread I find it amazing that no one is wondering what kind of "soap" is being used on said brush.

Some so called soaps make my skin feel slimy. If I used them I can imagine they would do the same to my brush. Right now in my cup is a combination of what I think is VDH and the remnants of some other brand that it has been a few years since it was not enough to make a lather in the bottom of the cup that I saved because I am cheap and threw it in when the VDH was running low. I rinse the brush quickly under running water then squeeze and hang upside down. I have never had/seen any issue with soap buildup or to be honest never worried about it. Maybe now I will take a magnifying glass and separate the hairs and inspect the base of the brush.... NAH

My brush is probably the most washed thing in my house besides my toothbrush I am not worried about it being clean.