Thread: Clean That Brush.

After my shaving routine I put my brush in a cup with hot water and let it soak. After that I get it out of the cup and squeeze the water out of the brush. I repeat this about 5 times. Then I shake out the little amount of water left in the brush and dry it with a towel.

I noticed that creams are more prone to leave residue on my brush than soaps. Some soaps even clean my brush more than make it dirty. I can't remember exactly which soap, it could be Gold Dachs.

Rinse lather from bowl and brush with warm water then swirl around like making lather with just clean water rinse brush using fingers to splay open and make sure all residue is removed flick firmly but gently to remove remaining water hang in brush stand. The borax is new to me I'll have to give it a try in a couple of months. The barbersol doesn't hurt the handle or do you have to be careful not to get any on it?

In addition to thoroughly rinsing my brush after every shave, I also clean my brushes about once a month by washing them in a solution of water and hair shampoo in the bathroom sink. Then I rinse them, remove the excess water from the brush and place them back in their drip stands to dry.

I simply use a clean water rinse after shaving, shake excess water out and stand it up to dry. I use a boar bristle brush, not badger.

I mix about 2 ounces of white vinegar and water and soak for a half hour or so; rinse and shake, done. I do this about 3x a year. It seems to remove alot of the soap residue.

After every shave, I rinse the brush well under running water and then soak it in a mug in scalding water for 3 minutes or so while putting on aftershave, cleaning and stropping the razor, etc. One final rinse of the brush, then I dry it by swiping it back and forth on a towel.

I've found that rinsing alone still leaves a trace of the soap or cream's smell when I'm done, whereas the scalding water does not. I take that to mean that the scalding soak removes traces of the soap/cream from the bristles more thoroughly.



NOTE: I wouldn't necessarily recommend anyone use water that hot with a very expensive brush. My most costly are Vulfix superbadgers, and the rest are cheap boars. I'm trying to see if this will ultimately cause the glue to fail or something. Over a year with no problems yet.

Since my brushes are made of badger hair, I clean them the way I think they were meant to be cleaned - by licking them. A badger is sort of a cat, isn't it?
I think that's why I gave up on the boar brushes as well, the mud was ok for cleaning, but too much trouble.

That's all pretty simple though, the real problem is cleaning the soap. I used to use other soap - the lava. But now I am experimenting with new secret cleaners.
Good thing I'm not using creams, cleaning those would be a real pain....

Originally Posted by Obie

Hello, everyone:

I thoroughly rinse the brush with warm water after the shave, gently squeeze the water from it, another gentle squeeze with the towel, brush it lightly on the towel to fluff it up and it park it in its acrylic drip stand.

Regards,
Obie

+1 on what Obie said. That's my daily routine. I tried the borax solution once, and couldn't really tell a difference. Also tried shampoo and conditioner once, but not much difference there too. For me the best bet is just rinse, squeeze, towel dry, acrilic drip stand

James

Soap buildup in the brush...? Huh, I'll have to check. Mine get a soak in warm/hot water while showering, followed by the usual mechanics of making lather. Post shave the brush goes back in the cup with a dose of clean hot water while I clean up, dry/strop etc. Last thing I do is swirl the brush in the cup, dump cup, then alternate rinsing the brush under the tap and lightly scrubbing the bristles against the slightly splayed fingers of the non-brush holding hand. I do this until no more foamy bubbles are evident on the brush or my hand, give it a final flourish to knock out any water then bristles up and back in the cup it goes. When at home it hangs (bristles down) in the neat little stand by the mirror where all well kept brushes should be, but when in the field one makes do and this does just fine. It dries over night, and has a pleasant aroma of MWF to it. SO...are these residual bits of dermatological surfactants harming my sturdy badger haired face buddy? Certainly haven't noticed a reduction in efficacy, but it could be the whole "frog in boiling water" phenomena. As far as disinfecting it...well, that just plain never occurred to me. I spend a lot of time in unsavory places, currently enjoying the hospitality of Iraq. Any bio-hazard posed by my brush is washed out in the general atmosphere of nasty, smelly things...though perhaps I should try the method prescribed by Gugi for disinfectant, might make the chow hall more interesting.

Regards,
Dave S.

After the shave I just rinse the brush in warm water and make sure I've got all the soap out. Then I flick it dry and give it a fluff up on a towel before stowing it in a hanging holder.

Every few months I shampoo and condition it as well.