Thread: How I'm Sterilizing My Razors

Disclaimer: This is my process and I share for informational and awareness purposes only. I am not a doctor, nor expert in disease control. Just offering some common sense suggestions. It is up to you to define your process.

I'm sterilizing ALL razors that I get, both new and used. Hepatitis and other viral strains can live outside the body for extended periods of time, some sources say weeks. Razors are hand made items. Humans touch ALL razors whether they be new or used. People who hone razors professionally touch many razors, and if they don't sterilize them before honing could be exposed to viral strains. When you use a sharp instrument on your body that has been touched by another human, it should be sterilized.

Most will probably say this is overkill and 'I've don't this, that, and the other for years.' To those people I say go get a blood test. Consider many people who have Hepatitis B don't even know they have it, and can pass it along to others. And, a statistic I recently read is that up to 40% of people with Hepatitis C don't know where they got it.

It is better to be paranoid, a bit reactionary, and safe, rather than sorry in this regard. Read about the long term effects of Hepatitis and make your decision.

My process:

1. Treat with Barbacide for 1 hour.
2. Let the razor sit for 2 weeks unused and segregated from my other shaving implements.
3. Treat again with Barbacide for 1 hour.
4. Hone and use.

If I feel like it, I'll use isopropyl alcohol on it. But now I think it's more important to use mineral oil, letting it seep into the pivot hole, before sterilizing. I use the solvent when I've taped a razor during honing anyway.

Look, I know some stuff survives a while outside the human body, outside of human body temperature ranges, but wouldn't the metal polish stuff be bad? And doesn't a good wiping with alcohol do the job?

No. Some things like Hep C can survive for months on surfaces and require some pretty hefty stuff to kill it. Soaking it in Hydrogen peroxide (3% or higher) for 15 minutes will kill anything off that's on there.

We have PerCept wipes for our prehospital sanitation.

I sterilize my razors with 220 grit sandpaper for a couple hours...

I just soak mine in diluted Dettol for about an hour although I probably should take more precautions with them.

Originally Posted by carazor

Most will probably say this is overkill.....

Yup, and overly paranoid too... :P

Yes we should be tuned in and dialed into this issue.
Especially so if you hone and shave test razors.

Barbacide for an hour is a bit much but a Barbicide
dip or wipe is a good plan. Especially follow the
label directions.

I am a big fan of UV sterilization/ sanitizing. It is
almost easy to open a razor and slide it into a UV
box for a couple hours. Powerful UV lamps are now
available for water coolers and aquarium filter systems
so making a razor box would be cake.

There are lot of ways to shave this cat.
Give it a close shave.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Yup, and overly paranoid too... :P

I may be wrong, if I am I've wasted about 10 minutes of my life.

Consider the consequences if you are wrong.

hep c is the baddest of the baddest when it comes to shitty ways to die..... *(my sister has it thanks to her exhusband who was a total POS)...

anyway.... hep c can live for a LONG time outside its host.... even dried blood that is infected can sit there for months and then if re liquified the dormant hep c is back in fighting form....

horrible stuff there...

Originally Posted by paco664

hep c is the baddest of the baddest when it comes to shitty ways to die..... *(my sister has it thanks to her exhusband who was a total POS)...

anyway.... hep c can live for a LONG time outside its host.... even dried blood that is infected can sit there for months and then if re liquified the dormant hep c is back in fighting form....

horrible stuff there...

Hepatitis B is the more resilient one. And according to some sources can live at least 7 days outside the host. Remember, these are only the RNA stains that are know. There could be Hep F, G, etc that are mutated or even other RNA viral materials that are not currently known. Think about SARS, that was an RNA virus that was discovered in 2004. Viral things can be pretty scary.

From the CDC:

How long does the Hepatitis C virus survive outside the body?
The Hepatitis C virus can survive outside the body at room temperature, on environmental surfaces, for at least 16 hours but no longer than 4 days.