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

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.

Originally Posted by carazor

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

Consider the consequences if you are wrong.

With the amount of razors I've gotten already, I have over 11 hours of sterilizing ahead of me. Oh, the humanity!

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Yup, and overly paranoid too... :P

Originally Posted by carazor

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

Consider the consequences if you are wrong.

You're assuming that I don't disinfect used razors, which would just be wrong, but I don't spend 338+ hours doing it (as opposed to the 10 mins you claim above). As I said, paranoid overkill

I understand the idea of caution--but I have to question your pattern.

1 hour of treatment with a wide spectrum anti-bacterial anti-viral seems reasonable. Adding 2 weeks in a (presumably sterile? presumably single use?) sealed container to ensure things are dead...okay. But then ANOTHER 1 hour treatment of the same disinfectant means, to me, that you aren't actually being rational. You're being paranoid. Why are you assuming that anything that survived the previous treatment would *not* survive the second?

As for the risks involved in razors...everything has risks. Some risks are more immediate than others, some risks are more avoidable than others, but every human behavior has some element of risk. So the question is, how much time and effort is acceptable in the reduction of risk? The only real answer is the amount of peace of mind the action gives you...because peace of mind is the only measurable result of your actions.

So I think your actions are extreme and difficult to justify, but if they make it easier for your to deal with the facts of human mortality, then more power to you.

Me, I think a short alcohol soak and a wash with triclosan gives enough peace of mind to go on with my shaving.