Thread: How do I disinfect my straight razor?

So I have to say it's always a good idea to disinfect your blade before sending it out to another but there are certain things people need to understand. First of all what are your concerns? If you're talking about blood born pathogens such as HIV or Hep. C then you need to understand that the virus cannot "live" very long outside of a host and cannot live at all outside of bodily fluids. I put live in quotations as there is quite the debate about whether a virus is actually considered alive but I digress. That being said the first thing you should do is remove any blood from the blade. Once the blood is removed then a simple wipe down with LIGHT coating of alcohol (70% isopropol works best) and allow the alcohol to dry. Alcohol is bacterostatic on human skin however its bacteriocidal on inorganic materials. Alcohol kills via drying so you don't want to soak the blade in alcohol. Once the alcohol dries off you should be good to go

Also don't ever put any bleach products near steel. Bleach will cause heavy oxidation and rust rapidly.

Guess you could if not using something like Barbercide boil water then pour gently over the blade then use maybe a cotton ball soaked in 70% Iso Alc. to rub across the blade then dry with a clean papertowel. Then apply whatever oil you use to protect the blade from rust.

I personally have not used any type of disinfectant to put on my razors to date and no issue. That being said, if I ever bought a razor that was used I would certainly do it out of peace of mind.

Originally Posted by Michael70

Guess you could if not using something like Barbercide boil water then pour gently over the blade then use maybe a cotton ball soaked in 70% Iso Alc. to rub across the blade then dry with a clean papertowel. Then apply whatever oil you use to protect the blade from rust.

I personally have not used any type of disinfectant to put on my razors to date and no issue. That being said, if I ever bought a razor that was used I would certainly do it out of peace of mind.

Do NOT get a razor anywhere near boiling water!!! Remember, the steel is tempered. Applying any amout of heat beyond a comfortably warm lather runs the risk of ruining the temper. After that, the razor won't hold an edge worth a darn.

At least, time + temp = increased likelihood of ruined temper. Rinsing the blade with warm water won't do a lot to the temper. But the time it takes for boiling water to disinfect is way more than I would subject such a thin piece of metal to.

Originally Posted by Crawler

Do NOT get a razor anywhere near boiling water!!! Remember, the steel is tempered. Applying any amout of heat beyond a comfortably warm lather runs the risk of ruining the temper. After that, the razor won't hold an edge worth a darn.

At least, time + temp = increased likelihood of ruined temper. Rinsing the blade with warm water won't do a lot to the temper. But the time it takes for boiling water to disinfect is way more than I would subject such a thin piece of metal to.

So are you saying boiling water at 220 degs will effect the temper of the blade?

Originally Posted by Crawler

Do NOT get a razor anywhere near boiling water!!! Remember, the steel is tempered. Applying any amout of heat beyond a comfortably warm lather runs the risk of ruining the temper. After that, the razor won't hold an edge worth a darn.

At least, time + temp = increased likelihood of ruined temper. Rinsing the blade with warm water won't do a lot to the temper. But the time it takes for boiling water to disinfect is way more than I would subject such a thin piece of metal to.

I would have thought a tempered steel was done at a much higher temp than 212 degrees????? But then again......I don't know. Curious to see what others say on this. I guess Barbercide then!!!!!

I'm not claiming to be an expert. But pouring boiling water over the thin blade of a straight razor sends up a huge red flag to me.

A blacksmith's anvil isn't tempered. But through the course of it's life, the edges often become tempered by the hot steel that never touches it more than a minute or two at a time. That is often the reason the edges of an anvil chip. Like I said: temp + time can affect the metal.

Originally Posted by Crawler

A blacksmith's anvil isn't tempered. But through the course of it's life, the edges often become tempered by the hot steel that never touches it more than a minute or two at a time. That is often the reason the edges of an anvil chip. Like I said: temp + time can affect the metal.

I think you are mistaken on that one. I believe that anvils are tempered.

Am i taking some huge risk ?
Haven't disinfected any of "my" razors in 30 years of straight shaving.

Originally Posted by Utopian

I think you are mistaken on that one. I believe that anvils are tempered.

The top plate of an avil is hardened