Thread: How do you desinfect the straight razor?

Greetings,
This is my very first post. I am totally new to straight razor shaving. After lurking for a while I bought a Wapi from a member and won a Gold Bug on E-Bay. I was wondering how to desinfect a blade? Would something like MAAS do the job?

Thanks

Michael

Hello...
It depends how certain you want to be that the blade is disinfected...
Look here, similar topic is discussed...

An MD once told me to take the straight and toss it into a vat of boiling water for approximatly 15 to 20 minutes. Just to be certain I would take something and hold it under the water for a few minutes.

Very carefully!

MAAS is only an abrasive. It will polish and “clean”, not disinfect.

You can’t do this with most razors because you will probably trash the scales/handles, but you could toss that Wapi with it’s stainless scales into boiling water or steam/autoclave it no problem.

The Gold Bug would definitely not want to be going on that ride.

Bugs don't live very long on dry surfaces. If you wash and dry a razor, it will be as disinfected as you need it to be. If you are very worried about it, you can soak a razor for a few minutes in a chlorine bleach solution. However, bleach can attack some metals so you may want to test the solution on your razor. A solution that is commonly used for this application is Barbicide. There are many other effective disinfectants such as hydrogen peroxide, glutaraldehyde, isopropanol or iodine. There is a company called Steris that has made a huge business with a sterilization system that uses tap water and peracetic acid.

The old standby of boiling instruments to sterilize them is perfectly acceptable except you may damage razor handles and the boiling water accelerates corrosion.