Thread: Sterilizing Razors

I have read the wiki on sterilizing razors, and have followed the protocol of 10 minutes in ethyl alcohol and 10 minutes in hydrogen peroxide, followed by very hot water rinse, on used razors I have bought. Never got sick, but the razors all seem to develop some spots that won't wash away. Am I making a mistake? Any suggestions, either for sterilizing or for getting rid of the spots?

Thanks,

wmssims

thanks for bringing this up.
i would not do this for the reason you just discovered, namely high carbon steel oxidizes very quickly and both the alcohol and the hydrogen peroxide sound like asking for trouble. it's one thing to wipe a razor quickly, but soaking????

i just noticed the source for that wiki article and i remember the person who posted that in the forum. he had no experience with straight razors, and looks like he just compiled some information from the internet, without taking into account that razors are very prone to corrosion.

Sorry to hear about your razors, depending on the level of oxidation some metal polish may fix it. the edges are already bad too (even though they may still shave, it won't be anywhere near to how they were before you did that). If the treatment was strong enough to corrode the steel on the blade it most certainly corroded the edge as well.

I am going to put a big warning on that wiki page right now and it should be fixed.

its not the submersion that does it I submerge all my razors for 15 min with no corrosion. its the peroxide that does it. read this,,,,,
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a very pale blue liquid, slightly more viscous than water, that appears colorless in dilute solution. It is a weak acid, has strong oxidizing properties, and is a powerful bleaching agent. It is used as a disinfectant, antiseptic, oxidizer, and in rocketry as a propellant.[2] The oxidizing capacity of hydrogen peroxide is so strong that it is considered a highly reactive oxygen species.

So don't soak them in peroxide!

Originally Posted by gugi

thanks for bringing this up.
i would not do this for the reason you just discovered, namely high carbon steel oxidizes very quickly and both the alcohol and the hydrogen peroxide sound like asking for trouble. it's one thing to wipe a razor quickly, but soaking????

i just noticed the source for that wiki article and i remember the person who posted that in the forum. he had no experience with straight razors, and looks like he just compiled some information from the internet, without taking into account that razors are very prone to corrosion.

Sorry to hear about your razors, depending on the level of oxidation some metal polish may fix it. the edges are already bad too (even though they may still shave, it won't be anywhere near to how they were before you did that). If the treatment was strong enough to corrode the steel on the blade it most certainly corroded the edge as well.

I am going to put a big warning on that wiki page right now and it should be fixed.

A warning would be good.


Difficult topic....
Sterilization protocols are rather strict and the chemicals it takes to kill all the viruses and bugs that the CDC types worry about are harsh. A couple months back I read the Wiki and also some of the CDC info on the subject. The Wiki seemed to be on the right track as it was at that time using common chemicals. The CDC seemed to have longer soak times and some crazy strict guidelines related to heart transplants for MD and PhDs etc.... Since we all draw blood from time to time razors do fall into a rather strict class when they change users.

I just got back from the dentist Monday, I would have asked what their protocol was if I knew this was going to be a question. I think it is autoclave which is hard on natural scales.

I do know that if I clean with 99% alcohol I need to oil the blade promptly so peroxide is not the only way to trip up. Warnings on the Wiki are in order but relaxing the rules might be incorrect. Options would be nice...

Anyone that is in the process of sanding (pre polishing) a bare blade might be able to try some experiments to see how much time in alcohol, bleach, and peroxide produce how much corrosion. It might be that a rub with a finger and something no more abrasive than office/ gas station TP and mineral oil is all it takes to clean up if the timing is quick enough.

Thanks this is very good info.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

A warning would be good.


Difficult topic....
Sterilization protocols are rather strict and the chemicals it takes to kill all the viruses and bugs that the CDC types worry about are harsh. A couple months back I read the Wiki and also some of the CDC info on the subject. The Wiki seemed to be on the right track as it was at that time using common chemicals. The CDC seemed to have longer soak times and some crazy strict guidelines related to heart transplants for MD and PhDs etc.... Since we all draw blood from time to time razors do fall into a rather strict class when they change users.

I just got back from the dentist Monday, I would have asked what their protocol was if I knew this was going to be a question. I think it is autoclave which is hard on natural scales.

I do know that if I clean with 99% alcohol I need to oil the blade promptly so peroxide is not the only way to trip up. Warnings on the Wiki are in order but relaxing the rules might be incorrect. Options would be nice...

Anyone that is in the process of sanding (pre polishing) a bare blade might be able to try some experiments to see how much time in alcohol, bleach, and peroxide produce how much corrosion. It might be that a rub with a finger and something no more abrasive than office/ gas station TP and mineral oil is all it takes to clean up if the timing is quick enough.

At the dentist they auto clave their stuff to kill germs, autoclaving isnt good to your scales so no one does it. A I would say a 15 minute soak is probably overkill but a little rust is better than getting a blood born disease. A soak in just USP alcohol will probably kill anything on the thing, but I dont have any plates to confirm that with or I'd come up with a carbon steel safe method.

What is wrong with Barbicide? When you are dealing with razors you are not "sometimes" dealing with blood. You are dealing with it almost every time you shave even if you are down to a couple of individual cells.

Later,
Richard

Originally Posted by riooso

What is wrong with Barbicide? When you are dealing with razors you are not "sometimes" dealing with blood. You are dealing with it almost every time you shave even if you are down to a couple of individual cells.

Later,
Richard

For a single user cleaning his own razor Barbicide is excellent.

When a blade is shared... that is a different kettle of fish.

Time and multiple wipe downs with a serious disinfectant
as others have posted is in order. The Barbicide web
site has good info and you can send them email.

Interesting point is that Sterilization is a very strict protocol.
If I told you that the blade had been sterilized I have an obligation
to do just that. Sufficiently sanitized in not too hard
IMO... Multiple wipes with different solutions on diferent
days plus time.... Barbicide is a good product and has a good
history.

It does make sense for honemasters to be very cautious.

I post this each time this topic comes up and so I will post it here as well as this is the best informed info I have been able to get on the subject.


I have discussed this with 3 doctors and this is what I was told. Germs don't live on surfaces very long, but some have a longer life span than others. Most germs are killed with just soap and water or sanitizers of some kind. Aids is a weak virus and dies quickly, like within a day. So the only real threat is hepatitis which can live on surfaces where there has been blood contamination for a longer period of time, like a week or 10 days. They all told me that the best protection was to give things time to die. On old razors that no one has used in years and you are sure that no one has cut themselves with, no problems. 0n razors that have been restored and test shaved with, or sent out for sharpening there is more risk. Ask yourself, would you feel comfortable using a tattoo gun that had been used on someone you did not know and then wiped down with alcohol? I am not trying to alarm anyone as this is not a topic that should cause alarm. It is a topic where good information and common sense will make it a no brainer. The routine that I came up with, with the help of my doctors is that I soak my blades down with chlorhexidine( this is a solution used by physicians to sterilize their cold pack surgical instruments) for 20 min., then wipe them down with Clippersol to make sure they don't rust, and then I give them a rest for a couple of weeks before I add them to my rotation. A lot of you guys will probably consider this overkill & maybe it is but I sleep well at night & have enough razors that I can wait 2 weeks for a little piece of mind. Take this for what it's worth it's just the best information I could come up with. My suggestion to everyone is that you get information from your doctor on your next visit, so you can make an informed decision

From what I've heard, hepatitis is pretty much the only infectious possibility after a blade has been in the mail for at least several days.

I'd be really curious to hear what a pathologist would say after seeing what I do to a 2nd hand blade when it arrives. Say, cleaned with soap and water with my fingers, then wiped dry, then a minute dipped in boiling water, then wiped dry, then rubbed thoroughly with an alcohol-soaked cotton pad, then wiped dry, then stropped vigorously, etc.

Granted, no one remedy (e.g. quick alcohol swipe) will produce a sterilized blade if someone just finished shaving an outbreak monkey with it. But a bunch of those imperfect methods in combination have got to have cumulative effects. After all those treatments, the blade is far from the sterile, undisturbed lab surface that hepatitis has survived on for up to 10 days. Frankly, I'd be really surprised if a pathologist could watch me do all of the things mentioned above and then tell me the blade is dangerous because of possible contamination from blood-borne pathogens.