Thread: Disinfecting

How do you completely disinfect a used razor?

I know you can rub alcohol on it and let it air dry or pat it dry, but is there anything else? Does peroxide work? Is peroxide even good for the razor?

Anything besides alcohol?

Mike

1:10 diluted solution of bleach in water, but don't leave it for too long, I guess couple of minutes should be OK...

Nenad

I will try that. Thanks.

FWIW, I've just used soap, hot water rinse, and alcohol. Anything that can survive that AND the honing and stropping all my new used razors get is one tough little bug.


Scott

I think we make too much of this disinfection thing with razors. Considering just the time and exposure to the air since it was last used I don't think any bug would last that long.

As for me all my used razors get the simichrome treatment which is loaded with ammonia and then the cape cod polishing cloth and Honing and stropping and Soap and water. Nothing will survive that!

Originally Posted by Bear

How do you completely disinfect a used razor?

I know you can rub alcohol on it and let it air dry or pat it dry, but is there anything else? Does peroxide work? Is peroxide even good for the razor?

Anything besides alcohol?

Mike

There's many threads on this subject and lots of different opinions... do a search on "Clippercide" and you will find most of them. Personally I agree w/thebigspendur... we tend to make too much out of it. True, the bugs we worry about are potentially deadly. But it's also true that almost none of them can live outside the human body for more than 20-minutes or so. And those that can are pretty susceptible to soap and water, alcohol, bleach, etc. The bigger issue is whether what you use is corrosive to the razor and how to avoid the ramifications of that.

Originally Posted by azjoe

True, the bugs we worry about are potentially deadly. But it's also true that almost none of them can live outside the human body for more than 20-minutes or so.

Hepatitis has been found alive outside of the body at 4 days. Not horribly long, but it is something to consider.

Originally Posted by honedright

FWIW, I've just used soap, hot water rinse, and alcohol. Anything that can survive that AND the honing and stropping all my new used razors get is one tough little bug.


Scott

1. Soap doesn't kill bugs. It is only a way to enhance the mechanic removal of microorganims with water and rubbing. Again, SOAP DOES NOT KILL.
2. Ethanol (70%) will disinfect quite good, but be aware that a blade should be very clean before using it, as ethanol would lose it's effectiveness otherwise. Also note that ethanol might not work against bacterial spores, like those from Clostridium tetani. Spores can survive for years outside a body.
Ethanol does not work very well against viruses, putting your razor in direct sunlight (not behind a window, as glass absorbs UV) will take care of that.
3. Bleach 1/10 dilution works very well. You might try Dettol as well, although you have to make sure you always rinse your blade thoroughly before using it.
4. Hepatitis is not a bug, it's a virus. Viruses do not 'live', they cannot selfreplicate without a host. It's just some genetic information (DNA or RNA) inside a carrier body (capsule, sometimes with an envelope). If any of these gets damaged, the particle is inactivated (it "dies").

You should consider that microorganisms and viruses are all around us, in the air, in tap water, on your skin. IF you cut yourself, just disinfect the wound like you would any other wound. Clean your blade with water and soap and rinse thoroughly in hot water. Wipe it with a clean and dry cloth.
A bug or two in your body where they shouldn't be is something you have to worry about much. The body has ways to deal with that. It's only if the 'bugs' are there in large quantities that we even speak of an infection.

Originally Posted by Kavall

Hepatitis has been found alive outside of the body at 4 days. Not horribly long, but it is something to consider.

Yes, hepatitis is one of the nasties that is harder to kill.... some barber, hair, and nail salons are woefully careless in protecting their customers.

"Other research shows that hepatitis B can survive outside the body for seven days or more on chairs, headrests, workbenches, instruments, and tools," Dr. Sekula says. "Hepatitis B is one hundred times more contagious than the HIV virus."

Thus, every railing, door knob, counter top etc. that you touch is a potential source of infection if you want to look at it that way.

There's no argument that razors are a higher risk than most sources since they likely have come in previous contact with human blood serums. So I'm cautious...

My rules, good or bad, are:

• Even if I know the person I'm getting the razor from, I take precautions since many people won't necessarily know they're infected.
• I discount transit time... I've received razors that the seller was in such a hurry to ship that they are still wet inside the bubble wrap when they arrive. Most germs/viruses need moisture to survive.
• I scrub razors I receive in soap and hot water with a toothbrush, then use pipe cleaners and dental floss to get into nooks and crannies. Then I blow dry them with a hair dryer. And lastly I spray them with a liberal amount of Clippercide and set them aside for a few days.

I guess you can argue this procedure won't safeguard me 100% against every pathogen that exists. You're probably right. AFAIK, nothing will. But I figure it reduces the likelihood of having a problem to less than that of being struck by lightening...

Very sensible approach Joe. I used to give my razors 15min bleach/alcohol baths but it took too much work to restore the finish afterwards, so I started doing pretty much what you do, but i do my cleaning with Lysol, a rinse, dry and then alcohol.