How To Sterilize My Tackle Effectively?

Blyth Spirit

Blyth Spirit

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Hi all,

Well that's my single entendre out the way for the evening, sorry friends...

I've been successful in my urge / bid for a mini Gillette Travel razor from the USA for the grand total of £2.12. I really wanted a tiny razor for travelling and I have all the necessary ephemera in miniature to accompany it; sad but true. A Merkur Travel looked lovely but they ain't low cost!

I have bought a used razor before (from a colleague on this board and thrilled with it, I am) and I am confident of the infection free efficacy of that nice piece of kit but this new'n comes unspecified in that area.

Do we do ultrasonic, Dettol, meths, flames :shock: soap and water?? I'm lost!

Mrs Spirit "works in the NHS" and she has spooked me with talk of HIV, Hepatitis A,B & C, Herpes and every other plague known to mankind. I spent a lot of last year in ICU and the Freeman and I have no intention of another Trachae!

Can anyone give me the experience of their guidance and a degree of confidence please?

If I can get this cracked then the collection can be grown, used and enjoyed fully.

Thanks in anticipation...

BS
 
For peace of mind get down to a hairdressers supply (like Sallys) and get some Barbicide.

Boiling is good, ultrasonic is good and I'm sure you will get a few more ideas. Beware of anything too fierce like bleach which may damage the finish on your razor.

Pete
 
Some people here have mentioned a substance called Barbicide, which sounds a lot like the crime of murdering a hairdresser, but in fact:

"Barbicide is an E.P.A. (Environmental Protection Agency) registered hospital disinfectant for all salon tools and is used by thousands of salons and spas in the U.S.A. and Europe. It is germicidal, fungicidal, virucidal, and pseudomonacidal. It kills H.I.V. (A.I.D.S. Virus), herpes, ringworm, staph, and numerous other pathogenic organisms. Complies with OSHAs bloodborn pathogens standard. It disinfects scissors, combs, brushes and salon surfaces. Metals can be immersed for hours without rusting. It is safe for acrylic tanning beds/stainless steel/plastics. It is concentrated. Mix with water to make a disinfectant solutions. Makes a clear blue solution with a pleasant fragrance and is fully biodegradable. Immerse items for 10 minutes or spray onto surfaces. Will not stain skin or surfaces. By using Barbicide the spa shows its understanding and commitment to using spa tools which have been disinfected minimizing all risk of cross infection from one client to the next. Makes 16 gallons. 64 oz.

Benefits:
It is germicidal, fungicidal, virucidal, and pseudomonacidal. It kills H.I.V. (A.I.D.S. Virus), herpes, ringworm, staph, and numerous other pathogenic organisms. Complies with OSHAs bloodborn pathogens standard.

Usage:
It is concentrated. Mix with water to make a disinfectant solutions. Makes a clear blue solution with a pleasant fragrance and is fully biodegradable. Immerse items for 10 minutes or spray onto surfaces. Will not stain skin or surfaces. By using Barbicide the spa shows its understanding and commitment to using spa tools which have been disinfected minimizing all risk of cross infection from one client to the next".

Whether this is significantly better than a soak in TCP or similar is for you to judge. Far and away the most reassuring option of course would be to have the razor run through an autoclave, which might be a possibility if you are on friendly terms with the right sort of people.
 
Barbicide and Marvicide, the web shows them all. Is there any real difference or is it another example of Coke / Pepsi competitiveness?

Would I need a specific sterilising jar too (supplied by each company of course) or would a "jam jar", suitably sluiced do the do?

I'll need to get cracking on this I think...I'll order tomorrow if I am suitably convinced.

:roll:

Convince me, convince me...
 
Some say most blood borne pathogens can live for only a few minutes, or seconds in some cases when exposed to air. However in a dried blood stain and in some other conditions, like a needle, they can live up to a couple of weeks but a lot is dependant on the atmospheric conditions and a lot of other factors. There is no agreement, the retailers will try to freak you out and others willl take a gung ho attitude but I think the truth is in the middle somewhere.

The main point is that as long as there is not a chunk of dried blood on it and you give it a good clean it will be fine….but many ask themselves if they want to take that chance. They then do some research and usually go down the route of boiling or using a barbicide (or marvicide) solution on used razors.

I had one girl in Sallys tell me I needed a trade card to buy barbicide and another who said not a problem. In the end I spotted a barbicide bottle and decent size jar on the bay and got both for £8 delivered. I tend to use it on all incoming razors even, the new ones, and then when they have only been used by me a good clean from time to time does it.
 
Barbicide or Marvicide, they are the same. A jam jar is fine.
Another good cleaning agent is some distilled white vinegar. My favourite polish is Peek but I've heard Silvo is nice too. Don't forget the toothbrush.
 
Blyth Spirit said:
Barbicide and Marvicide, the web shows them all. Is there any real difference or is it another example of Coke / Pepsi competitiveness?
Click to expand...

I believe they are competitors so both the same in principal, some will say one is better but the purpose is the same. So yes it is a kind of coke/pepsi idea.

Blyth Spirit said:
Would I need a specific sterilising jar too (supplied by each company of course) or would a "jam jar", suitably sluiced do the do?
Click to expand...

You do not need a sterilising jar. The item to be sterilised usually has to soak for 10 mins, the lidded jar just looks better in a salon and shows that you use something to clen your kit so a jam jar would be fine. ideally you want to immerse the entire razor.

One word of warning, some have reported that they soaked their brushes in barbicide and they turn blue(ish). i think it is to strong for a brush and just use borax then vinegar rinse on the brushes. Brushes are more likely to develop a bacteria then a razor as they are wetter for longer.

Hope this helps.
 
I think most sanitising products would suffice. However if you are really worried I will happily put it through my autoclave latest regs. in a sealed sterile pouch. For nothing unless you want registered post.

NB I am going away for 3 weeks next week so wuld have to wait till get back.

This offer is open to anyone.

C
 
I remember reading a thread on another forum about using detergent, the normal stuff for dishes has salt in it and is not so good.
There is another detergent (simple green?) that is better and someone (Audio?) got hold of it. Anyone remember?

cheers

Pete
 
First I scrub with an old toothbrush or ultrasonic to remove any dirt if needed.
I tend to use boiling water followed by a 30 minute dunk in some Milton (the stuff for sterilising babies' bottles).


General consensus seems to be you're more at risk from cutlery in a restaurant than an old razor.


Just to add I do not do the above with gold/gold coloured razors.
 
I did indeed get a hold of Simple Green. I had a really gunky Aristocrat Jnr which I got from the bay for pennies and kept it to try out the Simple Green. I soaked the razor overnight in a solution and I pratically rinsed the gunk off. Using it this way really reduced the scrubbing required which is nice. It is worth buying if you need a degreaser for a secondary purpose, mine was cleaning up some parts before painting, but in all honesty for just cleaning razors I can get equally as good results with other products.

It is handy to have around but expensive if you are only ordering it for Razors. It is not claimed to be a sanitiser but it does clean well. A cheap alternative is denture cleaning tablets.
 
I have not tried denture tabs but be careful as they are not nice to metal. They will damage the metal of metal dentures which is Cobalt-Chromium which is quite corision resistant.
I sell a battery powered ultrasonic bathwith brush and 2 metal safe disinfection tabs to patients for £24, replacement tabs are about £9 for a bunch can't remember how many.
Have not tried it on razors though.

C
 
Thanks for that warning. I have to admit I didn't try the denture tabs myself but have read of many people do it and report no visible effects, but you never know what is going on at a surface level.

Maybe it would be worth sticking the ultrasonic up on the buy/sell section as I am sure a few members might be interested. I use mine for jewellery and lots of other stuff so I think the are worth it.
 
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