Whether you’re a tidy person or not, the actual act of cleaning can be a bit of a yawn, especially when you have so many things to clean and yes, we know how that list keeps adding up. However, there is something that we often overlook and push it back for later cleaning. It’s something so essential to us every day, yes, I’m talking about Cleaning of Hair Tools i.e. our hairbrushes and combs.
Hair tools are so essential, especially for a Hair salon but it’s something that we don’t think about anyways, let alone cleaning them which believe it or not, is quite simple and takes a few minutes of your time. But before we discuss how to clean hairbrushes and combs, it is kind of essential to know why we need to do the cleaning of Hair Tools in the first place and its immense importance in a hair salon atmosphere.
Why should you clean hairbrushes and combs?
This one is a no-brainer, but our scalp and hair release oil, have dead skin and broken hair that all sticks to the hairbrush while combing the hair. At times we comb our unwashed hair and all the dirt, gunk, accumulated hair products also latch-on to the tiny bristles of your hairbrush. What happens over time when we don’t clean our hair tools mainly hairbrush and comb, is that all that oil, dead skin and dirt starts building up which creates hairbrush lint. Imagine the situation in a hair salon where the cleanliness standards are not maintained. The infection spread would be beyond comprehension! Next time we comb our clean hair with a dirty hairbrush, all of this dirt ends up sticking to our scalp which not only makes our hair messy again but is also extremely unhealthy and unhygienic for the scalp.
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Most people at home and the hairstylists in the hair salon would pull the extra hair out from their hairbrushes and combs and think that they’ve cleaned their hair tools – this needs to change. Deep cleaning these daily essentials regularly at home and after every use in a hair salon is what we’re here to talk precisely about.
Cleaning of hair tools is as easy as saying 1-2-3, and that’s the exact number of steps it takes to wash the hair tools. In a hair salon, using a special cleaning solution, sanitizing and sterilizing equipment is used for all the hair tools.
Steps of Cleaning of hair tools at home and in Hair Salons
Remove hair from hairbrushes and combs
Before we start the cleaning process, place a newspaper or a paper towel on whatever surface you’re going to clean on and then put all of the brushes and combs onto it. This way, all that dirt is not going to scatter around the place.
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Now, take the hairbrushes that need cleaning and start pulling the extra hair out of the brush. To make this process easier, use a rat tail comb. Take the pointy end of the comb and run it through the bristles of the hairbrush, slowly pulling it upwards. This process should get all the hair out pretty quickly. Keep going back at it, especially at the lower end of the bristles because that’s where all the dirt sticks. In case a rat tail comb is not available, you can use any other comb, or your hands will also do perfectly (wash them real nice by the end of this step). Regardless of what hairbrush or comb you have; the process of cleaning of hair tools remains the same.
Cleaning Solution
For a cleaning solution, several options can be made at home or can be purchased from the market. The two of the easiest home choices are white vinegar and baking soda mix OR a shampoo and baking soda mix.
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White Vinegar and Baking Soda Mix
Two teaspoon baking soda
Five tablespoons distilled white vinegar.
Half bucket/ big container of warm water (note the container should be big enough for your brushes and combs to fit in easily)
Shampoo and Baking Soda Mix
Two teaspoon baking soda
Five tablespoon hair shampoo
Half bucket/ big container of warm water (note the container should be big enough for your brushes and combs to fit in easily)
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Once the cleaning solution is ready, drop in all the combs first. It’s okay to submerge the combs for about 10-15 mins. As for the hairbrushes, if the hairbrushes have a spongy base or a wooden hairbrush, it’s probably not the best idea to completely submerge them as it can damage the hair tools. Instead, you can keep the water level low, so that only the bristles of the hairbrush are soaked in for a good 15-20 minutes, OR use a spare toothbrush to scrub the hairbrush nicely and also to wipe the mix off with a paper towel.
Air-dry the hairbrushes and combs
Once the combs and hairbrushes having been soaking nicely for 15-20 minutes, pull them out of the solution and give them a nice wipe with a paper towel. All the dirt and muck that your cleaning solution has helped break down gets removed.
On a clean surface, lay out some newspaper or tissues and place all the hairbrushes with the bristles facing downwards and allow to air dry for a few hours or overnight. Viola! The squeaky-clean hairbrushes and combs are ready to use! Hair tools are used in a full-service salon or hair salons frequently so; they need quick drying. There are many sterilizing machines available that quickly dry and sterilize the hair tools. The best hair salons adhere to complete cleanliness and hygiene just like we would do at home and I would prefer to visit such a hair salon.
