How to Clean A Hairbrush? 6 Best Tips

Most important insights

• 1. Remove Hair from the Bristles
• 2. Soak Your Hairbrush
• 3. Scrub Your Hairbrush
• 4. Rinse and Dry
• 5. Cleaning Wooden Hairbrushes
• 6. Regular Maintenance

Let’s admit, we all wanna look great. Brushing hair is essential to a good look. The brush helps to make hair look fresh and avoid messy hairstyles. But if you brush your hair every day, one problem appears pretty frequently – a big amount of hair left on the brush. 

‍

We try to take it off using our hands, but nothing seems to work well, so we just don’t think it’s necessary to clean a brush. Not to mention that hair brushes also collect all the dirt from our scalps, which doesn’t even sound good. It might be very bad in terms of hygiene, and this is why we should consider cleaning a hairbrush. It doesn’t take a lot of time but leaves our best haircare friend in total cleanliness 

‍

Here I wanna talk more about the problem of dirty hair brush, why it collects everything from our scalp and how to clean them properly. And of course, we will talk about mistakes to avoid while cleaning your hair brush.

‍

I promise it’s going to be extremely useful and interesting information to know, so we can start. But before we do it, check out our 8 Best Middle Part Hairstyles guide and our 5 Hairdryers for Curly Hair guide.

‍

So, let’s start off with the reasons why your hairbrush might be dirty and collect plenty of hair!

Why Do Hairbrushes Collect Hair and Dirt?

‍

I don’t know if you knew about it before, but when we use a hairbrush, it not only makes our hair look pretty, but also spreads hair natural oils all over the head, and it’s easy to understand why we have natural oils on our brush after combing. 

‍

Natural oils help dirt and debris to stick to a hairbrush, and this is why we see dirt and hair on it. It’s also easy to notice the structure of the brushes. Their structure is literally made for collecting hair, even though it might be a disadvantage of hairbrushes.

‍

This mix of dirt and hair accumulates gradually on your hairbrush, which can lead to difficulties in using this tool, this can also be dangerous if you scratch your scalp with it. All this dirt might lead to infection, which is not something we would like to have. 

‍

But how often to clean our hairbrushes? Once a month, once a week, or a year? Let’s see the answer!

How Often Should You Clean Your Hairbrush?

Ideally, you should clean your hairbrush every one to two weeks, it depends on your hair type and the amount of product you use. Let’s imagine you have oily hair or use a lot of hair products, you may want to clean your brush more frequently to prevent buildup.

‍

It’s easy to clean your hairbrush, and it doesn’t take plenty of time, so cleaning it every day might not be a bad idea. Now,  let’s look at how to actually do it by using the best 6 hairbrush cleaning tips.

‍

6 Tips for Cleaning Your Hairbrush

1. Remove Hair from the Bristles

So, the first step in cleaning your hairbrush is pretty straightforward. We should remove the hair strands caught in the bristles. Use whatever you want. Your fingers, a comb, or even different brush cleaning tools.

This is extremely important to do before we move to the next step, guys, be sure you follow along!

2. Soak Your Hairbrush

So, what else can we do? This question probably popped up in your head, well, you can fill a basin or sink with warm water and add a few drops of gentle shampoo or liquid soap. Now, put your hairbrush in soapy water, making sure that the bristles are submerged. 

After it, just let it soak for another 10-15 minutes while you’re chilling out. What it will do? It will simply loosen any dirt, oil, and buildup you have on your brush. Quite simple, but I wouldn’t recommend doing it every day if you want to do so. It’s relatively time-consuming if you do it every day, you all understand it, guys.

‍

3. Scrub Your Hairbrush

It probably would be a surprise to you, if I say that you can use a toothbrush to clean a hairbrush. Alternatively, why wouldn’t you use a small scrub brush? (not something you expected to do with it, right?)

This will remove any stubborn buildup that didn't come off during the soaking process. Still easy if you do it once a week or two. But don’t forget about the base and handle of the hair brush.

4. Rinse and Dry

You just did scrubbing, there’re a few steps left, we’re almost there! Just rinse your hairbrush thoroughly under warm water, you will see how remaining soap and debris are coming off the hairbrush.

After it, just shake off excess water and lay the brush on a clean towel. It should be air-dry, and you’re good to go!

5. Cleaning Wooden Hairbrushes

Oh, this might seem a bit trickier to do since it’s obvious we can’t take a wooden hairbrush underwater. What do we do in this situation? Simply dampen a soft cloth with warm and soapy water. Then wipe the bristles and handle gently. Rinse the cloth and do it again. 

And again, put your hairbrush on a clean towel!

6. Regular Maintenance

What else can you do to completely prevent building up dirt on the hairbrush? Regular maintenance is the best answer. Develop a habit of cleaning your hairbrush once a week on a particular day, and you’ll never come across this problem in your life. Sounds obvious and easy, but because of their laziness, people don’t want to do it usually, and have trouble with cleaning hairbrushes. 

Don’t be like these people, develop good habits, and you will see how your life if changing for good!

Now that we spoke about the main tips to maintain a clean hairbrush, let’s go to the worst mistakes you can do while cleaning up your brush. Make sure you don’t do them, so you’re not having a dirty brush.

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Cleaning a Hairbrush

1. Using Harsh Chemicals or Detergents

What will happen if you use them? You will simply spoil the hairbrush. That’s it. But seriously, don’t use them. Buy gentle shampoos that will make sure you’re getting rid of dirt and oils efficiently not ruining your hairbrush.

We all know that it’s not very easy to choose the right shampoo for it, but most of them are just fine for our purposes.

2. Soaking Wooden Brushes

As mentioned earlier, soaking wooden brushes in water can cause damage to the wood and ruin your brush. Remember, use a damp cloth to clean up a hairbrush. Don’t. Put. Into. The Water!

3. Scrubbing Too Hard

It’s necessary to scrub your hairbrush, but excessive force will lead to hairbrush damage, believe me! Want to avoid it? Be careful with your force. You’re not trying to kill someone, you just need to clean your lovely brush!

4. Not Rinsing Thoroughly

Failing to rinse your brush thoroughly after cleaning can leave behind soap residue, which can cause more buildup and unwanted dirt on the hairbrush. Make sure to rinse your brush well under warm running water to remove all soap and debris.

5. Storing Your Brush Wet

After cleaning your hairbrush, it's crucial to let it dry completely before storing or using it again. If you don’t do it, you understand the consequences. Mold and bacteria aren’t our best friends, and of course, we want to get rid of them, but to attract them. It can also damage your brush, which is also not our purpose!

Always lay the hairbrush on a clean towel to let it air dry!

Conclusion

We’ve discussed everything that relates to hairbrush cleaning. It’s essential to follow our tips while doing so to prevent any problems with your brush in the future. 

I’m sure you’re gonna learn it fast and use these tips to make your hairbrush shine! I wish you happy hairstyling and the fastest glow up in the world!

‍