Protecting Our Pedi- and Manicure Tools

Those who avail of pedi- and manicure services know how important it is for the tools to be clean and hygienic, while being used every time. In the salons like Enrich, they clean every instrument carefully by first washing in water and then subjecting it to UV Radiation in, what they call as the UV Sterilizer machine. This was revealed to us by Priya Parmar, the Zonal Head, Marketing of Enrich Salons.

But, some people have their own tools and may use them at home. We spoke to Ms. Preeti Seth, Wellness Expert and Owner, Pachouli Spa and Wellness Centre, New Delhi about how to clean our pedi- and manicure kit at home.

The following is what she told us:

Beautiful, trimmed nails, clean hands, arms and feet are desired by everybody but are we making sure that the process and the pedi- and manicure tools are clean and sanitized? Use of unhygienic tools may lead to the formation of nail fungus or bacterial infection. Clean equipments not only help in better cleaning but also last for a long time.

How to sterilize nail tools: The tools used during the pedi- and manicure processed are Nail-clippers or scissors, Nail File or Emery Board, Nail Buffer, Cuticle Pusher, Nail Nipper, Nail Brush, Pumice Stone or Foot File, Orangewood stick and Toe separators.

1. We must use a good disinfectant to clean them regularly.
2. It’s important to soak and immerse the instruments in an alcohol preparation at least 10-15 mins. It removes the dirt from within the deep layers of the equipments.
3. We can occasionally boil them as well, since it kills the leftover germs on it.
4. Scrappers or nail pushers should not have any rust deposited on them; to prevent that we must dry them properly using a tissue or cotton cloth.
5. Also we can use dettol in warm water and soak them for some time to sterilize them. It contains antiseptic elements which help in disinfecting the fungus.
6. We must clean and remove dead tissue or skin deposited on them immediately after use. Otherwise, it leads to fungal growth on them.