Picture this: you just moved in with your best friend and everything is going great. The first night is a blast as you drink and talk and make plans for what’s next. But come morning, it’s a horror show. You know you packed your trimmer but no matter where you look, you just can’t seem to find it.
But what are roommates for, after all, if not covering your back over such a small issue. You can always borrow your friend’s beard trimmer; it’s just sitting right there. However, while it would be easy as can be to reach over and use it, you have to ask yourself a very important question:
“Should I share a beard trimmer with someone else?”
No, you should not share a beard trimmer with someone else. While you should always clean and disinfect your beard trimmer on a regular basis, you can’t always be sure that the person offering you their trimmer is doing so. If you do maintain and disinfect yours, then you can lend it out if need be, but you’ll need to clean it fully before you use it again. 99% of the time, there is no issue. But when there is, it can be deadly.
Your best bet is to leave your buddy’s trimmer alone. If you are the roommate with the trimmer in this situation, then you can lend it out if you’ve maintained it properly. Stick around to learn more about how to disinfect your beard trimmer and the health risks you face when you ignore this advice.
How to Clean a Trimmer and Stay Safe
A beard trimmer is just some metal on metal. While there are a ton of gizmos and settings you can play around with, it’s just a hunk of metal when you aren’t using it. This isn’t really a problem, but it is a perfect environment for bacteria to settle in.
If you’re using a trimmer and you nick yourself, there isn’t a problem if it is clean. You’ll still use a bit of aftershave to disinfect the cut but that’s all. But if you are using a trimmer with some sort of potentially deadly bacteria on it, this cut can be just the opening it needs to jump off the trimmer and inside your body. In 2020, we all know how serious we should be taking our health.
So, don’t borrow anyone’s trimmer unless you know that they clean it regularly. If you have a trimmer of your own, then you’ll need to be the one cleaning it. Don’t worry, it really isn’t that hard.
You’ll need some aftershave, a q-tip, and some oil lubricant. Most electric trimmers come with a small bottle of lubricant when you purchase it. If yours did, then use this. If you don’t or it has run out, get some when you have the chance. It can also be useful to purchase a toothbrush that you use just for this.
When it comes time to start the cleaning, you will first need to disconnect the head of the trimmer if it is detachable.
If detaching the head of your trimmer opens it up to get to the inside of the trimmer, then you don’t need to detach it. The goal is to make sure that you are cleaning your trimmer and not some additional attachment. However, you should clean each attachment you are going to use before and after a shave.
For a quick cleaning, apply a little bit of aftershave to the bristles of the toothbrush or the q-tip. Gently pat this onto the blades, then pat it dry afterwards. This will quickly kill off the bacteria on the blade. This is the quickest way to clean, and you should use this method between shaves.
If you notice that your trimmer is starting to become a little rougher when you use it, apply the oil. This can be done by simply holding the trimmer at an angle and applying a drop or two at the top so that it naturally flows over the blades.
You should not use water on your trimmer, as it is metal. If you do, make sure that you thoroughly dry it off afterwards. The issue isn’t that water will damage it in the moment, rather that it will cause the blades to start rusting if left on the trimmer. One of the biggest risks there is when it comes to shaving is using a rusty tool.
If you disinfect your trimmer often and oil it regularly, you’ll find that it stays smooth longer. Plus, it removes the chances of getting some kind of terrible disease from a shaving accident. Ain’t nobody want that.
I Was Gifted a Secondhand Beard Trimmer, Is It Safe?
The short answer is, “Probably,” but the longer answer is that maybe it isn’t. It’s really going to depend on who it was a gift from and how well they’ve maintained it. A beard trimmer can last a lifetime if it is properly maintained, but most people’s beard trimmers last that lifetime with them alone.
This means that there can be all sorts of nasty stuff crawling all over that trimmer. Cleaning and maintenance prevent this from happening; but even then, there are some things that can get by.
If you are gifted a secondhand beard trimmer, make sure that you clean it thoroughly before using it. Look to see if there is any rust or other signs of wear and tear or poor handling. If there is, then thank you friend kindly but maybe pass on using it.
Is It Safe to Use a Beard Trimmer on Other Body Hair?
Yes, there is no reason you can’t use your beard trimmer on your other body hair. If all you are looking to do is trim down some long hairs, then this can be a quick solution that gets the job finished in a moment.
However, if you are looking to do a real thorough job trimming back your body hair then you should probably use something that was meant for the job. A beard trimmer is meant for your beard. It’s shaped and designed in such a way as to be the most effective tool there is for lifting up those hairs and cutting them smoothly.
That’s great and all, but your beard hair is not the same as your leg, arm, chest, neck, or pubic hair. Well, technically it is the same kind of hair, but the positioning of it and the way the body peaks and plummets is different between each section.
It is much, much easier to nick yourself shaving your body hair. Depending on where you’re looking to trim, that might not be the kind of accident you want to have, if you catch my drift.
I Used My Roommate’s Beard Trimmer Before I Found This Article. Am I Going To Be Okay?
Yup, almost certainly. While I do think that safety is of the utmost importance, it is important to realize that what we are talking about in this article is quite rare. Most people won’t have any issues with the razors they use in their lifetime.
You might hear that and think that you don’t need to bother cleaning your beard trimmer. But if I told you that you are risking a flesh eating virus every time you shaved without cleaning your razor, then maybe you’d think about it a little differently.
All it takes to prevent this nightmare is a little bit of time every now and then and a careful consideration of where your razor has been and what it has been used for. If you used it on your body hair, you might want to clean it before using it on your beard.
If you have been sharing a razor or not cleaning your razor and you’ve just found this article, then consider yourself lucky. You haven’t run into any issues and now you have the knowledge to keep it that way.
Looking to Purchase a New Beard Trimmer?
If you are looking for a new trimmer, then you’re going to want to go with a high-quality brand and a set that comes with plenty of heads. These attachments let you choose how long you want the hairs to be. The more you have, the more options are available for you to choose from.
So right off the bat, when it comes to beard trimmer brands, it’s pretty hard to beat Philips. They’ve been at the forefront of the shaving industry for decades and there’s a good reason for that. Their Norelco beard trimmer offers a precision shave in a stainless-steel package.
If you’re looking for a little bit higher quality and have the money to afford it, Wahl makes a steel beard trimmer that uses a lithium ion-plus battery. It only comes with a couple attachments, so you’ll need to purchase more separately if you want a greater level of control. But if you want a razor that stands out from the competition, then this is the one for you.
Conclusion
Never accept a trimmer or a razor if you don’t know how it’s been cleaned. If the person offering can’t give you an answer, don’t use it. No matter how important you think it is to shave, it isn’t worth it if you’re the unlucky person that ends up with the skin eating bacteria.
By keeping your shaving gear cleaned and disinfected, you are keeping yourself safe and you make it possible to share your trimmer without ever having to worry about someone else getting sick from it. That makes you like some kind of shaving superhero in our books!