A beard comb can be either your greatest asset or your worst enemy. When clean, beard combs can soak up oil and grease as they smoothen your beard and encourage your hairs to flow in the proper direction.
Dirty combs, however, are infamous for transporting grease back into your beard as the hair product, bits of food, and dust that combs remove from the hair build up between the teeth.
Keeping a clean comb is important for sanitation and for keeping your beard looking the best it can.
There are as many kinds of combs out there as there are styles of beards, so we’ll go over how to clean the most common kinds of beard combs, and the most popular cleaning strategies.
Why Use a Beard Comb?
There’s not much use to learning how to keep a beard comb clean if you don’t know why you have one in the first place.
Beard combs are commonly used by men with longer beards, although they’re useful for beards and mustaches of all sizes.
Combs are vital for detangling, distributing beard oil, and styling a beard between cuts so you can stay looking your best.
Beard combs are commonly made of wood, plastic, or metal. Each material offers specific advantages; some are easier for making grooming mistakes than others.
Wood
Wooden combs are the most widely used and preferred. Wooden combs retain some beard oil when used, helping to moisturize the beard even between beard oil applications.
The wooden teeth trap and pull out fewer hairs than metal or plastic, and prevents the awkward look of static buildup.
Plastic
Plastic combs are good for men with short beards as the teeth are usually finer. These are also great for the beardsman on a budget, as these combs are as cheap as they are durable and a fashionable addition to the beard grooming kit.
Metal
They can be great for men who are dedicated to keeping them polished, but a dirty metal comb snags as many hairs as a plastic one. The metal material also tends to strip away beard oil.
Which is Best?
Different men prefer different combs. While some men still use metal and plastic, most beardsmen prefer wooden combs for beard health.
For this reason, we’ve designed our very own Beardoholics beard comb out of 100% wood, keeping the health of your beard as our #1 priority.
Beardoholic Beard Comb
View Benefits, Reviews and Much More
How to Clean a Beard Comb
The general regiment for cleaning a beard comb is simple. You’ll need:
- Your comb
- A toothbrush
- A sink with warm water
- Disinfectant liquid soap
Steps for cleaning a beard comb:
1. Get your sink water running warm, but not hot enough to burn your hands.
2. Apply a line of liquid soap on each side of the base of the comb.
3. Use your fingers to spread the soap between the teeth of the comb.
4. Quickly rinse the comb under the warm water. This should be enough of a rinse to wash off most, but not all the soap.
5. Apply another, lighter line of liquid soap to each side of the comb as in step 2.
6. Under running water, brush the toothbrush from the base of the comb and outwards towards the end of the teeth. Be sure to remove any visible debris build up.
7. Give the toothbrush another good rinse to make sure all the soap is removed.
8. Shake the excess water from the comb, then use a hand towel to pat try.
These eight steps are the general guidelines we’ll follow, with some adjustments based on the comb style and material.
How to Clean a Fine Tooth Beard Comb
Clean this type of comb by spending more time with the toothbrush beneath the running water.
Try to make sure that the toothbrush really gets between the teeth, and there aren’t any gaps missing and staying dirty.
How to Clean a Wooden Comb
A wooden comb gets just about the same treatment as our basic eight steps. Be careful that the wood isn’t submerged in water for a long time as it can cause the wood to splinter and swell.
Dry off the comb thoroughly to remove all water.
Other Combs
For most other combs (wood, metal, bone, horn, etc.) the cleaning style is very similar to the eight steps. You’re safe going through these steps.
The Final Word
Combs should be cleaned once visible buildup is seen, or about bi-annually. Cleaning your comb keeps it strong, durable, and effective.
A clean comb leads to a clean and happy beard. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments; until then, have a great time taking care of your beard!
Photo from: sasamihajlovic / depositphotos.com
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