How to Reuse Old Toothbrushes
Check for fraying., Check your brush’s fade line., Sanitize before repurposing., Dry thoroughly., Label your toothbrush., Clean dirty sinks., Clean laundry., Maintain electrical components., Scrub fruit and vegetables., Remove old cheese from your...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Check for fraying.
If your toothbrush is beginning to fray at the edges, it is no longer fit to brush teeth, and is ready for a new life.
Fraying means that the outer edges of the bristles have splayed outward.
If the bristles have only a slight outward curve, your toothbrush probably still has some life as a toothbrush left in it., Some toothbrushes are equipped with a small line (usually blue) that will gradually fade and disappear as the lifespan of your toothbrush deteriorates.
If your toothbrush has a fading line to indicate when it is time to be replaced, pay attention and set it aside for other uses once this line has disappeared. , While reusing old toothbrushes is wonderful, your mouth is known for harboring quite a lot of bacteria.
Before reusing a toothbrush, make sure you submerge it in boiling water for 3-5 minutes to sanitize it.Stick around while your toothbrush boils; plastic can break down quickly, and you don’t want to come back to a mess of melted plastic.
If you are not comfortable boiling your toothbrush, you can also run it through a dishwashing cycle. , Just as you would with a toothbrush for your teeth, make sure your old toothbrushes are dry before giving them a new purpose; if they are left wet, mold and bacteria are invited to grow.
Drying a toothbrush is simple.
All you have to do is store it in an upright position and allow the water to drain from the bristles.Because you are not using the toothbrush on your teeth, you could expedite the process by first drying the bristles with a towel or cloth. , To avoid mixing up your cleaning toothbrush with one you are currently using for oral health, label your toothbrush.
You can make a mark with a permanent marker on the back of it, or place it inside of your cleaning supply bucket--just make sure it is clear that the brush should not be used in your mouth. , Whether it is the grout surrounding your kitchen sink or the metal stopper in your bathroom sink, toothbrushes are excellent for cleaning small, hard-to-reach areas such as grout lines, seals, and the crevices of sinks and faucets.When you clean grout and sealant, take care not to press down too hard; toothbrush bristles can be extremely coarse, so pressing down too hard risks removing sealant and grout.
Aim for firm but gentle pressure. , Toothbrushes are a great way to scrub stains and spots with a bit of spray cleaner or detergent.
Simply spray or pour your cleaner onto the spot, and gently scrub in circular motions with your toothbrush.It is particularly important that you make sure your toothbrush is clean before taking on this particular reuse, as depositing any debris onto a stain will make the stain worse.
Before using, make sure no dirt or debris has accumulated.
This upcycle is better for soft-bristled brushes, as hard bristles could snag or otherwise damage fabric. , Your computer screen and keyboard need regular cleaning to function properly.
With your computer turned off, run a dry toothbrush over and in between each of your computer keys, then gently tease the dirt and debris from the corners of your computer’s screen.Do not press too hard, as toothbrush bristles are quite firm and could scratch your screen if you are not careful. , Rather than going out and purchasing a dedicated vegetable brush, use your old toothbrush! It is small enough to get into the crevices of items like apples, while broad enough to make long strokes against larger vegetables such as potatoes.
This use is best for fruits and vegetables with tough skin, such as apples, squash, and carrots.
Softer-skinned fruits and vegetables might tear or bruise. , Toothbrushes are the perfect size and shape to get into all of the nooks and crannies of your cheese grater.
Keep an old toothbrush by your sink, and pull it out when your grater needs a helping hand., Using a toothbrush, you can remove debris from the vent of your hair dryer, keep your brow brush is good shape, and keep your hairbrush free of extra hair and dirt.If you are using your toothbrush for beauty products, be sure to clean the brush in between uses, as you don’t want to transfer bacteria or debris to your eyes or skin. , Baseboard can be difficult to clean, as a rag often seems to leave a lot of dirt behind.
Using a toothbrush, make broad, smooth strokes across the top of your baseboard (either with soapy water or without, depending on how difficult the dirt is) for clean, dust-free walls., Cars have countless tiny crevices in need of some extra help.
You can keep your head and tail lights sparkling clean using a toothbrush and some soapy water, or you can keep your dashboard, music player, and speedometer all looking shiny and new.If your headlights are particularly dirty, you can use toothpaste and a toothbrush to remove some of the grime.
When cleaning your dash, use a dry toothbrush versus a wet one, as there are delicate electrical components that should not get wet within the dash. , Metal items have a way of trapping dirt and residue--especially metal items with small, hard-to-reach crevices.
Using a toothbrush, however, you can polish your metals until they look brand new.Using baking soda, water, and a toothbrush, you can remove old dirt and oil stains.
Toothbrushes are excellent at cleaning bike chains, as well. , Planting a garden? Break or cut off the bristled end of the toothbrush, write or paint the names of the plants you are sowing, and place your markers in the soil.
This way, you’ve reused an old toothbrush, and you’ve identified each of your plants.
If you are leery of plastic in your soil, you can either use bamboo or wooden toothbrushes, or you can attach the toothbrushes to the outside of your garden bed in the same order as your plants. , Although gallon and larger paint cans warrant the use of a full-sized stirring stick, sample-sized cans, and quarter-gallon cans don’t do as well using a full-sized stick.
Toothbrushes make excellent paint stirring tools for small cans.
Make sure you either remove the bristle first, or hold the bristle in your palm as you stir.
Placing the bristle into the paint may result in wasted paint, as it would become trapped in the bristles. , Left wholly intact, an old toothbrush can double as a backscratcher, as the bristles are firm enough to provide consistent, steady contact to ease the irritation of an itch.
If your brush is going to be used in this way, make sure it is cleaned or sanitized regularly, as contact with skin could result in bacterial growth on the bristles. , If you are an artist or you love to paint, you can use a toothbrush to introduce a new and unique texture into your work using your toothbrush as a paintbrush.
This can be done with watercolors and acrylics., You can take this one step further and create a large-scale needle by sharpening the end furthest from the hole. , You could even make several bots, and conduct races with your friends or family. -
Step 2: Check your brush’s fade line.
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Step 3: Sanitize before repurposing.
-
Step 4: Dry thoroughly.
-
Step 5: Label your toothbrush.
-
Step 6: Clean dirty sinks.
-
Step 7: Clean laundry.
-
Step 8: Maintain electrical components.
-
Step 9: Scrub fruit and vegetables.
-
Step 10: Remove old cheese from your cheese grater.
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Step 11: Clean beauty products.
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Step 12: Scrub baseboard.
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Step 13: Detail your car.
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Step 14: Polish metal.
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Step 15: Make garden markers.
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Step 16: Stir paint in small cans.
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Step 17: Scratch your back.
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Step 18: Create interesting paint strokes.
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Step 19: Construct a large “needle.” If your toothbrush has a hole in one end
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Step 20: you can remove the bristles
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Step 21: and use the remaining portion as a needle
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Step 22: of sorts
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Step 23: to thread runaway laces back through waistbands.
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Step 24: Create a “bristle bot.” Attach your toothbrush’s head (removed from the “stick” of the toothbrush) to a vibrating pager motor and watch as it crawls around.
Detailed Guide
If your toothbrush is beginning to fray at the edges, it is no longer fit to brush teeth, and is ready for a new life.
Fraying means that the outer edges of the bristles have splayed outward.
If the bristles have only a slight outward curve, your toothbrush probably still has some life as a toothbrush left in it., Some toothbrushes are equipped with a small line (usually blue) that will gradually fade and disappear as the lifespan of your toothbrush deteriorates.
If your toothbrush has a fading line to indicate when it is time to be replaced, pay attention and set it aside for other uses once this line has disappeared. , While reusing old toothbrushes is wonderful, your mouth is known for harboring quite a lot of bacteria.
Before reusing a toothbrush, make sure you submerge it in boiling water for 3-5 minutes to sanitize it.Stick around while your toothbrush boils; plastic can break down quickly, and you don’t want to come back to a mess of melted plastic.
If you are not comfortable boiling your toothbrush, you can also run it through a dishwashing cycle. , Just as you would with a toothbrush for your teeth, make sure your old toothbrushes are dry before giving them a new purpose; if they are left wet, mold and bacteria are invited to grow.
Drying a toothbrush is simple.
All you have to do is store it in an upright position and allow the water to drain from the bristles.Because you are not using the toothbrush on your teeth, you could expedite the process by first drying the bristles with a towel or cloth. , To avoid mixing up your cleaning toothbrush with one you are currently using for oral health, label your toothbrush.
You can make a mark with a permanent marker on the back of it, or place it inside of your cleaning supply bucket--just make sure it is clear that the brush should not be used in your mouth. , Whether it is the grout surrounding your kitchen sink or the metal stopper in your bathroom sink, toothbrushes are excellent for cleaning small, hard-to-reach areas such as grout lines, seals, and the crevices of sinks and faucets.When you clean grout and sealant, take care not to press down too hard; toothbrush bristles can be extremely coarse, so pressing down too hard risks removing sealant and grout.
Aim for firm but gentle pressure. , Toothbrushes are a great way to scrub stains and spots with a bit of spray cleaner or detergent.
Simply spray or pour your cleaner onto the spot, and gently scrub in circular motions with your toothbrush.It is particularly important that you make sure your toothbrush is clean before taking on this particular reuse, as depositing any debris onto a stain will make the stain worse.
Before using, make sure no dirt or debris has accumulated.
This upcycle is better for soft-bristled brushes, as hard bristles could snag or otherwise damage fabric. , Your computer screen and keyboard need regular cleaning to function properly.
With your computer turned off, run a dry toothbrush over and in between each of your computer keys, then gently tease the dirt and debris from the corners of your computer’s screen.Do not press too hard, as toothbrush bristles are quite firm and could scratch your screen if you are not careful. , Rather than going out and purchasing a dedicated vegetable brush, use your old toothbrush! It is small enough to get into the crevices of items like apples, while broad enough to make long strokes against larger vegetables such as potatoes.
This use is best for fruits and vegetables with tough skin, such as apples, squash, and carrots.
Softer-skinned fruits and vegetables might tear or bruise. , Toothbrushes are the perfect size and shape to get into all of the nooks and crannies of your cheese grater.
Keep an old toothbrush by your sink, and pull it out when your grater needs a helping hand., Using a toothbrush, you can remove debris from the vent of your hair dryer, keep your brow brush is good shape, and keep your hairbrush free of extra hair and dirt.If you are using your toothbrush for beauty products, be sure to clean the brush in between uses, as you don’t want to transfer bacteria or debris to your eyes or skin. , Baseboard can be difficult to clean, as a rag often seems to leave a lot of dirt behind.
Using a toothbrush, make broad, smooth strokes across the top of your baseboard (either with soapy water or without, depending on how difficult the dirt is) for clean, dust-free walls., Cars have countless tiny crevices in need of some extra help.
You can keep your head and tail lights sparkling clean using a toothbrush and some soapy water, or you can keep your dashboard, music player, and speedometer all looking shiny and new.If your headlights are particularly dirty, you can use toothpaste and a toothbrush to remove some of the grime.
When cleaning your dash, use a dry toothbrush versus a wet one, as there are delicate electrical components that should not get wet within the dash. , Metal items have a way of trapping dirt and residue--especially metal items with small, hard-to-reach crevices.
Using a toothbrush, however, you can polish your metals until they look brand new.Using baking soda, water, and a toothbrush, you can remove old dirt and oil stains.
Toothbrushes are excellent at cleaning bike chains, as well. , Planting a garden? Break or cut off the bristled end of the toothbrush, write or paint the names of the plants you are sowing, and place your markers in the soil.
This way, you’ve reused an old toothbrush, and you’ve identified each of your plants.
If you are leery of plastic in your soil, you can either use bamboo or wooden toothbrushes, or you can attach the toothbrushes to the outside of your garden bed in the same order as your plants. , Although gallon and larger paint cans warrant the use of a full-sized stirring stick, sample-sized cans, and quarter-gallon cans don’t do as well using a full-sized stick.
Toothbrushes make excellent paint stirring tools for small cans.
Make sure you either remove the bristle first, or hold the bristle in your palm as you stir.
Placing the bristle into the paint may result in wasted paint, as it would become trapped in the bristles. , Left wholly intact, an old toothbrush can double as a backscratcher, as the bristles are firm enough to provide consistent, steady contact to ease the irritation of an itch.
If your brush is going to be used in this way, make sure it is cleaned or sanitized regularly, as contact with skin could result in bacterial growth on the bristles. , If you are an artist or you love to paint, you can use a toothbrush to introduce a new and unique texture into your work using your toothbrush as a paintbrush.
This can be done with watercolors and acrylics., You can take this one step further and create a large-scale needle by sharpening the end furthest from the hole. , You could even make several bots, and conduct races with your friends or family.
About the Author
George Ross
Brings years of experience writing about lifestyle and related subjects.
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