Comments on: How to safely refill your Braun Pulsonic cleaning cartridge (UPDATED) (UPDATE 2)

By: vee gee

vee gee — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 18:55:08 +0000

Lot of idiots who know jack shit about chemistry spewing crap here.

Anyway, about 70-80% ethanol (rest is water), 1-3 mL glycerol, and a few drops of your favourite scent will work well.

Other notes:

Alcohols are polar. They dissolve well in other polar substances like water and glycerol (glycerin). They DO NOT dissolve well with non polar substances like oils. They dissolve a LITTLE BIT but not a great deal. Also, water can dissolve a limited amount of non-polar substances as well.

Methanol is poisonous if you metabolize it or absorb a great deal of it. I HIGHLY doubt that the amount that’s on your razor is enough to do anything at all to you. It is poisonous if you drink it because it is metabolized in your body to formic acid. If you absorb too much of it by other means, it is a CNS depressant similar to ethanol (drinking alcohol).

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:41:50 +0000

has anyone tried to use the norelco hq200 solution instead?

By: dspatola

dspatola — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:34:04 +0000

You have given your readers false potentially harmful information. Please read the following:

Do not use any denatured alcohol except SD-38 or SD-40. Most other denatured alcohols contain methanol which is toxic including the fumes. The SD alcohols contain denaturing agents that prevent consumption of the ethanol but are non-toxic. This is why they are used in mouthwashes and other products that contact our bodies. SD alcohols are difficult to obtain. SD-40 alcohol is known as “perfumers alcohol”. Use this Google search to find:

http://www.google.com/#pq=perfumers+alcoho&hl=en&cp=17&gs_id=7&xhr=t&q=perfumers+alcohol&pf=p&sclient=psy-ab&safe=off&source=hp&pbx=1&oq=perfumers+alcohol&aq=0&aqi=g4&aql=&gs_sm=&gs_upl=&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=55dcc7523cfd78c6&biw=1272&bih=776

I use grain alcohol, 190 proof..

The “perfume” is lemon extract with oil of lemon not the fake stuff. Five drops will do.

The lubricant is a type of silicone which is soluble in alcohol (polar solvent). This is known as phenyl trimethicone. Also difficult to obtain. Shin Etsu of Akron, Ohio distributes it as “KF-56″. Good luck getting some. Twenty drops will do.

Don Spatola

By: Dinko

Dinko — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 09:05:37 +0000

I found this recently.

I bought Braun 790 year and half ago, used original cartrige for about half year then after I found out that in Croatia are almost $30 US or 23EUR I just cleaned it with water.

Last week head become to noisy and hurt while shaving so I guess blades are not sharp as they should be.

Now crusing on eBay and saw these replacements and by asking google about this “miracle water” I found this.

So I am using this chance to ask you guys should I try to save this head with cleaning with rubbing alcohol or to buy new head and then apply your replce solution for Braun cartiges?

By: Tareq

Tareq — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 10:47:08 +0000

291 comments so far ,, that’s a wealth of opinions!
I wanted to mention one point and inquire about another,

Well, alcohol dissolves oil, true, but that’s a reversible reaction, like water and salt.. The trick is that the oil while dissolved in alcohol does not interfer much with the detregent properties alcohol, but once the last layer of alcohol dries off the surface of the metallic &moving parts of the Pulsonic razor head, the traces of oil will not evaporate, and form a uniform thin layer of oil , hence, lubrication is achieved.

My question: have you noticed any tear and wear on your Braun pulsonic over repeated times of using this formula??
Thanks again, and I will be reviewing and hopefully commenting more of your interesting articles ..
Merry xmas & Happy new year

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:26:11 +0000

Steve, It’s more likely a lack of electrical conductivity with the solution or electrical contacts ( there is a pin on the cartridge that makes contact when the shaver cleaner unit is closed) not the solution colour, but I know exactly what you mean regarding the possibility of a colour sensor….. but when you think about it, the solution is anything but clear after a few cleaning cycles so a color sensor would probably get confused!!! The original Braun solution is clear (I’ve emptied one to analyse the solution) it looks blue in the cartridge because the micro fibre filter is blue. Add a little water, a few drops at a time, rather than colour it would be interesting to see if that works.

Anon* Good that worked, pipe cleaner was it??
I use a little less baby oil in the solution now, after all it only requires a micro layer on the foil and head, and it is kept cool by contact with your skin.

Have a great Christmas all,
Greg.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 02:13:01 +0000

Greg…the denatured alcohol was evaporating and I had no idea as to why the evaporation. You nailed it. The small hole that you mentioned was plugged. It is the return for the liquid to the cartridge. It works the same as before now. It is cleaning more thoroughly too.

By: Steve P.

Steve P. — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 19:37:51 +0000

Has anyone seen a cleaning station reject the fluid?

I used denatured alcohol, some all-in-one oil and some of my favorite cologne. When I first tried to clean with it, the cleaning unit kept dropping the fluid indicator back to red and then would try again. This cycled over and over. So I thought about it and the only difference that is obvious would be the color. My solution was clear but the store bought is bluish. So I put a few drops of blue food coloring, shook it up, and the cleaning station bought it. First try. I’m a mechanical engineer and know that it would be pretty simple for the designers to put a sensor to check for clear fluid. Possibly to protect from someone trying to use plain water. Or possibly to ensure you buy their refills at $7 a pop. Regardless, I’m cleaning for about $2 a pop. Whoo-hoo. If I didn’t enjoy this kind of thing, it’d be easy to admit the $5 is worth the clean-out, refill and avoiding blue food coloring spots on my hands for a day.

By: Caregiver

Caregiver — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:55:49 +0000

Folks, be very wary of the Shaver Cleaner stuff being peddled here. Be sure to look at the description on ebay carefully. The prices vary all over the place for the same amount of product (3 refills) and the product does not include the alcohol which you have to provide yourself. So what you are buying is just the scent and the lubricating oil as well as the claim of some ‘secret’ ingredient that makes it work.

Ripoff.
BS

By: Rubicon

Rubicon — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:38:03 +0000

Both Witch Hazel and Wintergreen have been mentioned. Both are herbal oil extracts. Some Witch Hazel products also contain Wintergreen. The herbal products are both included in various concoctions that include alcohol, usually isopropyl, anywhere fro 30% to 70%. I tried a Wintergreen made by Aaron brands sold by CVS. It contained 70% Isop., water, coloring and methyl salycilate (the Wintergreen) which is an acid, essentially aspirin. It works fine except after 6 months the acid began to eat away the coating of the shaver head and discolor the plastic on the shaver body near the head, essentially anywhere the liquid touched plastic. It has no effect on the stainless steel metal parts and the plastic is intact but looks bleached by the acid.
I would not recommend Wintergreen or any product that contained it.
Witch Hazel is a herbal oil which may work better as long as no Wintergreen (Methyl Salycilate) is included.