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How to sanitize a blade

Me too :eek:

They must have cuz I didn't hear any screaming coming from the bathroom ;)
 
Charlie Mike said:
+1 for bleach.

I heard from acquaintances that shot dope that bleaching a rig out would kill everything. If it works on a rig, it should work on a blade.
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What's a rig? I've put it in bleach for the last two days, when will I know when it is ready? Will I still be able to use the steal wool after to remove the rust and fix the blade up a bit?
 
A "rig" is a hypodermic syringe or jerry-rigged equivalent for injecting drugs. Don't go there.

5 minutes in household bleach will probably kill anything you have on there. Soaking for two days is not needed and will only increase oxidation. (bleach is an oxidizer as well as a disinfectant, you can actually start a fire with powdered bleach and pretty much any reasonably dry organic material. No, I'm not going to tell you how.)

Yes, you can use steel wool afterwards.
 
Will using these on your blades damage the steel? I agree that they are great for cleaning, however I don't want to damage a knife either.

Thanks,
Scott
 
I know as a matter of fact that bleach does not completely sterilize things like syringes of Hepatitus according to a news story that I saw a while ago.But it sure does come awful close to killing everything.

The fact is there surely is no way to be positively certainly it's sterile unless it was sent to a lab for testing.
 
Hepatitis is pretty amazingly resilient stuff (much more so than even HIV), so it might (emphasis on "might") survive a quick rub-down with bleach. Nothing's going to survive a thorough soak, though.
 
Samael said:
Hepatitis is pretty amazingly resilient stuff (much more so than even HIV), so it might (emphasis on "might") survive a quick rub-down with bleach. Nothing's going to survive a thorough soak, though.
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HIV is a wuss, disinfectant-wise. Rubbing alcohol will shred it. Hepatitis B & C need a bit stronger- a soak with bleach is just what the doctor ordered.

Of course, nothing beats 145C for 15 minutes. Not great for blades, but kills everything in sight except spores.
 
Boiling will not harm the steel. Boiling water only gets up to about 212F. To detemper the blade, you have to get up to at least about 350F. Even medical autoclaves don't get much above about 250F. Boiling or autoclaving may not be good for some handle materials, of course.

Keep in mind, of course, that heat and moisture will accelerate rust. So, boiling or autoclaving a rust-prone alloy of steel is not a good idea.
 
To properly "sanitize" a knife, you must physcially remove all identifying marks and clues to where it was manufactured and/or who issued it. :cool:

Sorry, but you know someone was going to say it.
 
Alcohol works, and scotch is usually close by. I have used Scotch over the years for cleaning knives, and for cleaning up cuts n scrapes, and as a prep for minor in home surgery for slivers, stings and such.
 
Bufford said:
Alcohol works, and scotch is usually close by. I have used Scotch over the years for cleaning knives, and for cleaning up cuts n scrapes, and as a prep for minor in home surgery for slivers, stings and such.
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Blasphemy!! Whiskey is for sipping. :grumpy:
 
what the heck are you gents having to clean off your blades? road tar? construction adhesive?

blood, wood chips/tar/sap, just about all come off with a little time, oil, and effort and a decent terry cloth. confused.
 
Bleach solution will kill most microbes,hand sanitiser is not too bad.Hibiscrub is what they use in hospitals,but a quick 15 mins in a pressure cooker will be pretty effective as this will mirror the operations of an autoclave.There are other materials commonly available that would easily break down keratin and DNA(I won't tell),but they are pretty corrosive and you really do not want them on your knives.
 
How bout ammonia?
 
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