Cleaning gunk out of brushes

[Jaideux]

Wouldn’t you know… the household Listerine has gone missing. Possibly used up (yay oral hygiene!).

This Woolite idea… does it have to be Woolite? Or will any wash detergent do? Because I have some allergen-free “ALL” brand detergent and also “Gain” (smells like apples!).

And, I have a generic brand blue dish soap… will that be worth a try?

I also have dishwasher detergent in those little meltable packets.

I brought all my brushes home tonight to wash… I really don’t want to schlep them back to the barn tomorrow just to bring 'em home again, so I’m willing to try anything at home if it’s not likely to make things worse

[Bluesy]

Baking soda and or vinegar.

[Jaideux]

For anyone on the edge of their seats wondering what I ended up doing, I used the generic blue dish soap generously poured into a bucked with a combo of sink-hot and boiling-hot water. They soaked for no more than 30 minutes- honestly possibly closer to 15.

And the gunk just melted off like magic.

It was so easy (and made me feel so productive!) that I kind of wish I had more gross brushes… I would almost call it “fun”

[Valentina_32926]

I always put mine in the washing machine before a show so when horse is cleab so are brushes.

Dishwasher (top rack) would probably do well also on the Pots and Pan cycle.

[Whoanellie]

[QUOTE=Woodsperson;5228698]
I run a load in the dishwasher periodically.[/QUOTE]

This! I put vinegar in the dishwasher. Helps with the hardwater build up in the dishwasher too. Once done, remove brushes & send dishwasher through rinse cycle again to remove any residue.

Dishwasher also works well for those sweat stained ball caps from the summer. We have hot summers and all my ball caps have sweat marks after a day or two. Put them on the top rack and add a suitable soap. When done, place cap on 3 lb. coffee can to retain their shape. They come out looking pretty darn good. I’ve had some of these caps since 2000! (Though they are a bit tattered from years of sun and fun!).

[Lori_B]

Yeah, I’m a bit fussy about clean brushes. For some reason my girl tends to be dandruffy, and her rubber curries get icky very quickly; the bristle brushes not so much. I do the hot water / listerine cleaning of the rubber curries nearly every week.

Vinegar would work well, and the Dawn detergent tip is appreciated.

Dishwashers are particularly good for that stuff that’s hard to get off of bits. Eww.

[Miss_J]

OMG!!! :eek:I was busted lastnight!!! my BF isn’t a meany, but I did have an inkling he wouldn’t like a smelly horse blanket in the washing machine…I had it in the dryer and you could smell horse throughout the whole house…I thought it smelled nice…him , not so much LoL:lol:

[mkevent]

If you promise not to laugh, I’ll fess up…

I have a hot pot in the barn and boil water every time I groom. I put a little bit of the hot water in the bottom of a bucket then dip my curry comb and tail brush in that and rub them together to clean off the dirt. I then use the wet curry comb to clean my brushes, dipping it in the hot water between brush strokes. I don’t usually dip the brushes in the hot water because they don’t always dry before the next use. I do this each time I groom and never get a gunky buildup on my brushes. An added bonus is I then have warm water left over from the hot pot to use to wipe down my tack.

Oh, and I get razzed constantly that I admit to doing this.

[Scribbler]

@ParkPrince

Why not try something new, or say, something that is more convenient and powerful? Silicon sponge is a good choice to clean kitchen stuffs and it does not require too much care or needs to be cleaned to often.

Reported

[WildandWickedWarmblo]

I put them in the washing machine and wash with Tide.
I have used the dishwasher as well

How old is this thread?

[red_mares]

Another vote for the dishwasher. It does a great job on stirrups & bits too. Any horse stuff (non leather) I consign goes through the dishwasher first.

[FLeventer]

I put mine in the washing machine. Then put on a towel to dry. No issues.