Most people are concerned about their appearance, thus making maintenance an essential part of their daily routine. This can be achieved by following a skincare routine, doing their hair, and caring for their nails. You can take care of your nails by keeping them clean and dry and filing them using a nail file. Moreover, you can get this done at the salon or home.

However, taking care of the nail file is essential as you may contract infections such as athlete’s foot from using a dirty nail file. This is because nail file files are kept in unsanitary situations; they develop cracks and holes where harmful bacteria can harbour.

Read the following article and learn more about how you can protect your nail file.

1. Choose Superior-Quality Nail Files

When selecting nail files, you should select high-quality ones, as they offer the best service. For instance, cheap nail files always work; but deliver a different outcome. Also, you will need to replace them more often, making it not cost-effective.

On the contrary, quality nail files last a long time since they are reusable and give you the anticipated shape and look. Therefore, it is a good investment, as it alleviates your looks while being cost-effective.

Moreover, high-quality nail files promote nail health by gliding smoothly on your nails when using them. This helps prevent rough edges on the nail or cause spitting, which may destroy your nails.

However, many files in drug stores may make it harder to differentiate between high-quality and low-quality nail files. To do this effectively, there are some things you should consider, such as grit and texture. The grit of a nail file refers to its coarseness and is indicated using numbers. Also, according to texture, high-quality nail files have an etched surface to avoid slipping.

2. Take Proper Care While Handling

Taking proper care when using your nail file is another way to protect it from mishandling. There are various ways in which you can achieve this. First, you should avoid dropping it during use as its surface can easily break, further affecting its functionality.

Second, avoid placing it in the same drawers as other products, such as scissors, as they may easily scratch the surface of the nail file. Most nil files are made from emery boards, metal and crystal files, which can easily damage when put together with sharp objects.

Lastly, you should avoid sharing nail files, as you can easily transmit infections. Otherwise, if you are a nail tech and ought to use a single nail file on your customers, you should ensure you sanitize and clean it regularly.

3. Place In a Suitable Storage

After filing your nails using a nail file, store it properly until your subsequent use. Also, storing them improves their effectiveness, thus making them last longer. You can do this by first ensuring they are free from dirt or nail debris before storing them.

Additionally, if you have many files or in the case of a nail salon, you should ensure that each nail file has its case. However, if you don’t have a case for your nail file, you can buy a small pouch to store it. Also, always ensure that you don’t place any heavy objects on top of them, as it may damage the nail file’s surface.

4. Keep The Nail File Clean Regularly

As mentioned above, cleaning your nail file regularly will help prevent infections caused by bacteria. If you own or work at a nail salon, regularly cleaning shared tools is an effective method to avoid transmitting infections from one client to another.

Furthermore, there is a step-to-step guide on how to clean your nail file. First, ensure that there is no nail debris on the file. You can do this by gently tapping it or scrubbing it with a soft brush. Next, you can use water and soap or disinfectant methods to clean it.

The water and soap method entails submerging and soaking the nail file in a bowl of clean water with mild detergent for a few minutes. After that, gently scrub the surface with a soft brush, rinse it by towel drying or air drying it, and then store it properly.

Moreover, for the disinfectant solution method, place the nail file in any recommended disinfectant solution. After that, run water on the nail file to remove any disinfectant, dry it using a towel, and store it properly.

5. Avoid Sharing Your Nail File

Finally, you should avoid sharing your nail file with others as it increases the risk of transmitting infections. For instance, when you use a nail file on an infected nail, then give your friend to use the file before disinfecting it, your friend might catch the same nail infection.

Also, everyone and their grooming techniques are unique; therefore, you might not achieve the desired nail look when using your friend’s nail tools.

Bottom-Line

Pedicures and manicures have become a part of maintenance for most people. Therefore, it is crucial that you protect your pedicure tools. One of the most common tools used when grooming nails is the nail file to ensure you get the desired nail shape and smooth edges.

Various way in which you can protect your nail file is by cleaning them after use. There are two ways you can achieve this. First, clean it with water and mild soap; second, use a disinfectant solution. In addition to cleaning the nail file, how you store it also matters. Thus, when storing, you should ensure that you store them separately and that no heavy objects are on them.