How To Make Braun Shaver Cleaning Solution

An automatic cleaning station is definitely prissy to take every bit it takes complete intendance of cleaning and lubricating your electrical shaver.

You could of grade do these operations yourself, but it'southward more than convenient to simply toss the shaver into the station and have it thoroughly cleaned and completely charged, set for your next shave.

And with Braun shavers that utilise their trademark cassettes that integrate the blades and foils into a single enclosed piece, a cleaning station is genuinely useful.

All the same, using a Braun station also implies constantly buying new Clean & Renew cartridges. And the costs of buying new refills can really add up.

Luckily, there are a few cost-effective alternatives out there, ranging from DIY solutions to tertiary-party, ready-made refills.

In this article nosotros'll focus on the latter and check out ii of the more than popular products of this blazon (and arguably the best).

They promise results that are at least as good as the OEM cartridges for just a fraction of the price, so we'll see just how well they work and likewise how they compare to Braun's own cleaning solution.

Permit's get started.

Table of Contents

Buying a 3rd-party solution vs making your own from scratch
What are the best third-party cleaning solutions for Braun cc stations?
Preparing and using our cleaning solution
- 1. CCRREFILLS
- 2. Cleanerist/PROline
Cleaning operation and how they compare to the original Braun solution
Conclusion

Buying a 3rd-party solution vs making your own from scratch

First of all, I accept to mention that I am non sponsored or endorsed in any way by the manufacturers of these refills.

I bought the products myself to use them with my Braun cleaning stations and thought my experience would exist useful to others every bit well.

With that said, y'all probably know that you can also make your own cleaning solution using only bones ingredients by contrary applied science Braun's cleaning solution.

However, at least from a practical standpoint, the use of set-made products is preferable (and safer). And that'due south the principal reward of these solutions: convenience.

They're like shooting fish in a barrel to buy, prepare, and store.

Cleanerist ready-made solution. — The set up-fabricated solution from Cleanerist.

The cost per refill is extremely reasonable and you'll have the peace of mind of using a product that was thoroughly tested and is backed by hundreds of user reviews, pretty much all of them positive.

In the case of a homemade solution, apart from the difficulty of getting all the ingredients, in that location'due south the catchy problem of getting the proportions just correct.

This is of import in order for the solution to work properly and the station can even evidence an empty cartridge warning if the electric electrical conductivity of the fluid is not inside certain parameters.

While there are means to get effectually this like calculation more water to your mix, I would actually prefer using a ready-made solution or concentrate packets that only require mixing with 500ml of lxx% to 100% booze and avert all the hassle.

Yes, making your own solution would likely bring the costs downwardly even more than, only again, I recall third-political party solutions are worth information technology for the completely hassle-free experience.

I am not by whatever means suggesting that you shouldn't follow the other approach; in fact, I will exist sharing a detailed guide on that every bit well as soon as I have perfected and tested the recipe thoroughly.

Only for now, nosotros'll focus on these prepare-made solutions.

What are the all-time third-party cleaning solutions for Braun cc stations?

For the by few years, I've been on a abiding quest of trying to observe cheaper solutions for my Braun cleaning stations that would perform satisfactorily.

Out of all the brands out there, 2 stood upwards in particular: the concentrate packets from CCRREFILLS.com and the prepare-made Cleanerist or PROline solutions.

Name	Type	Price
CCRREFILLS packets	Concentrated solution	See on Amazon
Cleanerist	Ready-made solution	See on Amazon.co.united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland

In terms of effectiveness, costs and overall operation, these 2 are arguably the best in my stance.

The CCRREFILLS packets are quite popular in the USA, while the Cleanerist alcohol-based solution is only available in Europe.

The packets must be mixed with 500 ml alcohol, while the Cleanerist solution should be used equally information technology is.

Let's now see how to use them, starting with the concentrate packets.

Preparing and using our cleaning solution

ane. CCRREFILLS

As yous're about to see, it's extremely piece of cake to do and you can't really do anything incorrect.

The full-bodied solution comes in these small-scale packets that tin can be bought in bundles of 2, 3, 5, x or 25 pieces.

I highly recommend getting at least a pack of 2 as the price per packet volition be significantly lower and you'll be needing them anyway. Also, they take up virtually no storage space.

A single bundle will be enough to refill a Braun cartridge iii times, so ownership a 10 pack for instance volition allow y'all to refill a cartridge 30 times for approximately $1 per refill. That's fantastic value for money.

The refills come in 5 flavors: Lime, Lemon, Orange, Peppermint and unscented. I went with the Lemon scent just to compare it to the original Braun CCR solution.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how to make the solution.

1. Clean your existing Braun CCR cartridge thoroughly

Empty the remaining content of a used Braun cartridge.

Make certain to remove the liquid through the modest opening as the large i contains a very fine mesh filter and the hair clippings won't become through. We want to remove as many of them as we tin.

Make full the container with tap h2o through the small hole, put the plastic cap back on firmly and shake information technology vigorously.

Empty the content again through the pocket-size orifice. Repeat this footstep at least 5 times in order to remove as much droppings equally possible.

Don't worry if y'all cannot get all of the hairs out, they're very difficult to remove as they'll stick to the walls of the cartridge.

Yous can see in the picture below my result afterwards rinsing the container for x minutes. That doesn't wait particularly clean.

In gild to remove the remaining hairs, pour a bit of dish wash soap in the cartridge (through the small hole), add some water, then shake it a few times.

Empty the content and rinse it very well until there's no foam left.

Here's how it looks after using lather, definitely much cleaner:

If you tin can exercise a better job than me, smashing. If not, don't stress also much about information technology.

Just brand sure to give the cartridge a skillful milk shake and remove all the water before proceeding to the next step.

2. Mix the full-bodied solution with 500 ml (xvi oz) of lxx% to 100% rubbing alcohol

Y'all can use either Isopropyl or Ethanol. I used Isopropyl booze every bit that's all I could detect at a nearby store.

Side note: According to some reports, Isopropyl booze can cause some condom and plastic parts to degrade in fourth dimension. While Braun's very own solution contains either one or the other, it would probably be safer to stick to using Ethanol.

Since the concentration was 100%, I used some distilled water to bring it down to somewhere between 70% and 80%.

I could take very well used it equally it was without whatever issues, merely I wanted to brand this test equally relevant as possible. And since the bulk will be using 70% alcohol as that'south the almost common variation, I thought I should also.

Cutting the height part of the bundle with pair of scissors and pour the whole content over 500ml (16 oz) alcohol (I used a 1L clean plastic bottle).

Pouring the concentrated liquid into 500ml of alcohol.

Shake the bottle to mix the content.

As mentioned previously, I went with the Lemon variation and it smells very similar to Braun'southward original refills.

The manufacturer even includes a sticker and then y'all won't confuse the bottle with something else similar plain alcohol.

three. Cascade the solution into the container, making sure not to top it off

You should shake the canteen every time before refilling your cartridge. The 500 ml/16 oz of cleaning solution will allow you to refill a cartridge 3 times.

Pour the solution through the pocket-size hole and fill the container to approximately ¼" from the top.

Failing to do and so will effect in the solution alluvion the container during the cleaning process and prevent the shaver from drying completely.

That'southward pretty much information technology.

2. Cleanerist/PROline

Using the ready-made solution from Cleanerist (or PROline) is even simpler since you don't need a bottle or any alcohol.

In order to make clean the cartridge, just follow the same steps above.

Pour the solution into an empty cartridge, once more filling it to approximately ¼" from the meridian. And that'due south really information technology.

You tin immediately discover that the liquid has a blueish tint compared to the original Braun solution.

Cleanerist cartridge (left) vs Braun original refill (right).

The fragrance is again very similar to my nose, but even more potent than the Lemon variation from CCRREFILLS.

Cleaning functioning and how they compare to the original Braun solution

The ingredients of the concentrated refills are very simple (and drastically different from Braun's original solution): food course motorcar oil, essential oil and water.

Again, if yous can get these ingredients and you lot're willing to play around with the proportions, I encounter no reason why you couldn't make your own solution for even less money.

Food class car oil is basically a highly refined mineral oil that's safety to utilise on equipment that comes into contact with food.

The utilise of information technology in these refills is clearly for the purpose of lubricating the blades. The original Braun solution didn't have any oil in it and I guess it solely relied upon the lubricating properties of Limonen or Citral.

I've been using the CCRRefills solution exclusively for one calendar month before writing this review.

I cleaned my Series 5, 7 and 9 with it and never switched to an original cartridge during this whole testing period.

I'thousand glad to say that the results are GREAT. Apart from the fragrance not being as stiff equally the one in Braun's refills, I oasis't found any differences whatsoever.

series-7-cleaning-process — The Braun Series vii during the automatic cleaning procedure. The station signals a total cartridge.

None of the stations ever signaled an empty cartridge and the cleaning process always went smoothly, just every bit information technology would when using an OEM refill cartridge.

My shavers were always clean and lubricated; I haven't noticed anything unusual and they performed neat, merely like earlier.

I realize that i month is probably not plenty to draw a final conclusion, but so far the results are actually impressive.

I will update this post as time passes in case I detect anything significant.

UPDATE: I take been using it for more 3 years without whatever issues.

I can strongly recommend these refills as a (significantly) more cost-effective alternative to Braun's cleaning solution, peculiarly if you live in the Usa.

Rubbing booze is dirt cheap and widely bachelor and the overall cost of a refill obtained in this manner will be a lot lower compared to the original.

Meet the price on Amazon

As for the Cleanerist solution, the results were merely as impressive.

In fact, I actually prefer information technology to the concentrated CCRREFILLS packs because it's even easier to employ, requiring no mixing with booze.

See the toll on Amazon.co.united kingdom

I likewise alive in Europe, so it's much easier for me to buy it.

Alternatively, if yous tin't find the Cleanerist brand anymore, the PROline Cleaner fluid is pretty much the same stuff.

They can also exist bought in bundles, lowering the costs even more. A bottle has 1 liter of solution, so you tin can fill a cartridge upwardly to 7 times.

The ingredient list of the Cleanerist resembles a lot more the original Braun solution: aliphatic hydrocarbons (less than v%), fragrance, Citral, d-Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool, Hexyl cinnamaldehyde.

Again, I never had whatever issues with the shavers or with the stations signaling an empty cartridge.

Determination

If yous were on the fence nigh buying a Braun shaver that comes with a cleaning station because that would crash-land upwardly your costs of ownership, these truly are feasible alternatives that volition drastically reduce your expenses.

And you can lower them fifty-fifty more with just 3 easy steps that will make the cleaning solution terminal a lot longer.

From now on you would merely need to buy original Braun CCR cartridges when the filter on yours becomes clogged with dirt or gets damaged. Merely from my experience it will accept a lot of refilling earlier that happens.

If y'all take farther questions or would similar to share your experience with these products or your own bootleg solution, make sure to leave a comment below.