Cleaning horse brushes is an important part of caring for your horse equipment. When cleaning horse brushes the techniques varies by what type of brush it is.
How to Clean Synthetic Horse Brushes -- Synthetic brushes should be cared for differently than natural fiber brushes. To clean a synthetic fiber brush you should start by raking it across a curry comb, or other brush vigorously. This will dislodge dirt and dust and begin to clean the worst of the dirt out. After most of the visible dirt and hair has been dislodged, Use a hose- preferably at a high pressure, to wash out the remaining hair and dirt. Remove as much hair from the horse brush as you can. If the brush will be used on a different horse that it has been used on, you may want to bleach the bristles of the brush. Bleaching the bristles is the best way to get a horse brush most clean, but may contribute to deterioration of the bristles. Fill a bucket with water and add a capful of bleach. Drop the synthetic brush in the bucket of bleach-water and allowed to sit for an hour. Rinse thoroughly and your synthetic brush will be clean! Synthetic horse brushes may also be washed in the dishwasher-- Just be sure and prewash the brush and run an empty load in your dishwasher following, for sanitary reasons.
How to Clean Natural Fiber Horse Brushes -- Caring for natural fiber horse brushes can be a bit more complicated. Because the brushes are made of a natural fiber they must be cared for more gently. To clean a natural fiber horse brush, rake the horse brush over a curry or similar rough grooming tool vigorously. Try to get as much dirt and hair out of the horse brush as you can. For natural fiber brushes, the best method for cleaning may be using a vacuum to suck the remaining debris out of the horse brush. Water should be used careful with a natural fiber brush, especially if it is leather backed. Natural fiber brushes may also be sterilized when switching horses but instead of completely submerging the horse brush in bleach water,only the tips of the bristles should be dunked in diluted bleach and should be rinsed thoroughly then left in the sun to dry. Direct sunlight will kill most types of bacteria on a brush. If the natural fiber brush has a leather backing you may want to finish cleaning the horse brush by applying a leather conditioner to the backing.
