Sterile Toothbrush Storage

Among the most germ-infected areas of a home are its bathrooms. Everything from flushing, to steamy showers and other splashing activities are going on there every day.

This is also the area most of us use to brush our teeth. Our toothbrushes go into our mouths several times a day and the bristles get covered with not only what ever we've eaten, but all the mist that's been floating around in the air.

This is one of the first 3D projects I ever printed and it's served me faithfully for years. Not only has my toothbrush been constantly sterilized, but I'm always confident that I'm not sticking things my mother was always telling me were bad, into my mouth this morning.

Step 1: Clean Up Your Act

Alcohol is the the preferable sterilizing fluid and what I used for several years. The problem was, even thought the top of the holder is relatively sealed closed, there's always some evaporation going on and every month or so, I'd have to dig out the rubbing alcohol to top it off. Then I began using mouthwash, which also kills germs and doesn't evaporate nearly as fast. It also tastes better, even though rinsing the brush off before using it is always recommended before loading it up with paste.

For the glass part I used a spice bottle. The one I used was an old whole cove bottle, but any round 2" diameter spice bottle will fit the base. The top is also designed for the same diameter bottle and the cap threads are only tabs, which should cover any bottle with those dimensions out there.

The pictures show everything necessary to put things together. The only other item I used was a thin rubberized sheet of plastic glued to the bottom of the base to keep it from sliding into the sink or onto the floor.

This is a simple project that will have many benefits in your future. Including the lack of guilt for sticking things into your mouth your mother wouldn't normally approve of.

A late note: After publishing this, I checked the stl files and discovered they were blank. These are years old, and probably lost into the ether. I pulled the finalized files used for my personal use, modified to fit my toothbrush (the cheapest kind). the opening into the bottle is round, but the upper portion is a bit egg-shaped to better fit the handle of my brush. If your handle is the same, you lucked out. If not, and you want to keep it round, you'll have to do a bit of modifying.

Comments

[bfk]

Hi. Thanks for wriiting. The base & top are 3D printed. The STL files needed to print them can be found at the Introduction of the Instrucable. If you don't have access to a printer, a 3D printing service can make them for you. Choose one online or locally. This is a great way to get prints without having to invest in a printer.

[mshonnie]

You did not specify where you obtained the top and bottom from but it looks like it came from a egg timer or something like that can you please specify where you got the base and top from