2 Ways to Safely Clean Acrylic Nail Brushes Without Monomer

Keeping your acrylic nail brush clean and in good condition is very important. You see a dirty or worn-out brush can interfere with both sculpting and picking up a good bead.

Now you can use the acrylic liquid monomer – which is the safest way to clean your brush. But monomer is very slow and isn’t very effective, especially at breaking down and removing really dried-up acrylic.

And because of how weak the monomer is, you might end up using too much force to scrape away the acrylic which can damage your brush.

So that’s why in this article I am gonna walk you through how you can easily and safely yet effectively clean your acrylic nail brushes.

The best ways to clean your acrylic nail brushes without using monomer are:

Using Acetone – Most effective, affordable and fastest method
Soaking in a Brush Cleaner – The safest method but costs more and takes longer to work.

Table Of Content show

1- How to Clean Acrylic Nail Brushes With Acetone

The best and quickest way to clean your acrylic nail brush is by using acetone.

Firstly, pour out some acetone into a container.
Next, hang the bristles of your brush into the acetone for 2-3 minutes – the harder the acrylic is the longer you need to let it soak.
Only let the bristles of the brush soak in the acetone not the body of the brush – which is why you need to hold the brush whilst it is soaking.
Once the brush has soaked, use your fingers and gently break up and remove the acrylic.
Next, wipe the acrylic brush onto a paper towel to remove any leftover acrylic and the acetone.
Finally, dip your brush into some liquid monomer to rehydrate and recondition it.

Recommended acetone – I use pure acetone, you can click here to see the price for a bottle of pure acetone on Amazon.

Video of How to Use Acetone to Clean Acrylic Nail Brush Without Monomer

Can You Use Acetone to Clean Acrylic Nail Brushes with Natural Fibers

Acetone can safely be used to clean acrylic nail brushes that are made of both Natural fibers (Kolinsky and Sable) and Synthetic fibers.

Tips on Using Acetone to Clean Acrylic Nail Brushes

1- Avoid the Body Of the Brush From Touching the Acetone

You see if the acetone touches the body of the brush it can damage it and also potentially weaken the glue holding the bristles in place.

This is why you need to only let the bristles of the brush soak in the acetone.

2- Recondition the Brush After Soaking

Acetone will dehydrate the bristles of your brush which is why it is important to condition and rehydrate back the bristles. To do so just soak your bristles into some liquid monomer.

Now if you had to soak your brush for an extended period of time I recommend applying some oil onto the brush and then soaking it into the monomer. Any kind of oil would work.

3- Use a Separate Container that is Deep Enough to Soak Your Brush

Do not dip the brush into your bottle of acetone, instead use a separate container. This is to avoid contaminating the rest of your acetone.

Also, you need to ensure that the container is acetone resistant and deep enough to allow the brush to soak without having to touch the bottom.

If the brush rests on the bottom it can reshape the bristles of the brush.

4- Wear Gloves & Be Gentle

I highly recommend using your fingers when removing the acrylic from the bristles – I see some people use a cuticle pusher to scrape off the acrylic.

But when you use your fingers you tend to be more gentle and thus you avoid damaging the brush.

You should also wear gloves when touching both acetone and monomer to avoid irritating your skin.

2- How to Clean Acrylic Nail Brushes with a Brush Cleaner

A brush cleaner is a specially formulated chemical used to safely clean acrylic and gel nail brushes.

They tend to be safer when compared to using acetone, but brush cleaners tend to take longer to work and they cost more.

Firstly pour out some of the brush cleaner into a container.
Then, soak your acrylic nail brush into the solution for 5-10 minutes
Next, use your fingers and gently remove any acrylic in the brush
And then wipe your brush onto a paper towel
Finally, dip your brush into some monomer to rehydrate the brush.

Recommended Acrylic Nail Brush Cleaners are:

1- Tammy Taylor’s Brush Cleaner is a premium brand that is highly effective yet very safe.

You can click here to see the price for a bottle on Amazon.

2- Super Nail’s Brush Cleaner is a budget-friendly option. You c an click here to see the price for a bottle on Amazon.