How to Clean and Disinfect Nail Tools: A Practical Guide

By the Nove Academy Team | Nove Wholesale

A freshly reset nail station feels good to sit down at. But the important work happens before the clean towel and neatly arranged tools. A reliable cleaning routine protects your clients, looks after your equipment, and helps you start each appointment ready.

You don’t need a complicated routine—you need the right steps, the right product, and enough time for it to work. Here’s a practical guide for your nail desk, using products available at Nove.

The quick answer: Clean reusable tools before disinfecting them, use the level of disinfection required for the tool, and allow the full contact time. Discard single-use items after use. Clean and disinfect the station between clients, and keep processed tools protected until needed.

This guide follows Saskatchewan guidance and Canadian product instructions. If you work elsewhere, check your local public-health requirements too. Always use the current label and your tool manufacturer’s instructions.

Cleaning, Disinfecting, and Sterilizing Aren’t the Same

For Saskatchewan nail services, reusable metal implements such as clippers, nippers, and pushers are listed for high-level disinfection. General surfaces need a surface disinfectant; soaking bowls and jetted foot tubs need intermediate-level disinfection. A quick wipe isn’t the same treatment as a proper instrument soak.

Where sterilization is required, Saskatchewan guidance specifies approved steam sterilizers and monitoring. Don’t assume a bottle’s “chemical sterilant” claim replaces that local requirement.

Pro Tip from Nove Academy: Give your station supplies and your instrument-processing supplies separate homes. It makes it much easier to reach for the right product when you’re resetting between appointments.

Step 1: Separate Reusable Tools from Single-Use Items

Start by sorting what you’ve used. Put reusable tools in a designated dirty-tool container, away from clean supplies. Discard single-use files, buffers, sanding bands, wooden sticks, and other disposables after use. Keeping them in a client-labelled bag does not make them reusable.

Check hands and nails before starting a service. Don’t work over broken, irritated, or visibly infected areas. Clean your hands between clients and before handling clean tools; gloves don’t replace hand hygiene.

Pro Tip from Nove Academy: Keep enough sets of reusable tools to cover cleaning, the full disinfection cycle, drying, and storage. Your next appointment should never depend on taking a set out of the bath early.

Step 2: Clean Before You Disinfect

1. Wash reusable tools with detergent and water, using the method recommended for the tool. Remove residue from grooves and joints.
2. Rinse thoroughly. Leftover cleaner and debris don’t belong in the disinfectant bath.
3. Dry and inspect. If residue remains, clean again. Remove damaged or corroded tools from use.
4. Use appropriate protection. Follow the product label and safety data sheet for gloves, eye protection, and handling.

An ultrasonic cleaner can help with cleaning when suitable for the tool, but it does not replace disinfection or sterilization. Likewise, nail dehydrator, gel cleanser, acetone, and ordinary wipes aren’t substitutes for the required instrument disinfectant.

Step 3: Choose the Right Product for the Job

These PREempt options serve different purposes. You don’t need both instrument solutions—choose the compatible option that fits your approved routine.

Follow the complete label, including temperature and material-compatibility requirements. CS20 and HLD5 are instrument-immersion products, not sprays for your tabletop. Never mix disinfectants or add fragrance.

For e-file bits: check both the bit maker’s reprocessing instructions and the disinfectant’s compatibility guidance. PREempt’s CS20 instrument-disinfection protocol specifically excludes carbide bits. Don’t put every bit into the same bath just because it looks metallic. Never immerse an electric-file handpiece unless its manufacturer explicitly permits it.

Pro Tip from Nove Academy: Use a timer. Start it only when the tools are fully immersed, with all required surfaces in contact with the solution. Guessing how long they’ve been soaking is easy to avoid.

Step 4: Rinse, Dry, and Store

For the PREempt instrument-disinfection process, remove tools when the required time is complete, rinse as directed, and dry with a clean cloth or disposable towel. Store them in a clean, covered container labelled “Disinfected.” Keep dirty tools completely separate.

Don’t soak overnight. Extra time isn’t a substitute for the correct process and can cause compatibility problems. Keep the soaking tray covered when not in use.

CS20 and HLD5 have an up-to-14-day reuse period in the soaking tray, subject to the label and concentration checks. Use CS20 Test Strips for CS20 and HLD5 Test Strips for HLD5. Check before each use as directed, follow strip expiry and reading instructions, and record the results and solution-change date. Replace failed or visibly contaminated solution immediately; don’t top it up to rescue a failed test.

Step 5: Give the Whole Station a Reset

Clear away disposables and remove visible dust and soil before disinfecting. Include the tabletop, washable hand rest, touched controls, and other contact surfaces. Follow equipment instructions around electronics and openings.

PREempt Wipes are convenient here. Use enough fresh wipes to maintain the full wet contact time; don’t wipe the surface dry early. Nove also carries 160-sheet refill packs—follow the refill instructions and transfer the expiry information to the canister.

For pedicures, a liner does not replace the footbath’s cleaning and disinfection procedure. Follow the basin manufacturer’s instructions and the disinfectant label, including any circulation, rinsing, and end-of-day steps.

Pro Tip from Nove Academy: Build the reset into your appointment timing. Lay out the next clean set only after the station has completed its disinfection and drying steps.

A Few Common Questions

Can I just spray alcohol on my tools?

A quick alcohol spray is not a high-level disinfection process for reusable nail implements. Use the treatment required for the tool, with the correct product and full contact time.

Does a UV cabinet sterilize nail tools?

Not as an approved replacement for sterilization under Saskatchewan guidance. A gel-curing lamp isn’t a tool sterilizer either.

Does putting a tool in a sterilization pouch make it sterile?

No. The pouch is packaging for a compatible sterilization process. Neither sealing a pouch nor seeing an indicator change replaces the required cycle, monitoring, and records.

What if I accidentally nick a client?

Stop the service and follow your blood-exposure and first-aid procedure. Set contaminated tools aside for the required reprocessing, discard contaminated single-use items appropriately, and clean and disinfect affected surfaces using the label’s blood/body-fluid directions. Don’t simply wipe the tool and keep going.

Make It a Routine You Can Repeat

A clear dirty-to-clean workflow, a timer, and a simple solution log make this much easier to manage. If you’re unsure which process a particular tool needs, check with its manufacturer and your local public health inspector before using it again.

For more station guidance, read our electric file and bit guide and nail ventilation guide. The Nove team can help you find the supplies that fit your routine.

Helpful References

Checked October 5, 2026. Keep these handy alongside your current product labels:

• Saskatchewan personal-service guidance and public health contacts
• Saskatchewan Nail Services Information Sheet
• Instrument Reprocessing — Disinfection, and Sterilization
• PREempt nail-technician protocols, CS20 protocol, and product-use FAQs