As a result of reevaluating my dental ablutions I have adopted the modified Bass brushing technique. With this technique one grips the toothbrush similar to a pen, places the brush head such that it is half on the tooth and half on the gum, and tilts the brush to about a 45 degree angle. Then it’s your standard circular movement with very little pressure. Other variants use short horizontal strokes instead of circles, or add a sweep away from the gumline when finishing a section. I’m told that some version of this is the most effective technique. It requires fine motor control, which probably explains why none of us were taught it as small children. But, better late that never.

One of the nice side effects of this technique is that doing it right takes about two minutes. Previously, when just mindlessly brushing without attempting to apply a specific technique, I would divide the mouth into quadrants and try to spend about 30 seconds in each so that I’d reach that 2 minute target that everybody says should be the goal. But that does not necessarily result in an even distribution of the work. Trying to target a specific time is dumb. Timers, whether standalone or integrated into the toothbrush, are dumb. No magic results from simply having the brush in your mouth for 2 minutes. Instead, adopt the correct technique, apply it properly, and let the time take care of itself.

Useful demonstrations, which helped me as I was trying to figure out the motion and its variants (while the “Bass technique” is a specific thing, the “modified” in “modified Bass technique” seems to mean different things to different people), are here and here and here.

The guide published by Curaprox is a helpful summary of how to brush one’s teeth. I first used their toothbrush last year and could not figure out why the handle was shaped the way it is. Then this year I learned how to properly brush my teeth. Turns out their design is actually pretty good. But I haven’t come across anything that makes me think one particular model of toothbrush is any better than the other. It just needs to have soft bristles and fit in your mouth. Since moving to this technique, I have found myself preferring a smaller head than I did previously. The Curaprox CS 5460 and Nimbus Compact both check those boxes for me, but I’m sure there’s about a billion other models out there that do as well.

One of my recent projects has been to reevaluate my dental ablutions. As it turns out, mankind’s knowledge has progressed since I was first taught to brush my teeth as a toddler, and some of my practices wanted updating.

I bought my first tongue scraper back in 2018. It was one of those U-shaped copper ones from India. I used it occasionally, but did not incorporate it into my daily ritual until I began this reevaluation at the end of last year. I have decided that I do like using tongue scrapers, and want to do so daily, but I always found the two-handed nature of this style vaguely annoying. I had previously come across the one-handed models that are more spooned shaped, and had even seen that Tongue Sweeper makes a titanium version. As an addict for anything titanium, I immediately wanted this for no other reason than it was titanium. But at $42 I could not justify the cost.

Then last month I happened to see the Tongue Sweeper Titanium Pro on eBay for only $27. Obviously I bought it.

Given the price discrepancy, I assumed this was going to be a knock-off, or a unit from a box that fell off a truck somewhere. But it shipped direct from Tongue Sweeper Actual, is serialized, and included a certificate of authenticity in the box.

So now I clean my tongue with titanium every morning, and I feel like a million bucks doing it.

That old copper U-shaped one weighs 30 grams. I have never travelled with it, and would never travel with it. The new titanium one? 7 grams (including the colored silicone ring). I bought this after returning from my recent 3-week bicycle tour this Spring, so I haven’t actually travelled with it yet. But at 7 grams, I probably will.

I like to spend time on my floor. This requires cleaning the floor. A good vacuum is part of the solution, but the floor must also be washed. This necessitates a mop.

I was not good about mopping for a long time. I could never find a mop that was both effective and pleasant to use. That changed 2 years ago when I bought the Quick Loop. I think it’s great. It has turned me into a regular mopper.

The Quick Loop is based on the same idea as a Cuban mop, but with the addition of a coiled steel spring that has two loops. The loops allow a towel to be quickly secured to the head, rather than just having the towel folded over a dowel, as in the Cuban option.

My floors are all either ceramic tile or Redwood. I primarily load the Quick Loop with automotive microfiber towels that measure 16” x 24”. Any towel of roughly those dimensions works fine. I use the microfiber towel dry, but spray the floor with diluted Bronner’s Sal Suds and then mop that up.

I have yet to tango with it.

After posting about my toothpaste capsules last year, Ze Stuart wrote to ask if I had ever considered toothpowder. He recommended Eco-Dent DailyCare.

I had not brushed with a commercial toothpowder product before, though had tried carrying baking soda on some backpacking trips for this application. I was never happy with the result. Mostly I think it was just that the lack of foaming and mint flavor, both of which I’ve been psychologically conditioned to associate with “clean”.

Eco-Dent was available locally, so I bought a bottle and started using it. Application is easy: wet the brush, squirt out a bit of the powder from the bottle’s flip top lid, and brush like normal. After brushing for a second the powder froths up, and the experience is more or less the same as brushing with toothpaste.

The label claims that the 2 oz bottle can provide “up to 200 brushings”, which I find to be inaccurate. My first bottle lasted me 350 days. I brush twice a day, so that is 700 brushings. That works out to be about $0.01 per use, which is better than any toothpaste can offer. (Perhaps they expect you to use more of the powder per brushing than I do, but I always use enough to generate the same frothy lather I’d expect from toothpaste.)

When travelling, I repackage the powder into a 0.25 oz bottle. That is plenty for a week or two, takes up no space in a toiletry kit, and weighs approximately nothing.

There are plenty of other toothpowders on the market, but I’ve bought another couple bottles of Eco-Dent. Between those, my collection of toothbrush heads, and a stash of floss, I’ll be out of the dental care market for a few years.

Last year I mentioned my happiness with the Oster Classic 76 clippers. One of the attributes I called out was its serviceability. Today, after five years of personal use, I decided it was time to remove the faceplate, clean the innards, and replace the grease. I followed the instructions in Oster’s maintenance video (which appears to be straight out of 1998). It’s a simple process. I only cut my hair once every 4-8 weeks, so I suspect performing the deep cleaning every five years is about the right schedule. I lubricate the blade every 3 or 4 uses.

No special tools were needed. Something pokey and scrapey is helpful for cleaning out the small crevices. I used a titanium Norton Universal Cleaning Stick because I had it close to hand, but a flathead screwdriver would work just as well. All parts appear to be in excellent condition, and when reassembled the clippers pur like an angry kitten.