You’ve probably heard horror stories in the news about nail treatments gone wrong – unsterilized tools that lead to infection, bacteria build-up in foot basins, and the like. We at Elmwood Spa want to make sure you are armed with all the knowledge you need to make sure that your trip to the spa is a safe one.

At Elmwood Spa, the safety of our guests and Aestheticians is of utmost importance which is why we’ve sought out the best in safe hygiene practices so that you can truly relax during your treatment.

Did you know that Elmwood Spa uses a medical-grade autoclave to ensure the sterilization of all our tools?

An autoclave is an instrument that sterilizes equipment and supplies by subjecting them to high pressure saturated steam; the autoclave we use is the same calibre as those used to prepare tools for dental and medical procedures.

After each guest’s service is finished, we take the following steps to ensure our tools our free of any bacteria

1. Scrub all the debris off the used tools with anti-bacterial soap.
2. Place tools into sealed sterilization pouches, and into our medical-grade autoclave for a dual sterilization
3. A biological monitoring test of our autoclave every two weeks with Germiphene Corp., a registered testing company to test for any possible growth of bacteria.
4. Visits from the health department

It’s all about testing

All our tools are tested, including cuticle pushers, nail clippers, cuticle nippers, and any metals used for our manicures and pedicures ; the ones that cannot be properly sterilized are used only on you and you get to take them home —- nail file, pumice stone, block buffer and wood stick.

What type of basins does Elmwood Spa use for pedicure services and how do you ensure they are safe for guests?

We uphold the highest level of hygiene practices in our manicures and pedicures. Our pedicure basins are made from a non-porous, mould and mildew resistant material. Water enters and exits the basins through traditional plumbing however the whirlpool jets are AIR jets and therefore water does not re-circulate and come back out of pipelines. This is important as there are no hidden or in-accessible surfaces for bacteria and water-borne pathogens to collect.  The highest grade of disinfectant is used to clean our pedicure basins and manicure bowls. A new file, buffer and pumice is used on each guest and offered to take home. All metal instruments are sanitized in an Autoclave which provides the highest sanitization and is used throughout the medical field.

Do you know how your nail salon cleans their jets and tools? Ask the question

Find out if your spa care provider is taking the necessary precautions to ensure that their jets and tools are properly cleaned and sterilized between each guest’s use. To properly clean jets, filters need to be taken apart after each guest and cleaned thoroughly. In addition, most pedicure filters must be run through with disinfectant crystals overnight. Otherwise, the bacteria remains in the filters, and when fresh water runs through them, the bacteria flows with it. An improper jet cleaning procedure could lead to various bacteria and fungus. Don’t hesitate to ask your aestheticians how their tools are cleaned, or even ask about seeing their health records.

Going the extra mile

When you’re enjoying a manicure and/or pedicure treatment at Elmwood Spa, rest assured that we’ve gone the extra mile for our guests’ hygiene. It gives us great pride knowing that we’re doing our absolute best to ensure our guests have a safe and positive experience with us.