If Your Blow Dryer Brush Isn’t Working, You Probably Need to Clean It
My blow dryer brush is one of my most prized possessions. When I started using one to transform my limp, wavy hair into pert, bouncy curls, I was so flushed with compliments that I barely knew how to act. Suddenly, I was that girl — the one people asked, “Wait, how did you get your hair so perfect?”
So the day that my blow dryer brush, a Shark FlexStyle Air Styling & Drying System, refused to start and an indicator light blinked red, I went through the five stages of grief in rapid succession.
Fortunately, there was an easy fix. According to the product manual, a flashing red indicator light means that the filter needs cleaning. I opened the filter cover at the bottom of the appliance, and sure enough, it was crammed full of dust and debris.
I did a quick scrape of the filter with my fingers over the trash can, put the cover back on, and plugged in the brush. And I was astonished by how powerful it was once again. Only after I cleaned it did I realize that even before it blinked red, it was operating at significantly reduced capacity.
But this experience taught me that I have to be more diligent in caring for my beloved blow dryer brush, and now I make it a priority to deep-clean my FlexStyle every two months or so. Depending on how often you use yours, you might need to get in there more frequently, but a good rule of thumb is to clean it when you notice hair tangled in the bristles, product buildup on the handle, and dust in the filter.
Different blow dryer brushes have different components, so we recommend checking your model’s manual before cleaning it, but the following cleaning method applies to a range of popular models, including the Dyson Airwrap and Revlon One-Step Volumizer Plus, as well.
One more thing: Always unplug your blow dryer brush and let it cool before cleaning it.
