Chapter 1 of 535% of exam
Disinfection, Sanitation & Salon Safety
Infection control is the single largest block on the California manicurist written exam, about 35% of the questions, and it is also the number one reason salons get cited during an inspection. This chapter covers the three levels of decontamination, implement handling, the foot spa cleaning cycle, blood spills, chemical safety, and the products and tools California flatly prohibits.
Three Levels of Decontamination
Sanitation, disinfection, and sterilization are three different things and the exam loves to mix them up. Sanitation simply reduces the number of germs on a surface, usually with soap, water, and scrubbing. Disinfection kills most bacteria, fungi, and viruses on hard non-porous surfaces and is the level California requires in nail salons. Sterilization destroys absolutely everything including bacterial spores, and it requires an autoclave or dry-heat unit.
Clean before you disinfect
Every implement must first be washed with soap and warm water and scrubbed with a brush to remove visible debris, oils, and product. Disinfectant cannot penetrate a layer of dust or lotion, so a dirty tool placed in solution is not disinfected.
16 CCR §979Disinfection is the required salon level
California requires cleaning followed by disinfection of all reusable tools between clients. Sterilization is permitted and welcome, but it does not replace the required cleaning step.
16 CCR §979Hospital-grade, EPA-registered disinfectant
The product must carry an EPA registration number and be labeled as bactericidal, fungicidal, and virucidal. Household cleaners, alcohol wipes, or plain bleach water are not substitutes for a registered hospital-grade product.
16 CCR §979Respect the contact time
Tools must stay fully immersed for the exact contact time on the manufacturer label, commonly ten minutes for immersion solutions. Dipping a tool in and pulling it right back out is a citation.
Manufacturer instructionsMix, label, and replace the solution
Disinfectant must be mixed at the exact dilution on the label, kept in a covered container marked with the product name, and changed as directed or sooner if it becomes cloudy or contaminated.
16 CCR §979Porous vs. Non-Porous Implements
Whether a tool can be reused depends entirely on whether liquid can soak into it. Non-porous items such as metal nippers, pushers, tweezers, and glass or metal files have a hard sealed surface, so they can be cleaned and disinfected and used again. Porous items absorb liquid and cannot be reliably disinfected, so they are single-use.
Non-porous tools: clean, disinfect, store clean
Metal, glass, and hard plastic implements are washed, dried, immersed for the full contact time, dried again, and stored in a clean, covered, labeled container until the next client.
16 CCR §979Porous items are single-use only
Emery boards, buffing blocks, orangewood sticks, foam toe separators, cotton, gauze, and paper files must be given to the client or discarded immediately after one service. They may never be used on a second person.
16 CCR §979Separate clean and dirty storage
Disinfected implements go in a clean closed container marked clean or disinfected. Used tools go into a separate labeled container until they can be processed. Never drop a used tool back into the clean drawer.
16 CCR §979Electrical tools get a wipe-down
Items that cannot be immersed, such as e-file handpieces, lamps, and table surfaces, are cleaned and then wiped or sprayed with an EPA-registered disinfectant and kept visibly wet for the full contact time. Removable e-file bits are cleaned and immersed like any other non-porous tool.
16 CCR §979Fresh linens and clean workstation
Towels, cloths, and coverings are used once, then laundered in hot water with detergent and stored clean and dry. The table, lamp, and arm rest are disinfected between every client.
16 CCR §979Foot Spa Cleaning: After Each Client, Daily, and Weekly
Pedicure spas are the highest-risk equipment in a nail salon because warm water, skin debris, and hidden jets or pipes are perfect for bacteria such as mycobacteria. California requires a three-tier cycle: a full clean and disinfect after every single client, a deeper cleaning at the end of each day, and a weekly disinfectant soak, all written down in a cleaning log.
After every client
Drain all water, remove and scrub any visible debris from the basin and screen with soap and water, rinse, then refill with clean water and the correct dose of EPA-registered hospital-grade disinfectant. Circulate or let it stand for the full label contact time, then drain and rinse.
16 CCR §979End of each day
Remove the screen, filter, jet, or impeller assembly, scrub each part, and soak the removable parts in disinfectant. Clean the inlet area, then refill the basin with water and disinfectant and run the unit so solution circulates through the lines before draining.
16 CCR §979At least once a week
Fill the basin, add disinfectant at the label dose, circulate it through the system, then shut the unit off and let the solution sit in the lines for the time the label allows, commonly overnight, before draining and rinsing.
16 CCR §979Keep the foot spa log
Record the date, the time, the type of cleaning performed, and the initials of the person who did it for every spa. Inspectors ask for this log and missing records are treated as cleaning not done.
16 CCR §979Liners and pipeless spas still need the full cycle
A disposable liner is discarded after one client, but the basin underneath is still cleaned and disinfected. Pipeless and no-jet spas follow the same after-client, daily, and weekly schedule.
16 CCR §979No shaving, no broken skin
Advise clients not to shave their legs for at least 24 hours before a pedicure, and do not place a foot with open cuts, sores, or a fresh wound into a spa.
Industry standardBlood Spills and Bodily Fluids
Even careful nail techs occasionally nick a client. A blood exposure incident has its own required procedure, and the exam tests the order of steps. The core idea is to stop, protect yourself, contain the contamination, and treat everything that touched blood as infectious.
Stop the service and glove up
End the service immediately and put on disposable gloves before touching the client or any contaminated item.
8 CCR §5193Control and cover
Apply light pressure with a clean disposable pad, then apply an antiseptic and a fresh adhesive bandage or finger guard from a first aid kit. Do not blow on the site or use your bare fingers.
8 CCR §5193Bag contaminated disposables
Place all blood-contaminated cotton, pads, gloves, files, and buffers in a sealed plastic bag marked as contaminated waste and discard it. Porous items that touched blood can never be reused.
8 CCR §5193Clean and disinfect non-porous tools
Any metal implement that contacted blood is scrubbed clean and then immersed in an EPA-registered disinfectant labeled effective against HIV and hepatitis B for the full contact time. Disinfect the table and any spattered surface the same way.
16 CCR §979Keep a blood-spill kit stocked
Every station should have gloves, antiseptic, adhesive dressings, disposable pads, and a sealable bag. Nippers, pushers, and other sharp implements are never rinsed and returned to service without full disinfection.
8 CCR §5193Chemical Safety, Ventilation, and Prohibited Products
Nail products are legal chemicals used in small enclosed spaces, so California treats them under both cosmetology rules and workplace safety rules. Two items are specifically prohibited for California nail licensees and are near-guaranteed exam questions: methyl methacrylate liquid monomer and the credo blade.
MMA liquid monomer is prohibited
Methyl methacrylate, or MMA, is not to be used on clients in California nail services. It bonds too aggressively to the natural plate and can tear the nail from the bed. Ethyl methacrylate, or EMA, is the legal professional monomer.
BPC §7315Credo blades and callus shavers are prohibited
Any razor-type instrument used to cut or shave calluses is outside a licensee's scope. Calluses are softened and smoothed with a file or foot paddle only. Cutting living tissue is the practice of medicine.
BPC §7316Safety Data Sheets on hand
An SDS for every chemical product used in the salon must be obtained from the manufacturer and kept where employees can read it at any time during their shift.
8 CCR §5194Label and store every container
All containers, including spray bottles and refilled jars, must be labeled with the contents. Store products upright with lids closed, away from heat and open flame, because monomers and solvents are flammable.
8 CCR §5194Ventilation and dust control
Use local source-capture ventilation at the table when available, keep the room ventilated to the outside, and keep product containers closed when not in use. A dust mask helps with filing dust but does not protect against vapors.
8 CCR §5194No eating, drinking, or smoking at the station
Food and beverages must not be stored or consumed in the area where chemicals are used, and open flame or smoking is prohibited around flammable products.
8 CCR §5194Test your knowledge
Practice questions on Disinfection, Sanitation & Salon Safety