Pulling Back the Curtain...

​

Most of these guidelines are NOT new to Zen Nail Lounge and Oasis.

We have been following them with a few exceptions from the beginning.

​

The question is, does your nail salon follow these guidelines?

​

If not, you should consider a different nail salon.

​

We are following all the CDC recommendations to protect you,

our technicians and by extension, all your families and friends.

​

We are doing everything we can to keep

you safe and as comfortable as possible.

​

• Everyday our floors are swept, mopped clean, and disinfected.

• We greet our guests at the door to check them in.

• Face coverings are required at all times while inside Zen.

• Before touching anything, every guest uses hand sanitizer.

• Our guests sign-in for contact tracing.

• We take their temperature.

• All bottles of polish are wiped clean and disinfected after each use.

 

Pedicures:

​

• We have installed glass barriers between our pedicure chairs to protect you.

• Our pedicure chairs are unique: 

  • Because of their advanced design, we can guarantee NO cross contamination.

• Nail Fungus? Bacteria? NO worry! Those things cannot grow in our chairs because they do not pump water through pipes for the whirlpool action.

• Our pedicure chairs use air to give you that luxury whirlpool effect.

• We use a new disposable foot-tub liner for each new pedicure.

• The water for your pedicure is fresh. It has never touched anyone else before.

• Before each pedicure:

  • A new disposable pedicure chair cover is placed on your chair.

  • After each pedicure, the chair covers, and foot-bowl liner is replaced.

  • The chair is wiped cleaned, and disinfected.

• All pedicure tools, except our metal tools, are disposable one-time use.

• All metal tools are cleaned and disinfected in Barbicide.

  • Barbicide is used by many hospitals to disinfect their equipment.

 

MANICURES:

​

• We have installed glass barriers between you and your manicure technician.

• The manicure table is cleaned and disinfected after each manicure.

• All tools, except metal tools, are one-time, single use, disposable.

• All metal tools are cleaned and disinfected in Barbicide.

  • Barbicide is a disinfectant used by many hospitals to disinfect their equipment.

​

IL Department of Public Health (IDPH)

and COVID-19 Best Practices

 

•   Provide hand sanitizer (with at least 60% alcohol) & sanitizing products for employees and customers.

•   Regularly clean high-touch surfaces including doorknobs, light switches, shared equipment, toilet handles, sink faucets, and clock in/out areas.

 

Stay at home and call your doctor if you have any of these symptoms:

​

Including but not limited to a fever (100.4° or above), cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, chest tightness, extreme fatigue, loss of sense of taste or smell, diarrhea, muscle aches, or headaches.

​

Our technicians are required to:

• Always wear a mask

• Wash their hands often

• Do not touch your face or hair unless you just washed your hands

• Dispose of all non-metal tools after each use

• Disinfect all metal tools after each use before they are used on your next guest

• Wipe and disinfect all high touch surfaces at your manicure station after every manicure

• Cover pedicure chair before each pedicure

• Remove and dispose of pedicure chair cover after every pedicure

 

 

Follow all Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH)

 

Pedicure Equipment Cleaning and Disinfecting Procedures
 

The following procedures, as developed by the International Nail Technicians Association, shall be followed for all pedicure equipment such as whirlpool pedicure foot spas, self-contained foot basins, sinks and pedicure bowls:

 

1) After each client:

​

A) Drain all water from the foot spa, pedicure basin or bowl;
B) Clean the interior surfaces and walls of the foot spas or basin with soap or detergent to remove all visible debris; rinse with clean, clear water;
C) Disinfect by spraying the interior surface of the foot basin or bowl with either an EPA registered disinfectant (demonstrated bactericidal, fungicidal, and viricidal activity used according to manufacturer’s instructions), or 10% bleach solution; and,
D) Wipe dry.

 

2) At the end of every day, after the last client:

​

A) Perform the procedures of (c) (1) ;
B) Remove the screen from whirlpool basin. All debris trapped behind the screen of each foot spa shall be removed with a brush and soap or detergent; then the screen and the inlet shall be cleaned to remove all visible debris with soap or detergent and water;
C) Before replacing the screen, totally immerse the screen in either an EPA registered disinfectant or 10% bleach solution;
D) Fill the basin with warm water and low-sudsing soap, turn the system on and flush the spa system for 5 minutes, then rinse and drain.

​

3) Once every week:

​

A) Repeat the procedures of (c) (2); then fill the foot spa or basin with cold water and one tablespoon of 5.25% liquid household bleach (or the equivalent) for each one gallon of water based on the capacity of unit;
B) Turn unit on and circulate the bleach solution through the system for 5 to 10 minutes; turn unit off;
C) Let the bleach solution sit in the spa or pedicure basin overnight (at least 6 – 10 hours);
D) The following morning, and before the first client, drain bleach solution;
E) Fill the basin with clean water, turn the system on and flush the system with clean water and drain;
F) Make a record of the date and time of this cleaning and disinfecting. The record for the last 90 days shall be readily accessible and available upon client or inspector request. Separate logs for weekly and daily procedures are needed but may be kept in the same document log.

 

​

Whirlpool Foot Spa Safety Fact Sheet:

​

Zen does NOT use whirlpool foot spa chairs because bacteria will grow in the circulation pump and pipes. Since we opened, we have used chairs that use air bubbles inside a disposable foot bowl liner resulting in NO cross contamination, guaranteed! Our chairs are more expensive, but you are worth it!

​

Click this button and see the kind of chairs we use.

 

 

​

Skin Infection & Whirlpool Footbath FAQs:

 

What is the problem?

​

One Illinois woman reported a skin infection and boils that have been traced to contaminated foot spas used by nail salons. A recent outbreak in California resulted in over 100 women with similar infections. When these customers soaked their feet in the footbath as part of their pedicures, they became infected. Because the footbaths had not been thoroughly cleaned, hair and skin debris buildup behind a screen in the tub basin allowed bacteria to grow to unusually elevated levels.

​

What do these infections look like?

​

Skin boils usually start out looking like a spider bite that gradually grows in size and eventually produces pus. Boils sometimes become open wounds and may leave scars.

​

What causes these infections?

​

These infections are caused by macrobacterium fortuitum and other related macrobacteria. We encounter this type of bacteria every day because it is normally found in water and soil.

​

How common are these types of skin infections?

 

These infections are rare. If salon whirlpool footbaths are cleaned and disinfected properly, and in accordance with the guidelines issued jointly by the Illinois Departments of Public Health and Financial and Professional Regulation, the risk of these infections is exceedingly small.

​

How are these infections treated?

​

These infections can be treated with antibiotics. In some cases, these boils will heal without treatment.

​

What should I do if I have a skin infection that may be from a salon whirlpool footbath?

 

Go to your doctor. Tell him or her that you have had your legs in a whirlpool footbath. If indicated, the doctor can take a small biopsy of a boil for macrobacteria culture. Also, please call the Division of Professional Regulation 312) 814-­6910 to report any problems you believe are a result of your salon or file a complaint by e­mail.

​

What can I do to protect myself?

​

• First, do not have a pedicure with freshly shaved legs or with open wounds on your legs or feet. In the California outbreak, shaving ones legs within 24 hours before a pedicure was a significant risk factor for infection.

• Next, check out the salon. Make sure its License, and the licenses of its nail technicians and cosmetologists are posted in plain sight and that they are current;

• Look around to see if the salon is clean, free of trash, and set up with clean, sanitized instruments;

• Don’t be afraid to ask the operator how the foot spas are cleaned. If they hesitate or won’t answer you, it could be a sign you might want to take your business elsewhere;

• If you have any doubts about the cleanliness standards at the salon, leave.

• What has the State of Illinois done to protect salon clients?

• The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) has issued new rules requiring licensed nail salons to thoroughly clean and sanitize spa pedicure chairs on a regular basis. Even before these rules took effect, IDFPR communicated directly with every licensed salon owner, providing them with guidelines for sanitation that salons should follow.

 

The following guidance has been provided to salon staff on how foot spas are to be cleaned:

​

After each client:

 

1. Drain all water from the foot spa, pedicure basin or bowl;

2. Clean the interior surfaces and walls of the foot spas or basin with soap or detergent to remove all visible debris; rinse with clean, clear water;

3. Disinfect by spraying the interior surface of the foot basin or bowl with either an EPA registered disinfectant (demonstrated bactericidal, fungicidal, and viricidal activity used according to manufacturer’s instructions), or 10% bleach solution; and,

4. Wipe dry.

 

At the end of every day, after the last client:

​

1. Perform the procedures of (1) ;

2. Remove the screen from whirlpool basin. All debris trapped behind the screen of each foot spa shall be removed with a brush and soap or detergent, then the screen and the inlet shall be cleaned to remove all visible debris with soap or detergent and water;

3. Before replacing the screen, totally immerse the screen in either an EPA registered disinfectant or 10% bleach solution;

4. Fill the basin with warm water and low­sudsing soap, turn the system on and flush the spa system for 5 minutes, then rinse and drain.

​​

Once every week:

 

1. Repeat the procedures of (c) (2), then fill the foot spa or basin with cold water and one tablespoon of 5.25% liquid household bleach (or the equivalent) for each one gallon of water based on the capacity of unit;

2. Turn unit on and circulate the bleach solution through the system for 5 to 10 minutes, turn unit off;

3. Let the bleach solution sit in the spa or pedicure basin overnight (at least 6 – 10 hours);

4. The following morning, and before the first client, drain bleach solution;

5. Fill the basin with clean water, turn the system on and flush the system with clean water and drain;

6. Make a record of the date and time of this cleaning and disinfecting. The record for the last 90 days shall be readily accessible and available upon client or inspector request. Separate logs for weekly and daily procedures are needed but may be kept in the same document log.

​​

​