SOLVED: How to remove a stuck Oral-B toothbrush head

By John Swindells 13 Jul 2013 | Comment
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Braun Oral-B electric toothbrushes are great for keeping your teeth clean, but what happens if you can't pull the head off to replace it? The head on one of ours simply refused to budge, until we pulled it so hard that the head itself came apart - revealing the springs and pins of its inner workings.

We were initially a bit confused by this; maybe the toothbrush heads were different to the usual sort. The toothbrush head, pictured here after removal, had nothing in it but a bit of grime from years of use. And yes, it had been a couple of years, and we had changed the head once at most.

A phone call to the Braun service centre quickly put matters straight. We had indeed pulled the toothbrush head apart, and the mechanism part had clearly fused itself to the metal shaft that sticks out of the toothbrush body. The technician said that we should replace the head every few months (which we knew, but didn't stick to), but also recommended that we remove the head after every use to keep it properly clean. She said that the cement-like gunk that toothpaste creates can easily stick the parts together. Indeed! Well, we were told to try soaking the toothbrush in mildly soapy boiling water for a bit, then to try pulling the head innards off.

After a bit of soaking in soapy boiling water, we grabbed the head with pliers and pulled - and it came off! We were then able to slot a new, standard head on, and all was finally well.

Of course, we could have avoided all this palaver if we'd read the instructions more carefully! They state quite clearly, "After use, rinse the brush head for several seconds under running water with the handle switched on. Then switch off the handle and remove the brush head. Rinse both parts separately under running water and wipe them dry."

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37 Comments

by Jimmy on 13 July 2023
I can’t even get to my brush. It’s locked in my case and I cannot open it. Any thoughts that don’t include destroying it?
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by Mary on 22 August 2020
Unbelievable! Thank you so much for posting this story; my partner and I laughed so hard because the exact same thing happened to him. He'd pulled so hard that he'd exposed the inside springs etc. which I told him couldn't be right. We're boiling the water now ...
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by cathy on 19 December 2022
The hot soapy water did the trick for me!
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by Susan Ferguson on 17 August 2020
Thank you, thank you!!! This has helped so much!
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on 23 September 2019
Great! I put it in boiling water a minute or two and it pulled right off- thanks!
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by Cherie on 22 June 2018
Followed the instructions. Soaked toothbrush in very hot soapy water. Let it soak for several minutes and the tooth brush came right off
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by Istvan on 11 February 2018
I followed your instructions and finally managed to pull it apart but broke the very base of the plastic. It vibrates but not rotates.

This is a worthless crap product designed to rip off customers.

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by Charles D. Greene on 26 January 2018
Running hot water on the unit then pull with a pliers got mine off.Yes there is scale buildup inside on the shaft and in the inside of the head. Take it apart at least every week to

clean it.

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by wingless on 11 December 2017
Great info!!! The head was stuck on mine, so I soaked the head in my heated ultrasonic cleaner until it pulled off normally. A utility knife blade was used to scrape the stainless shaft clean. Now it comes on and off normally.
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by Betty Franse on 02 December 2017
HOW about changing the battery - it is as hard to figure out - Most women don't have the strength to get the cover off.
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by John Swindells on 05 December 2017
Are you referring to the sort that takes a couple of AA batteries inside, Betty? It can be really hard to get the cover off one of those, especially if a bit of limescale has built up! I don't have any recommendations - you just need to squeeze and pull hard.
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by Bobby on 19 November 2017
I needed to replace the head and can't get the new one to work. When any pressure put on it, it

stops. Very frustrating. £5 for a pack of 2 heads.

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by John Swindells on 05 December 2017
I'd take that as a sign to get a new toothbrush. I recently dropped my model (around 5 years old) and it stopped working. The new one, a basic Vitality model, is so much better!
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by Lizzie on 16 August 2017
THANKS for your site! What a RELIEF.
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by Jan Hurst on 02 August 2017
Thank you for all the tips and tricks! I was able to solve my problem easily with your help.
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by Gayle on 20 July 2017
I had the same problem with my Oral B Complete Action toothbrush to remove the head. I just got mine off with a knife, yes, a knife! You will have to have a flat head, like screwing driver and push up on the Neck, above the pin, and give it a couple of pushes, then I finally got it off!

Hope this can help you and others!

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by MS on 01 June 2017
Thanks - That worked for me. I change the brush heads every couple of months, so was surprised it was a problem. This time (after removal with the hot water treatment), I noticed some fine black corrosion on the metal shaft - I removed that with an emery board before a final clean and a new brush head.
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by Tim Lund on 12 February 2017
Makes it a lot easier if you twist the head as it is held on by two pegs inside.
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by Ros on 14 May 2017
Hi. My son tried to help me because I didn't know how to take the head off and he twisted so that the plastic bit at the top of the main part of the equipment is slightly raised. We did the soaking thing then and I pulled the old head off. I have put the new head on, but it won't now start. I have charged it. Any ideas? Do you think the vigorous twisting has broken it?
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by Chandra on 14 January 2017
It worked! Thank you.
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by Marcia O on 11 January 2017
I was looking for a button to release the old head and couldn't find one. I boiled water and put dish soap in and soaked it for about 3 minutes and used pliers to pull off the old head. Thank you.
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by Susan on 30 December 2016
Yay! This worked! I thought I was going to have to throw the whole brush away and start over. Thank you!!
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by Jerry Specht on 24 November 2016
This worked for me too! I stuck the just head end into a pot of boiling water. It took about 2-3 minutes for it to get to a state where I could pull it off (with pliers). (Don't worry about the old head -- you're just going to be throwing out anyway.)
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by RMW on 21 October 2016
Thanks! I bought my brush in twin set with a friend so did not get the instructions! I hope this helps me remove my old brush head without damage!...
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