The humble toothbrush has long been ignored as a source of great, fun hacks. Only recently, with the popularity (and subsequent abandonment) of electric toothbrushes, has the toothbrush really come into its own as a hackable piece of household equipment. Whether you’ve got a brand new boring old analog toothbrush that you’re just dying to spice up or a whole drawer full of electric toothbrushes from Aunt Sally (who doesn’t seem to recall giving you one for every holiday for the last three years - WTH?), here are some fun things to keep you and your toothbrush occupied.
Don’t like the new kids’ toothbrushes that come with lame two-minute songs? Hack your very own musical toothbrush and play whatever music you like. Technically, you could just turn on the radio…but the radio wouldn’t use your skull to conduct the sound, now would it?
If you want the deep-cleaning of a $100 electric toothbrush but aren’t keen on actually spending $100 on a toothbrush, here’s how to turn your $6 electric toothbrush into a powerful cleaning machine.
This one is purely for entertainment purposes - or for tattooing bananas. Seriously, homemade tattoo gun + your skin = nasty, nasty infections.
torpedo!
If regular pool toys just don’t do it for you, use the waterproof motor from your electric toothbrush to make a homemade torpedo!
This is less a set of instructions than it is a 23-second video of a Lego car with a toothbrush motor strapped to it driving around in a circle. But it gives you an idea of the mind-boggling technology contained in that dormant toothbrush that’s just waiting to be unleashed upon the world.
toothbrush car
This very cool project is the unholy union of a toy car frame and an electric toothbrush body and motor. Vroom!
LED toothbrush
Ever wished you could find your toothbrush in the dark? No? Well, try this anyway. You might be surprised how useful an LED toothbrush can be.
bristlebot
And finally, the world-famous Bristlebot. This little guy uses a simple pager motor and a single battery to provide endless hours of mindless joy for everyone within viewing distance.