3:23 pm Friday, 23rd August, 2019
Being an adult comes with many responsibilities, like paying your bills, tidying your home, and washing your dishes. It also means cleaning your sex toys, which is fortunately pretty easy as far as chores go.
I get it: Sex, whether solo or with a partner, is your time to let the stresses of daily life melt away. But if you want sex toys to be a part of that clear-your-mind time—and if you want those sex toys to have good life spans—you're going to have to clean them properly and regularly. Plus, there's a chance that poor sex toy hygiene can actually cause infections; so, yes, safe solo sex is also a thing to consider.
Here's the right way to clean those toys.
If you're sharing sex toys, it's important to disinfect them, because there's a possibility that you could pass bodily fluids (and potentially an STI) to your partner via your toy. You might want to boil your toys to disinfect them if that's the case. Anything that's non-motorized and made of silicone, pyrex or stainless steel can be boiled for a few minutes
Leather toys can usually just be wiped down with soap and water, or you could try using a special leather cleaner,. If your leather toy comes in contact with any bodily fluids, you might want to wipe it down with a 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol solution to disinfect it.
While you might be tempted to use your fancy scented hand soap to make your sex toys smell chic, just don't. It's best to avoid using scented soaps because they can leave a residue on the toy that can irritate your genitals when you use it again. You should also avoid using antibacterial soaps for the same reason, and just stick to something mild.
Toys made from porous materials (like jelly rubber) can trap bacteria. That means that the toys can't be completely disinfected, so we recommend using a condom over your toy for an added layer of protection. Also, jelly rubber is a somewhat outdated material that you should avoid because it can contain potentially harmful materials, like phthalates.
The way that you clean your sex toy often depends on the material that it's made out of. Non-porous materials, like silicone, hard plastic, elastomer, metal, or glass, are generally easier to clean. For those, you can wash with mild, non-irritating soap and water, and don't have to do any special disinfecting.
After you use a sex toy, you should always clean it before you store it. You don't want body fluids drying on it, and then sitting in a drawer. And depending on where you store your toys, you might also want to rinse them off before you use them. If your vibrator or dildo is left out or in contact with other objects, it can collect lint, pet hair, or dust, and will benefit from a quick wash before use.
When you're washing, be careful about submerging your toys completely in water - unless of course, they're waterproof. Waterproof toys can be dropped in a sink of soapy water, but that will damage the motor of non-waterproof toys. If your toy isn't waterproof, you should hold it under the faucet or just use a cloth to wipe it down.
Buying a special spray for your toys might seem like overkill, but it can be really handy to have. One that can be sprayed on and rinsed off. Sprays are convenient to have if you need discretion, are travelling, or don't like to get out of bed for a while after sex.
It's best not to throw a toy in the dishwasher unless you know it's dishwasher-safe. Technically, pyrex toys could probably go on the top rack of a dishwasher and be fine, but other glass toys shouldn't be exposed to high temperatures. And anything with a motor, like a vibrator, should only be hand-washed.