Cleaning your sex toys is important.
Do you take care of your grown-up toys as well as you took care of your childhood favorite toys? Do you take care of your adult sex toys as well as you take care of your other grown-up toys, your TV, Video Game console, Care, or even your gym gear? No, why not? Your sex toys deserve some TLC. If you are taking care of them properly you are taking care of yourself, particularly when it comes to keeping them clean.
Regularly cleaning your sex toys keeps the material they are made of and a mechanism that makes your toy work its magic healthy. The other benefit of cleaning them regularly is also taking care of sensitive areas of your body. Bacteria can build up on your toys and spread if you don’t clean them regularly. No that is not because your genitals are dirty and no you do not need to steam your vagina, but anybody fluids not cleaned up properly are a potential breeding ground.
That means you need to clean your sex toys after every use. In some cases, it may be a good idea to clean them before you use them as well. You need to follow the cleaning instructions that come with your toy, to make sure you take care of it away it is designed to handle. Lost or thrown out packaging try this;
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Leather toys
Wipe with soap and water but you make also like to use a specialised leather cleaner. Body fluids on leather can be wiped with a 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol solution to disinfect it. If you are concerned about damaging it try contacting the retailer or the manufacturer.
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Shared toys
Disinfect them. Why because in sharing a toy you can share body fluids and may pass them or an STI to your partner via your toy. If you have a non-motorised, silicone, Pyrex or stainless you can boil the toy for a few minutes to disinfect them.
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Don't use your pretty perfumed soaps to clean your toys.
Especially if you find products with perfumes or other irritants cause you skin issues. If those irritants are on your toy they can be transferred to your genitals and cause irritation. Keep it simple and use a mild soap.
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Porous material toys like jelly rubber can trap bacteria and therefore cannot be disinfected completely.
Solution use a condom as a barrier between your skin and the surface of the toy. Better solution avoid jelly material toys, they are old tech and can contain harmful materials like phthalates.
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Non-Porous material toys like, silicone, hard plastic, elastomer, metal or glass are easier to clean.
Mild soap and water will do it, but you can also use a specialised toy cleaner if recommended by the manufacturer.
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Always clean your toys when you have finished playing with the toy and before you store them.
Store them somewhere safe for your privacy but also if you leave them out, they can collect dust, pet hair etc. If that happens clean them before you use them.
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Do not submerge your toy completely unless it is waterproof.
If it is waterproof, you can pop it in a sink full of soapy water to wash it. If is not you can wipe the toy down with a cloth or in the case of some others you can carefully rinse it under a running tap.
