Whether you want to explore your sexuality, or want to add an element of novelty in the bedroom with your partner, sex toys can be your best friends. However, much like any other item that you use in your day-to-day life, sex toys are prone to getting dirty and harbour germs if they aren’t cared for properly.

Depending on the type of material that your sex toys are made of, you may need to alter your approach on how to clean them and store them for maximum hygiene. If you’re an avid sex toys user or are just getting started with them, keep reading. In this article, we’re going to answer questions such as how to clean sex toys made of different materials, how to take care of them on a regular basis, and how to properly store them to increase their shelf life.

What Are Your Sex Toys Made Of?

Not only from the perspective of cleaning, but also how it reacts with your body, you should be mindful of buying sex toys that are good for you (read: body-friendly). While silicone is the most common type of material that’s used to make sex toys, it can also be expensive. Other alternatives for sex toy materials include plastic, stainless steel, borosilicate glass, and rubber (even though you should avoid this one) and glass sex toys. The procedure to clean your sex toy depends on the kind of material that it’s made of, if it contains batteries or parts that can’t be washed, which part of the body it’s used for, and the number of people using the toy, that is, if it’s a toy that’s shared by you and your partner.

Why Cleaning Sex Toys Is Important?

While hygiene remains on top of the list of reasons for regular cleaning of sex toys, there are many other important reasons that we turn a blind eye to. Let’s look at a few of them below:

Prevention Of Infections And STIs

More often than not, sex toys if left unwashed or reused without cleaning can cause irritation, inflammation and infections. If the toy is penetrative, it can lead to rashes. To avoid that, check the type of toy you have and wash it based on the instructions. If you’re sharing toys with your partner, it will also keep you away from sexually transmitted diseases (STIs).

Longevity Of Sex Toy

Regular washing and cleaning of sex toys can help with the protection of material leading to a longer shelf life for your sex toys. Bodily fluids can cause bacterias and germs of all types to get on the sex toys and damage them. Try to clean your toys immediately after use. Just make sure that you’re drying and storing them properly afterwards for best results.

Enhanced Pleasure

Apart from keeping them safe for use, regular and proper cleaning of sex toys also enhances your pleasure by keeping the texture and functioning capabilities of the sex toys intact. This can make them easier to use and more fun to experience.

4 Ways To Properly Clean Your Sex Toys

Choose Easy To Wash Material

When choosing sex toys, focus on buying sex toys that are made from easy to wash materials so that you can use them for longer. Any type of glass, stainless steel, and silicone is a safe bet as they’re easier to clean and last longer. Even a hard plastic sex toy would be manageable as long as you don’t boil it. Stay away from materials such as rubber, leather, nylon, and vinyl as they can be harder to clean and may retain more germs even after washing.

Wash Your Non-Electric Toys Under Water

For any and every non-electric sex toy, it’s safe to wash them with either warm or normal water. A basic soap, or even a specific sex toy disinfectant would be appropriate for proper cleaning of your sex toys. For instance, if you have a waterproof silicone vibrator or even a dildo, you can simply run them under the water and clean them with soap or unscented body wash for best results.

Use A Damp Cloth For Cleaning Electric Toys

It can be a little more tricky to manage and clean sex toys that involve batteries or electric ports for charging. Instead of washing them directly with water, take a damp cloth and clean the surface as well as you can. You should also spray a disinfectant solution on your electric toys to keep them good for use without any damage to their electrical parts that may cause the sex toy to malfunction.

Use The Boil And Bleach Method

The best way to ensure that your sex toys are clean and ready for use again is by boiling them in hot water and/or bleaching them. After you’ve cleaned your toys with water and soap, keep them in boiled water for a few minutes to get rid of any germs that may have been left. The process will disinfect the toys almost completely, but if you want to ensure even more hygiene, you can spray them with a bleach solution to kill the rest of the pathogens. This works especially well for toys such as anal beads or a petite sex doll.

How To Properly Store Your Sex Toys?

Air Dry Your Sex Toys

Once you’ve washed your sex toys with warm water, soap, and disinfected them properly, it’s time to store them. But before that, you need to ensure that your toys are properly dried for optimum storage. Wet sex toys can attract foul smell and it can also affect their texture if they’re kept wet for longer, so drying them is important for optimum results. However, instead of drying your sex toys with a hair dryer, let them air dry to keep them in best shape. Let them air out but don’t keep them directly in the sun, especially if your sex toys are made of synthetic materials.

Store Them In A Cool And Dry Place

After your sex toys are air dried, the next step is to keep them safely in a cool and dry place, away from direct sunlight. You can place them in a cupboard or drawer. Keeping them in a box for prevention from dirt can also result in their longevity and better use.

Wrapping Up

Using sex toys in your bedroom can open you up to a lot of new and fun experiences as you explore your sexuality. However, keeping them clean and storing them properly is an important aspect of enjoying their use for a long period of time. By following the tips given above, you can ensure that you and your partner get to enjoy your sex toys for a longer and uninterrupted session of fun.