Let’s talk about the proper cleaning and care of sex toys – specifically the cleaning and care of insertable toys (dildos, butt plugs, anal beads, etc), and genital toys (bullet vibes, wand massagers, synthetic dragon dongs, and so on).
This is, I suppose, the sexy equivalent of doing the washing up. It’s not the most enjoyable or interesting bit, but it’s important. If you never do it, you’re going to end up with some pretty gross implements.
The good thing is that good quality sex toys don’t require a huge amount of specialised care. Once you’ve established a cleaning routine for your toys, looking after them is simple. Here’s what you need to know.
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Why bother properly cleaning sex toys?
Why bother properly cleaning sex toys?
Let’s be realistic for a moment: most people clean their toys by rinsing them off under a tap, or wiping them down with disposable wipes between each use.
This is better than nothing. And, at least, will make the toy look clean.
But, I’d argue, it’s worth taking the time to be a little bit more thorough. Yes, the cleaning routines described here will require more effort. But the result will be a cleaner toy which:
- Is less likely to cause skin irritation
- Is less likely to harbour disease
- Will be safer to use
- Will last longer
- Will be less gross
The above are all good reasons to clean your personal toys between uses. Hopefully you find them persuasive… but at the end of the day whether or not you thoroughly clean your personal toys is a matter of personal choice.
If you’re planning on sharing toys with another person (more on this below) then cleaning is not a personal choice – it’s essential for the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved.
Sex toy materials
Before you can clean your toy collection, you need to work out what everything is made of. You can get this information from the website of the retailer who sold you the toy, or from the packaging of the toy in question.
Your toy will almost certainly be made from one or more of these materials, which I’ve sorted into three categories: Toxic, Porous, and Non-Porous. More on what each of these categories actually means below…
| Toxic | Porous | Non-Porous |
|---|---|---|
| Jelly | Untreated Wood | Treated Wood |
| PVC | TPR/TPE | Stainless Steel |
| Latex/Rubber | ABS Plastic | Pure Silicone |
| “Flesh-Like” Materials | Glass | |
| Some Rubbers |
Toxic toys
The sex toy industry is, by in large, pretty lacking in regulation. That means manufacturers and retailers can use all kinds of weird and wacky materials in their toys without fear of being sued. Common materials found in cheap and nasty sex toys include jelly, PVC, latex rubber, and proprietary flesh-like materials.
These materials are really bad. Jelly, PVC and many flesh-like materials are known to leak pthalates, which can cause actual, no-fooling cancer. Latex and rubber are also known for causing allergic reactions and irritation. Softeners and other additives mixed into the rubber can also cause genital burns and cancer.
The long and the short of this is that no amount of cleaning will make a toxic toy safe to use. If you find toys made of toxic materials in your toy collection, the best thing you can possibly do is bin them forthwith… and shop at a more reputable retailer in the future.
Porous toys
Porous toys are safe to use, but absorbent. Like a sponge. And, also like a sponge, they get a bit gross after you’ve been using them for a while. Porous toys can soak up and retain bacteria and pathogens, which will survive under the surface of the toy for a surprising length of time.
You can surface clean a porous toy, but you can never sterilise it. The difference is simple. A clean toy looks clean, but might still harbour the odd pathogen or two – and as such should never be shared with anyone else. A sterile toy is totally clean and safe to share.
Non-porous toys
Non-porous toys are non-absorbent. Thus, provided you give them a real good clean between uses, they’re perfectly safe to share. Hurrah.
Sex toy cleaning methods
So you’ve chucked out any toxic toys from your collection, and worked out what everything else is made from. Great. Here are specific instructions for cleaning every material on the list.
Remember, porous toys cannot be sterilised – the cleaning methods listed for porous toys here will get them looking clean, and stop them moulding or becoming gross, but will not make them clean enough to share.
Stainless Steel | Glass | Silicone
| Boiling | Sterile | Get a clean pan of clean water, set it boiling and submerge the toy in it for about ten minutes. When it’s done you’ll have one delicious, sterile, but very hot sex toy. Pro tip: line the pan with a clean cloth to stop the toy knocking against the sides. |
| Dishwasher | Sterile | I personally would do this on a separate wash from my plates and cutlery, but to each their own. Select the “Sterilise” cycle (assuming your dishwasher has one) and wash without soap – it’s the temperature and the steam that do the work. |
| Bleaching | Sterile | Mix one part household bleach (use this kind, not toilet cleaner, which is full of harmful additives) with nine parts water. Wash your toy with a clean cloth or brush. If your toy is waterproof your can submerge it in the solution. Wash for at least two minutes and rinse thoroughly afterwards. |
| Soap & Water | Surface Clean | If you’re the only person who’s ever going to use the toy, a simple wash with soap and water is fine. Use non-fragranced soap or a specially-formulated toy cleaner. Lather, rinse, repeat, and then leave to dry somewhere where the cat isn’t going to get to it. |
TPR/TPE | ABS Plastic
| Soap & Water | Surface Clean | If you’re the only person who’s ever going to use the toy, a simple wash with soap and water is fine. Use non-fragranced soap or a specially-formulated toy cleaner. Lather, rinse, repeat, and then leave to dry somewhere where the cat isn’t going to get to it. |
Treated Wood | Untreated Wood
| Soap & Water | Surface Clean | If you’re the only person who’s ever going to use the toy, a simple wash with soap and water is fine. Use non-fragranced soap or a specially-formulated toy cleaner. Lather, rinse, repeat, and then leave to dry somewhere where the cat isn’t going to get to it. |
Good general sex toy care
Cleaning is a big part of looking after your sex toy collection, but there are a few other things you can do to ensure that your prized possessions stay in good shape.
Keep things dry
After washing, let your toys dry thoroughly before putting them away. This helps kill off any lingering pathogens, and also ensures that you don’t shut them in a drawer and incubate them in moist, mould-friendly conditions. There is nothing sexy about opening your sex toy drawer and finding that it’s full of fungus. Unless you’re into that kind of thing. No judgement.
Before putting my toys away, I pat them dry with a paper towel and then let them dry completely on a windowsill for two days, until there are absolutely no traces of moisture.
Storing your toys
You shouldn’t need to pay any special attention to the way in which you store your toys. You can tuck them away in individual satin bags if you want, or just throw them all into a box under the bed. It shouldn’t cause any problems to store your toys all jumbled up like this.
Some toys do have a tendency to react with one another due to the softening agents used in their manufacture… but toys that do this are almost certainly toxic anyway, and should be ditched at the earliest opportunity.
If a toy you thought was pure silicone melts into an ugly postmodern dildo sculpture when stored with other silicone toys… sorry, but you’ve been had. What you thought was pure silicone is almost certainly silicone + some dirty little additives. Chuck out your melted mess, and shop somewhere else next time.
Buy quality in the first place
Buying a dildo is a bit like buying a new pair of boots (except, hopefully, less leathery). Buying something of decent quality will cost you more to begin with, but will also mean you won’t have to buy a replacement for at least a couple of years.
If you can, I strongly suggest buying good-quality toys from reputable manufacturers, and avoiding the bargain basement stuff. Here’s a comprehensive guide to buying decent toys, which includes recommended retailers and baseline prices for different toys.
Inspect before each use
Each time you whip out your Megacock 3000, you should give it a quick look over before sticking it in. You’re looking for:
- Cracks
- Degraded or damaged areas
- Visible signs of soiling
- Mould
- Rust
If any (or all [gross]) of these are present, then your toy could be harbouring a whole civilisation of hidden bacteria. Do not use.
It’s best to throw out damaged toys, or return them to the retailer. Lovehoney has one of the best returns policies out there. Don’t be shy about using it. Whatever embarrassing reason you have for sending a toy back to the warehouse, they’ve almost certainly heard it before.
Use the right lube
Lube – as well as easing the giving and receiving of pleasure – can also do a fatal amount of damage to your toys if you use the wrong type. For this reason it pays to know what your toys are made of.
As a basic guide, water-based lube can be used with anything. Hurrah. Silicone lube probably should not be used with silicone toys. And finally, oil-based lubes are bad for pretty much everything; they weaken condoms, cause damage to a wide range of toys, and are difficult to wash out/off everything – toys, bedsheets and your body included.
There are exceptions to these rules. Some silicone lubes are fine with some silicone toys, and some oil-based lubes aren’t all that harmful. Broadly speaking, though, if you want to play it safe, stick with water-based lube. It’s the universal blood type of personal sexy slipperiness.
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Such a great article. Do you think that metal boxes and wooden boxes are ok for storing?
Sure – depending on the box and the toys. I wouldn’t chuck insertables into a bare wooden crate, but if it’s lined or they’re in bags then wood is perfect. Metal = even better.