The intimate nature of sex toys means that while they are great fun to use you have to be very serious when it comes to cleaning them. It is possible to pick up an infection from a sex toy, but it’s easy to avoid with a little knowledge and common sense.
Most people use their own sex toys and would not consider using some else’s. Indeed in most “conventional” heterosexual relationships where each sex toy is used only by one partner the opportunity to share a sex toy tends not to arise. In gay and multi-partner relationships however you may want to share a vibrator or other sex toy between two or more partners in which case you must be more careful about hygiene than when using toys all to yourself.
Always clean a sex toy before you use it – when you first use a sex toy it has come from a factory, may have been stored for several months, been shipped around the world and end up at your door looking clean but with unseen contamination. Modern vibrators, indeed all sex toys are easy to clean so long as you use the right method.
Always refer to the manufacturer’s instructions for initial cleaning, use and post use cleaning of sex toys. This will avoid damage to your sex toy and ensure that the process of cleaning does not damage the sex toy.
Common sense plays a large part in the cleaning process. If a vibrator is not waterproof be careful not to let water enter the case and if possible remove the batteries before attempting to clean it. If you prefer not to use water and anti-bacterial soap you can use specially formulated sex toy cleaner to ensure your favourite vibrator is clean and as good as new before being secreted in your toy box.
If you really want to ensure your sex toy is clean then some toys made from metal of glass can be immersed in boiling water to sterilise them. This is not entirely necessary so long as they have been adequately cleaned with soap and water but may give some people extra piece of mind. Handling a hot glass or metal object is not without its risks so be very careful and of course consult the manufacturer’s instructions before attempting this in case such treatment would harm the sex toy. And don’t try this with plastic sex toys!
We mentioned above that you should clean toys before use, and not just the first use. Some people forget this. If a sex toy is stored in a drawer or bag it can pick up debris and bacteria, even in the cleanest environments. You should therefore clean your toy before use, even if it looks clean.
If you are sharing sex toys you must consider that if you use them after a partner but do not clean them you risk cross-infection should that partner be infected with an STI or UTI. It is possible in the case of dildos and vibrators to use condoms over the sex toy and discard these when one partner has finished with them. However we would recommend a through cleansing between partners – or even better by one vibrator each!