Okay.
I am fairly new to TPE toys, but not that new. I am also a clean guy myself, maybe above average after reading the doomsday texts on mold. I am in no way the pinnacle of toy cleanliness and I have still not seen mold.
I have had my oldest toy for close to a year. I have used it and left it sloppy for upwards to a week, a handful of times (I am not proud of this). I have used my hip and left it sloppy for 2-3 days. The hip is the only thing where I experienced a fish smell afterward. I assume the lack of ventilation is what did it. But, still no mold.
I would give my toy cleaning a C+ since I do not clean them before use (doubt many do) and because I have never cleaned them in a timely manner after use. I do use white vinegar in my cleaning process.
Does this mean mold is kind of a random thing or only seen under certain conditions?
Has the use of vinegar been staving off possible mold?
The only burning/itchy sensations I have ever felt are due to different lubrications, but bacteria could have been a possibility. I read mold can grow in as little as 24 hours and it's still a mystery to me. My penis has to be antibacterial.
I am fairly new to TPE toys, but not that new. I am also a clean guy myself, maybe above average after reading the doomsday texts on mold. I am in no way the pinnacle of toy cleanliness and I have still not seen mold.
I have had my oldest toy for close to a year. I have used it and left it sloppy for upwards to a week, a handful of times (I am not proud of this). I have used my hip and left it sloppy for 2-3 days. The hip is the only thing where I experienced a fish smell afterward. I assume the lack of ventilation is what did it. But, still no mold.
I would give my toy cleaning a C+ since I do not clean them before use (doubt many do) and because I have never cleaned them in a timely manner after use. I do use white vinegar in my cleaning process.
Does this mean mold is kind of a random thing or only seen under certain conditions?
Has the use of vinegar been staving off possible mold?
The only burning/itchy sensations I have ever felt are due to different lubrications, but bacteria could have been a possibility. I read mold can grow in as little as 24 hours and it's still a mystery to me. My penis has to be antibacterial.
eelsushi ( 346 )
@Namenick For the love of Ona please clean your toys! Just because you don’t see harmful mold/bacteria/fungus doesn’t mean it isn’t there. TPE is porous which means that every time you leave it “sloppy” water and seminal fluid are seeping into the material and carrying microorganisms with them. You can think of mold spots as the part of an iceberg that lives above the water - there’s much more you don’t see.
Namenick ( 131 )
@eelsushi
I understand, but wouldn't vinegar also be eliminating bacteria through pores as well? Also keeping them completely dry for periods of time.
I know better now, unfortunately, I do not want to part with my current toys. I definitely will if things become visible.
I understand, but wouldn't vinegar also be eliminating bacteria through pores as well? Also keeping them completely dry for periods of time.
I know better now, unfortunately, I do not want to part with my current toys. I definitely will if things become visible.
nicotine ( 162 )
@Namenick The thing about mold, or microbial growth in general, is that its growth depends on the "livability" of its living situation. This is because microorganisms are, well, living organisms that need resources to live. Because of the huge diversity of microbes, those resources can mostly be anything: water, dead skin cells, body fluids, body oils, carbohydrates in lubes, etc. When you rinse out your toys, the idea is that your are rinsing out these potential resources from the microbes. Except for water, I guess. But this is why we need to ensure that the insides are dried after rinsing.
It's not a bad idea to go the extra step and, at least periodically, briefly wash your toys with watered-down soap. This will kill or wash away potentially harmful microbes that may be present around the areas of use (e.g., where you hold the toy or insert into the toy). It also gets rid of residual body oils and odors. The use of vinegar accomplishes something similar: it definitely kills molds but does little for body oils (by itself). I personally have reservations against using vinegar since it's more corrosive than soaps and also has that distinct sour smell to it. Honestly though, the incorporation of vinegar is pretty clean on your part! I would bump up your toy cleaning to a B at least.
Is mold growth a random event? Yes and no. Maintaining good cleaning practices certainly decrease the probability of mold growth because we are making their potential living conditions as unlivable as possible. But if you happen to miss a small spot and a mold species happens to find it ripe with its desired resources...bam! The new expansion to Civ V is in your hands. This can happen even if that spot is tiny by our standards.
Does this mean that maintaining onahole cleanliness is ultimately meaningless? No because, through good cleaning, we are actively diminishing the chances of an event that is both unpleasant and wasteful.
It's not a bad idea to go the extra step and, at least periodically, briefly wash your toys with watered-down soap. This will kill or wash away potentially harmful microbes that may be present around the areas of use (e.g., where you hold the toy or insert into the toy). It also gets rid of residual body oils and odors. The use of vinegar accomplishes something similar: it definitely kills molds but does little for body oils (by itself). I personally have reservations against using vinegar since it's more corrosive than soaps and also has that distinct sour smell to it. Honestly though, the incorporation of vinegar is pretty clean on your part! I would bump up your toy cleaning to a B at least.
Is mold growth a random event? Yes and no. Maintaining good cleaning practices certainly decrease the probability of mold growth because we are making their potential living conditions as unlivable as possible. But if you happen to miss a small spot and a mold species happens to find it ripe with its desired resources...bam! The new expansion to Civ V is in your hands. This can happen even if that spot is tiny by our standards.
Does this mean that maintaining onahole cleanliness is ultimately meaningless? No because, through good cleaning, we are actively diminishing the chances of an event that is both unpleasant and wasteful.
Greenwood95 ( 580 )
@Namenick I too have heard the vinegar treatment kills mold and can bring a 'dead' onahole back to life. The one time I ever got mold it didn't work (although it's possible it wasn't mold and it was some other kind of residue that simply wouldn't wash away) regardless I didn't take any chances and I tossed it out. I will say while I'm usually good about cleaning my toys within an hour of use, there's always been times where I've gotten a little lazy, or had to run out right after a nap session or an orgasm will be so powerful it'll make me pass out so I won't get around to cleaning the toy til 2-8 hours later when I wake up. In all of these scenarios I double clean the toy and am thorough on drying. So far, knock on wood, so good, all my other toys have had no issues there. If I've had to throw out a toy, its usually been for wear out/pure durability issues.
ToyDemonFan ( 33 )
@Namenick
I wash out my sleeves with warm water, then pour some isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol into it, making sure it gets all the way inside the canal, then dry it with a thin cloth. I've never had mold when I clean them this way and the alcohol seems safe (no damage to the sleeve).
I wash out my sleeves with warm water, then pour some isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol into it, making sure it gets all the way inside the canal, then dry it with a thin cloth. I've never had mold when I clean them this way and the alcohol seems safe (no damage to the sleeve).