When it comes to washing Invisalign retainers, it’s important to understand the best practices to remove the biofilm and bacteria that are growing on them. What do you wash them in? For how long? Do you scrub them? There are plenty of questions about how to wash Invisalign retainers and we’re here to answer them.
First, let’s discuss how your retainer gets so dirty in the first place. Your mouth naturally produces bacteria and deposits minerals from your body. When you wear a retainer, it is tightly fitting onto your teeth, and those minerals, leftover food particles, bacteria, and biofilm will all make their way onto your retainer. If you don’t clean them, you will start to notice white spots or the material may begin to yellow. This is a major sign that your retainers are dirty and need to be cleaned.
How to wash Invisalign retainers starts with soaking them in a cup of warm water. Don’t put the retainers in hot water, as the extreme temperature can change the material of the retainers making them droopy. If the material is changed, the fit will be too and the retainers won’t keep your teeth in place. Always make sure you place them in warm water, not hot.
Once the retainers are submerged, you’ll be able to add a cleaning solution to the mix. You have many choices on how to wash your Invisalign retainers with a cleaning solution, but it’s up to you. If you want natural cleaning solutions found in your kitchen, you can mix in baking soda, vinegar, or castille soap. Don’t mix them all together, just pick one of them and fill half the cup with warm water, and the other half with vinegar, or two tablespoons of baking soda, or a couple of squirts of Castille soap.
If you choose to wash them with water and vinegar or baking soda, all you have to do is let the retainers soak for 20-30 minutes. Once that time is up gently wash the retainers off under warm water. Make sure you do a good job as the vinegar can leave a strong odor. How to wash Invisalign retainers in Castille soap is simple too. After adding a few squirts into the water, let the retainers soak for 10 minutes. Once the time is up, gently scrub the retainers with a soft bristle toothbrush. Avoid using a hard bristle toothbrush as that can leave micro scratches on the retainers which leads to bacteria spreading easier. The retainers will become soapy after brushing them so make sure to wash them off afterward too.
How to wash Invisalign retainers with a chemical solution is easy too. You can find many oral cleaning products over the counter, but make sure to never use mouthwash as it may contain alcohol. The alcohol can dry out the retainers and make them brittle. We recommend using FreshGuard as a cleaning solution. Just take a packet, and pour it into a half glass of warm water. Stir the solution a bit and then submerge your retainers into the cup and let them soak for 10 minutes before washing them off. The Fresh Guard will do the rest of the work bio chemically cleaning the retainers.
While washing your retainers is important, sometimes that is not enough and they will be too dirty, crusty, or yellow to bring back from the dead. When this happens, you’ll need a new set of clean retainers as your dirty retainer could potentially make you sick. You would never want to put a bacteria-filled retainer in your mouth!
How to wash Invisalign retainers is a weekly responsibility but when you need replacement retainers, SportingSmiles can help. These are the exact same retainers you receive after Invisalign from your dentist but at half the cost. By ordering retainers from SportingSmiles, you’ll be sent the patented impression kit. You’ll take easy-at-home impressions before shipping them back to SportingSmiles where our expert team will craft you sparkling, crystal-clear retainers to keep your teeth in place. If you stop wearing retainers, your teeth will shift back to where they were before your Invisalign!
Don’t let that happen and keep a replacement set on hand when your retainers become too dirty. SportingSmiles has been in business since 2009 and has served over one million people worldwide. Keep your retainers clean for as long as you can but when you need a new set, SportingSmiles can help and at half the cost of the dentist!
