Imagine this….you have your mind set on sex and a little horny, no one is home but yourself. You slip into sexy lingerie, grab your toy box from under the bed or the closet and happily fondle your best friend (maybe it’s your Rabbit Pearl (the one that was mentioned on Sex and the City), Fun Factory Gigolo or even your Laya Spot Vibrator) and finally you are prepared and climb in between the sheets. Your in the “mood” and mentally ready to reach the big “O” and unexpectantly your vibrator doesn’t turn on…what the %&^%#, how disappointing!

I really think that there is no correlation to the amount of attention we give our sex toys and their life span. Also, I have found sometimes that my cheapest toy has outlasted my more expensive toys….not sure what I do differently or why this happens?

There are some ways to bring your inexpensive but much beloved sex vibe back to life. Here are some tips on fixing common problems with battery powered sex toys and vibrators:

1) I know everyone’s first reasoning is “awe… the batteries have konked out on me” , but it is not always true… this would be my first reaction and hopefully I have extra ones in my drawer…as nothing kills the mood as to run to the local supermarket to get new ones!

2) Fix the spring – sometimes the spring become flattened and you need to fluff it back up so it reaches the connector of your batteries. So open up your vibrator and gently pull the spring up a little bit.

3) Make sure the connector and spring aren’t blocked by anything (ie for some vibrators there will be a piece of paper rolled up in the shaft to muff the noice of your batteries when vibrating) You can take the piece of paper out or even replace it with a stiffer peice of newer paper).

If all else fails, it’s definately time to give your old friend a funeral and go shopping for a new one….maybe something different (hmmn maybe my next one will be the Sinnflut Waterproof rechargeable!)

For most toys you can use Regular soap (anti bacterial hand soap works well) and warm water will clean your toy, as long as you do it every time you play with your toy. We also recommend Safe Suds Toy Cleaner.

Below we have some guidelines to follow, depending on the what kind material your sex toys are.

A good tip for all type of toys is to use condoms at all times for 100% cleanliness. Especially if you swap between the anal and vaginal area or if you share your toys.

Silicone
Silicone sex toys ( Fun Factory G-Spot Worm Vibrator or the Dual Rabbit Vibrator ) are the easiest to clean and the most sterile as they are not porous. You can run silicone dildos through the dishwasher or in boiling water. (Note: don’t ever submerge toys in water that are electric or battery powered) You can even bleach your silicone toy in a 10 per cent solution. Make sure you have dried your toys before you put it away.

Jelly & Rubber
Porous toys like jelly ( Slim Jelly Fantasy Vibrator or Jelly Anal Beads ) and rubber (more poruos than jelly) ( like the Clone-a-Willy ) are much harder to sterilize so they should be used with a condom, which I’d prefer to do anyways! Also a good practice is to replace your more porous toys every 6-8 months.

Note: if you have Cyberskin toys, you’ll have to clean them, pat them dry and powder them which I find way to messy) and I also heard that some baby powders or talcum powders as talc has been linked to cervical cancer…not good…so an alternate would be to use something more natural like corn starch.

Metal
As with silicone, metal toys (G-Spot Mini Waterproof Vibrator ) is a hardy beast and can be disinfected, boiled and made to face assorted forms of abuse in the name of cleanliness – but always make sure to dry it properly.

Plastic
Plastic Toys (like Velvet Touch Vibrators or the Pleasure Commander Bullet Vibrator ) only need a gentle rub with a cotton wool ball soaked in alcohol is the best cleaning solution for plastic, though rinse your toy afterwards so the alcohol doesn’t come into contact with your precious parts.

Leather
Treat your leather toy with all the love and cleanly kindness you’d show a vintage leather jacket. Rub it down regularly but gently with a damp rag.