First things first is your toy porous or non-porous, "what's that?" your probably wondering. What it comes down to is if your toys' material is more prone to bacteria hiding out or not, is the surface of your toy completely smooth, or can you feel or see tiny holes/rough areas?
Now let's talk about the types of materials our sex toys are made out of. A porous material is a type of material where it's easy for bacteria to hide out and become harmful, if not cleaned and stored properly. Porous materials' may need a little more TLC than others when your talking cleaning. These types of materials include, but not limited to;
Elastomer- is a porous, soft, non-toxic, rubber like material. It is less porous than some other materials like jelly toys. Elastomer is also great if your looking for something cheaper than silicone. This type of material is capable of recovering their original shape after being stretched to great extents.
Thermoplastic Elastomer- TPE/TPR- is porous, allergy friendly, soft, stretchy and won't break the bank. Washing with a warm mild soapy water is recommended for washing these types of toys, these toys cannot be fully sanitized. Remember, to NOT store TPE/TPR toys that have the same soft rubber like material. If stored together your toys can become "one" with one another and you won't know which end is which. Keep in mind that because of the type of material, with time your toy will start to break down. So cleaning and storing properly is always recommended if you want to keep your toy in tip-top-shape for as long as possible.
Jelly Rubber- is porous, inexpensive, squishy to the touch and could contain latex. Because of the porous material using a condom is highly recommended, that way no odors and bacteria have the chances of building up and becoming harmful. So if you do have an allergy to latex, please be cautious of your jelly toy(s) material makeup.
Cyberskin/Fanta Flesh- very porous, pretty high maintenance and extremely life-like. Cyberskin sex toys can be made up of multiple different types of mixtures, that include TPE, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), silicone and latex. Depending on the composition of your sex toy (refer to box/user manual) latex could be present and if allergic, you could have an allergic reaction to your toy. Making sure you know what your dealing with is always very important.
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)- is flexible, soft, porous and is added to other sex toys to give them their bend and flexibility. On the other hand PVC toys aren't very safe, due to them having phthalates added. These additives have been linked to health risks.
On the other hand non-porous materials are pretty easy to clean and because of their smooth surfaces the chances of harmful bacteria making a home on your sex toy are pretty slim, unless your just not that into hygiene. Non-porous materials include; silicone, stainless steel, glass and wood.
Silicone- is non-porous, durable, super soft, and hypoallergenic. Silicone can cost a little more when looking for a good, high grade quality silicone sex toy. When opening up a new silicone toy, it should have a very faint smell that should go away soon after opening and using. So your "new silicone" toy shouldn't have a harsh factory/rubbery smell.
Stainless Steel- is non-porous, weighted, has a smooth surface, and great for temperature play. Although stainless steel sex toys don't thrust or vibrate, you can still find a great dildo or anal plug that is durable and could stand up to corrosion due to the amount of nickel and chromium in certain stainless steel toys.
Glass- is non-porous, smooth and strong. Borosilicate glass is the most common type of glass that glass sex toys are made out of. This material is the same material that Pyrex used to make their kitchenware out of, before they were sold in the early 90's. So that means it takes a lot to actually break this material, it still can break, but again it takes a lot. Although, good quality glass toys can withstand many years of use, these toys also come in some very beautiful designs and the best part they're compatible with all lube types!! (yay!!)
Wood- is body safe, good glide action and non-porous. When looking to add a wooden toy to your collection make sure your not purchasing anything with stained in the name or on the box. Instead look for something with the a body safe/food safe sealant, this way you and your toy is safe from becoming unsafe and begin to swell and warp, due to absorbing moisture. The good glide action on wood toys are pretty sweet, when going in and out there isn't any pull or tug making your experience uncomfortable.
Stone/Crystal- can be either porous or non-porous, can have smooth surface and hard to the touch. These types of sex toys are really pretty and can even give you some good energy. But, depending on the type of stone you have you might have a porous or non-porous toy. Types of porous stone/crystal toys include, but not limited to pearl, opal, emerald and amber. These stones don't have a completely smooth surfaces', which could put you in harms way if not used and taken care of the right way. Stones that are considered non-porous are rose quartz and amethyst. Non-porous stones are considered single-crystal, which makes their surface smooth and harder for bacteria to hide out and make your toy unsafe.
Jade/Onyx- Although jade and onyx are stones, jade and onyx are considered semi-porous stones. What semi-porous is, is that these materials' surfaces have a little wiggle room for bacteria to make a family on your toy and make your toy unsafe.
ABS/Hard Plastics- are tough, non-porous and easy to clean. Although this material is really pretty resistant to breaks and cracks, it does have the potential to crack if not used correctly.
Whatever your preference is when adding to your sex toy collection, making sure the type of material you have and how to properly care for it is really important. Some materials may need a little extra TLC in order to keep you safe and for them to be used as long as you can. Always make sure to read the user manual on how to take care of your toy to make sure you get orgasm after orgasm, time after time.