If you are using retainers, you might think of cleaning them. As we know retainers is most of the time placed inside your mouth, so it catches an infection, bacteria, tartar, plaque easily. So it is necessary to clean it regularly, as we clean our teeth.  Cleaning of retainers largely depends upon which kind of retainer you have. So the cleaning processor varies according to the type of retainers. There are basically three types of retainers. 

• Clear plastic retainers

You can also find these retainers by the names Clear aligners, Essix, and vivera. These retainers are almost invisible; when you wear them, someone hardly notices them. These are easy to remove as it easily slips over your teeth. But the major drawback of such retainers is they are not durable.

• Hawley retainers

Hawley Retainers are the perfect fit for your mouth. It is because these retainers are molded out of acrylic. In addition to this, it has a wire which enables the retainers to hold in a fixed place. These retainers are durable, which means you can use them for a long time. In addition, it is easy to clean such retainers which are removable.

• Fixed and bonded retainers

As the name suggests, these retainers are fixed and permanent. It means you can’t remove this type of retainer. These retainers are permanently attached to your lower front teeth.  These are used mainly by people who have a high risk of shifting their teeth. Such retainers Remain fixed in their place for several months or even years. 

Complete tips for removable Retainer’s

Now we will discuss some of the tips that will help a person know how to clean a retainer.

Avoid chemicals

If you want to clean your retainer’s you don’t need to use a harsh cleanser for its cleaning. Found in a research study that chemical cleaners don’t prove beneficial to remove the bacteria any more than the simple cleanser. 

Moreover, if you use chemical cleaners or tablets for cleaning retainers, It may cause strep throat. It is a type of infection in the throat, a kind of tonsils. A sore throat can also cause red and swollen tonsils, fever, etc.

If your cleanser contains alcohol, it may also harm your plastic retainers. So it is better to you such types of solutions rarely. 

Clean your case

If you are using teeth retainers, you must make it a habit to clean your retainer case regularly. It is advisable to clean it once a day before you put your teeth retainer in it. To clean the case, you can gently scrub on all its surface. After this, put the retainer in warm water and add drops of cleanser in all soapy water. Finally, rinse it off and keep it aside to dry. 

Avoid heating

Retainers, when exposed to high heat, Can ruin it completely. So it is advisable for Retainer’s away from heat or hitting objects like microwaves, boiling water, washer and dryers, dishwasher, the dashboard of your car, etc. 

In addition to this, make sure you wash the retainers in lukewarm water.

Time your Soak

If you are using Hawley retainers, you must not soak these retainers for too long in the cleaning tablets. It is because soaking retainers for too long results in corrosion of their metal components. So it is suggested to soak the retainers only during the time of cleaning and for the time specified on the cleaning tablets.  

If you want to freshen your retainer’s smell and kill the bacteria, you can use a quick mouth freshener or mouthwash for this. 

When you use any mouthwash for the cleansing of retainer’s make sure you add an equal amount of water to it. 

These are some of the valuable tips which would help you in the cleansing of your retainers effectively. And hopefully you got the answer to the question how to clean a retainer?