The New Intimacy

Non-porous doesn't mean sterilzable, right?

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Contributor: ZenaidaMacroura ZenaidaMacroura
I've read in a couple of reviews that plastic can be disinfected or sterilized. Is this true. I mean...the EF sex toy material guide says plastic is non-porous. I thought non-porous materials could be sterilized. But I know plastic can't be. Gah!

I had a long discussion with someone about it because they said non-porous and sterilizable were the same thing. Plastic only has an EF safety rating of 8. So, plastic should be covered with a condom if sharing will be happening, right?

So...I guess my question is, is plastic non-porous or not? If so, why can't it be sterilized? This may sound like a silly question...but I really hadn't given it much thought before, so it's a little confusing.

Here's the EF plastic material guide.
03/27/2011
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Contributor: ToyTimeTim ToyTimeTim
I found this Page and it gives a lot of good information. It also talks about "Disinfection is a lower grade of sterilization and involves only the destruction of pathogenic
organisms in the vegetative (or non-sporing) state; it does not involve the destruction of spores."

The way I see it, plastic can not handle the heat that is required for proper sterilization.

When in doubt, wrap that toy.
03/27/2011
Contributor: ZenaidaMacroura ZenaidaMacroura
Quote:
Originally posted by ToyTimeTim
I found this Page and it gives a lot of good information. It also talks about "Disinfection is a lower grade of sterilization and involves only the destruction of pathogenic
organisms in the vegetative (or non-sporing) state; it does not ... more
Thanks for the info, Dwtim! I've come across this in a few reviews I've edited, and I don't want to give the reviewer the wrong info. So, basically, plastic can be disinfected, but not sterilized. Got it.

And plastic IS non-porous? Why wouldn't bleach sterilize it? Sorry if I'm being a bit dense.
03/27/2011
Contributor: ToyTimeTim ToyTimeTim
Quote:
Originally posted by ZenaidaMacroura
Thanks for the info, Dwtim! I've come across this in a few reviews I've edited, and I don't want to give the reviewer the wrong info. So, basically, plastic can be disinfected, but not sterilized. Got it.

And plastic IS non-porous? ... more
Not sure on that one. I just looked at a site that was telling about bleaching baby bottles. It stated that it could be done, but caution should be used because it could destroy some plastic's.

As far as porous or non-porous, all I can find is that some are and some are not.
03/27/2011
Contributor: P'Gell P'Gell
Some plastic will melt if attempt is to sterilize it. I've melted baby toys, when I was sterilizing them for a thrush infection.

As we don't always know which plastic is used, it's a gamble to boil plastic.
03/27/2011
Contributor: Annemarie Annemarie
I believe a 10% bleach solution would be enough to disinfect plastic, and bleach would not melt plastic (if I recall).
03/27/2011
Contributor: ZenaidaMacroura ZenaidaMacroura
Thanks for the info, everyone. So...plastic can be disinfected, but not sterilized. It is non-porous...but it can't stand up to the temperatures needed to sterilize, and bleach only disinfects...? I think? Haha. Basically, use caution and cover with a condom if you'll be sharing.
03/27/2011
Contributor: Jobthingy Jobthingy
Quote:
Originally posted by ToyTimeTim
Not sure on that one. I just looked at a site that was telling about bleaching baby bottles. It stated that it could be done, but caution should be used because it could destroy some plastic's.

As far as porous or non-porous, all I can ... more
Its tough. I mean I think of all the baby bottles, pump attachments, and soothers and all that that I boiled in my day and they were fine. But they are a type of plastic that is meant for that (more or less)
03/27/2011
Contributor: ToyTimeTim ToyTimeTim
Quote:
Originally posted by Jobthingy
Its tough. I mean I think of all the baby bottles, pump attachments, and soothers and all that that I boiled in my day and they were fine. But they are a type of plastic that is meant for that (more or less)
Ya, same here. We always boiled our bottles, nipples/caps and pacifiers with no problems. But, I have seen other plastics, like storage containers, melt or get deformed with just hot water from the tap. (We have HOT water from the tap)
03/27/2011
Contributor: Darling Jen Darling Jen
Awesome question! I found talking about material safety to be one of the biggest eye openers at my party. I do like the rule of "When it doubt, cover it up!"
03/27/2011
Contributor: KaraSutra KaraSutra
Non-porous = it won't absorb bacteria since it doesn't have "pores". As for sterilizing that that has more to do with cleaning. Porous items would need to be cleaned much better than something that's non-porous. Hope that made sense.
03/27/2011
Contributor: sexyk515 sexyk515
i need to know too lol
03/27/2011
Contributor: DeftlyDexterous DeftlyDexterous
When it comes to cleaning toys, disinfect is a relative term, and sterilize is absolute. You cannot technically "sterilize" anything with household chemicals, although you can do a great job of disinfecting them, effectively reducing the pathogens to zilch.

Non-porous comes with the benefit that something will respond well to chemical disinfection. Bleach and other chemicals will eliminate enough bacteria that it will generally be considered safe. Porous means that little pockets in the material could house pathogens that might not come in contact with the disinfectant, and there for may remain and active threat.

You can't even sterilize things by boiling them. Some pathogens don't break down until well over boiling point, and for that, you need an autoclave. That means only metal and glass toys can technically be "sterilized". (some can even live past this point, but not any known STDs to my knowledge)

For reasonable purposes, cleaning a non porous toy with a bleach solution or cleaning a high temperature resistant toy by boiling is a safe bet on sufficiently sanitizing something. As always, condoms can reduce the (already slight) chances even farther.
03/28/2011
Contributor: Wild Orchid Wild Orchid
Quote:
Originally posted by DeftlyDexterous
When it comes to cleaning toys, disinfect is a relative term, and sterilize is absolute. You cannot technically "sterilize" anything with household chemicals, although you can do a great job of disinfecting them, effectively reducing the ... more
You can autoclave at least some silicons. Some people from menstrual cup community on LiveJournal do it.
05/03/2011
Contributor: Rightya Rightya
Great information
05/05/2011