• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
go to homepage

Search by
Category
  • Cleaning Blog
  • Automotive
  • Bathroom Appliances and Fixtures
  • Carpets and Rugs
  • Cats
  • Closets and Organization
  • Dogs
  • Electronics
  • Fabrics
  • Floor & Carpet
  • Floors
  • Food
  • Furniture
  • General Housecleaning
  • House
  • Household Appliances and Fixtures
  • Jewelry
  • Kitchen Appliances and Fixtures
  • Kitchen and Bathroom Surfaces
  • Kitchenware
  • Metals
  • Outdoors
  • Other Pets, Animals and Pests
  • People
  • Stain Removal
  • Stuff
  • Surfaces
  • Things You Own
  • Tools and Techniques
  • Walls and Ceilings
  • Windows
  • Everything Else
  • Ask us your cleaning question

go to homepage

How To Clean Stuff.net

Search by
Category
  • Cleaning Blog
  • Automotive
  • Bathroom Appliances and Fixtures
  • Carpets and Rugs
  • Cats
  • Closets and Organization
  • Dogs
  • Electronics
  • Fabrics
  • Floor & Carpet
  • Floors
  • Food
  • Furniture
  • General Housecleaning
  • House
  • Household Appliances and Fixtures
  • Jewelry
  • Kitchen Appliances and Fixtures
  • Kitchen and Bathroom Surfaces
  • Kitchenware
  • Metals
  • Outdoors
  • Other Pets, Animals and Pests
  • People
  • Stain Removal
  • Stuff
  • Surfaces
  • Things You Own
  • Tools and Techniques
  • Walls and Ceilings
  • Windows
  • Everything Else
  • Ask us your cleaning question

Home / Cleaning Guides / Things You Own / Everything Else / How to Clean Gum and Unwanted Food from a Plastic Retainer

How to Clean Gum and Unwanted Food from a Plastic Retainer

retainer

Table of Contents:
  1. You Will Need
  2. Steps to Remove the Gunk
  3. Additional Tips and Advice

Hannah asked: How do I clean gum and unwanted food off of my clear, plastic retainer without ruining it? I accidentally put gum in my mouth with my retainer in and now it is stuck to the back part of it. Some food is always stuck in it and it grosses me out. Any tips?

If you don’t properly maintain your retainer, it won’t take long for it to turn into a gunky, smelly mess. Old gum and food particles are both unsightly and unsanitary, so it’s very important to get your retainer clean and keep it that way. Here’s what to do.

You Will Need:

  • Antibacterial soap or toothpaste
  • Denture toothbrush
  • Water

Steps to Remove the Gunk:

  1. Wet the retainer.
  2. Douse it with antibacterial soap. If you’re leery about putting soap on your mouthpiece, use toothpaste or antibacterial mouthwash.
  3. Scrub all surfaces with the denture toothbrush, taking care not to be too rough around soldered parts to avoid breaking them.
  4. Rinse well with plain water and allow the retainer to air dry.

Additional Tips and Advice

  • To keep your retainer clean, make sure you brush it every time you brush your teeth.
  • For heavy duty cleaning, a denture brush is preferred over a toothbrush because its stiff bristles. If you brush your retainer every day, your toothbrush will be more than enough to maintain the cleanliness.
  • Denture cleaner is often recommended for cleaning retainers, but you should never leave a retainer in denture cleaner for more than 15 minutes, nor should you use it often. Denture cleaner will weaken the soldered joints.
  • If your retainer is a plastic tray, such as those used in Invisalign, follow all of the care instructions provided. While it is safe to use toothpaste and mouthwash on the surface, soaking in the mouthwash can damage the plastic.
  • For deep cleanings, take your retainer on your next dentist visit. They have special machines that can clean and sanitize your retainer as well as build up any plaque build up that may have occurred.

Cleaning Guides, Everything Else

Was This Guide Helpful?

+1.1B
-1073741799
Rating: 2191309894%. From 49 votes.
Please wait...

Related Posts

  • How to Clean Plastic Food Containers
  • How to Clean Plastic Food Containers
  • How to Clean Plastic Cookie Cutters
  • How to Clean a Retainer
  • How to Clean Food Dyes from Plastics
  • How to Clean Sticky Plastic

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, conse ctetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit sed diam.


Thank you for subscribing!

Reader Interactions

About the Author

Avatar photo

Susan

I'm a stay-at-home mom who used to run a small housecleaning business. These days I consider myself more or a mad cleaning-scientist. I do most of the testing for our articles - as well as helping Mark & Melanie write them.

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Helpful comments include feedback on the recipe or changes you made.

show comments +

Comments

  1. Anthony says

    October 8, 2015 at 10:36 pm

    Tried this. My retainer smells good, but the gum is still there. Any sugestions?

    Reply
    • Kylah says

      September 5, 2017 at 4:18 pm

      Try to buy a scraping tool.

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

Featured Guides

How to Clean a Hairbrush

How to Clean a Microwave Oven With ZERO Chemicals

How to Clean Every Dental Retainer

How to Clean your Macbook’s Screen

Join our mailing list.
Be the first to know about new arrivals, sales, and special events.
Thank you for subscribing!

Footer

Browse by Category

  • Automotive
  • Clothing & Fabrics
  • Floors & Carpets
  • Housecleaning
  • Kitchen & Bath
  • Outdoors
  • People & Pets
  • Household Stuff

Contact

  • Ask Us Your Cleaning Questions
  • Contact Form

Follow us on Social Media

Site Information

  • Cookie Policy
  • Guest Post Policy
  • Accessibility Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • XML Sitemap

Copyright © 2023 · HowToCleanStuff.net · All Rights Reserved · Website by Anchored Design