How to clean piercing jewelry?

Piercing jewellery most commonly known as body piercing is a safe, attractive and popular trend over a decade. People, mostly teenagers, like to wear them in the nose, eyebrows, belly button, lips and even on their tongue. It’s a good idea to clean the jewellery on a regular occasion to prevent dirt buildup and possible infection. It’s an effortless task to clean piercing jewelry, mostly needing soap and water. For some tenacious residue use light boiling and scrubbing. Cleaning your jewellery on a regular basis maintains their natural shine and makes them safe for you.

Routine cleaning:

Make a routine to clean your jewelry at least every 2-3 days.

Step 1) Washing your hands

Avoid touching your body jewellery with dirty hands to avoid germ transfer to the piercing site. That is why I am mentioning hand washing as the first and the most important step in routine cleaning. So start by washing your hands using a mild antibacterial soap and dry them afterward with a clean towel.

Step 2) Remove the piece of jewelry.

Gently pull out the piece of jewellery with cleaned daily hands. Make sure not to exert force to pull out jewellery that is stuck on your body. It may harm you or your antique piece. Use oil or vaseline to moisturise the piercing area then remove your jewellery.

Step 3) Soaking

Make a mild mixture of antibacterial liquid soap in warm water. Stir the mixture until lather appears on the surface of the mixture. Soak your jewellery in this mixture for 3 minutes. You can also use saline solution alternatively for cleaning piercing jewellery.

Step 4) Rinsing

Use warm water to rinse off your soaked jewellery to remove all the soap residues. Otherwise, the soap may make your skin dry and irritating.

If there is any debris that is stuck in the jewellery, perform the soaking and rinsing steps again.

Step 5) Drying

It’s better to allow your piece of jewellery to air dry. If you are in a hurry, then consider drying gently with a paper towel before wearing them.

Step 6) Cleaning the piercing site

As you have cleaned your trinkets, now it’s time to clean the site of piercing. Use Q-tips to gently swab the area. You can also use soap-water solution to clean the area. Dab dry the area using a clean paper towel. Avoid using rubbing alcohol to clean the area to avoid your antique piece fading.

Tough cleaning

Cleaning using soft toothbrush

If soaking in warm water does not work to remove the suspended debris from your body piercing, try using a soft bristle toothbrush to dislodge the debris from the nooks and crannies. Dip the brush in soapy warm water and gently scrub in back and forth motion to remove the tough dirt.

Cleaning using a Q-tip. 

If toothbrush bristle ate unable to dilodge some stubborn dirt from your complicated shaped jewelry, use cotton swabs. Dip the swab into soapy water and gently brush away any remaining dirt.

Cleaning using boiling water

This is an effective and cheaper method of efficient cleaning. To do this type of cleaning, boil a small pot of water and place your jewellery in it for about 5 minutes. Hot water helps loosen debris on the pieces that were buried in crevices plus kill bacteria. Remove from water with tongs or dry with a paper towel to complete the cleaning.

Cleaning by an ultrasonic cleaner.

It’s an electronic cleaning basin that dislodge dirt from intricate jewelry pieces using vibration. If you have many pieces of jewelry and have no time to clean them then investing in ultrasonic cleaner is a great idea. 

Autoclaving

An autoclave is a closed, pressurised device that allows the heating of aqueous solutions up to temperatures above the boiling point of water. The pressurized steam produced help to kill all microorganisms clenching to piercing jewelry. Autoclaving is the most effective sterilization method that you can utilize to clean your jewelry pieces. 

An autoclave machine uses high temperature and high pressure to sterilise things. It’s so efficient that it’s used in cleaning medical supplies and surgical equipment. After autoclaving, the jewelry is as clean as new. 

How to clean Oral piercing jewelery?

This is a different method that allows you to avoid tasting and ingesting soap residue if you have lip, tongue or cheek jewellery pieces. Soak them in no-alcohol mouthwash for Allow the pieces to dry on a piece of paper towel or gauze. 

If you have tongue, cheek, or lip piercings, then using a soap or cleaner is not a good idea at all. Instead soak them in alcohol-free mouthwash for a few minutes and clean any hard-to-remove debris with a Q-tip. Alcohol based mouthwash can also damage the jewelry. It is also good to swish your mouth with mouthwash before wearing the jewelry.

How to clean organic piercing jewelry?

Stone Jewelry

Stone piercing jewelry can easily be cleansed by taking a damp cloth and gently wipe them clean. Avoid soaking them in water as submerging your jewelry in water often cause them to crack or damage sooner.

Wooden Jewelry

Wooden piercing jewelry can be cleaned easily. Gently rub them with jojoba oil to keep them firm and happy. Keep them away from water. As water can make the wearable surface less smooth by expanding the wood or washes away the natural oils to make them dry out. And a dry wood can crack more easily.

Horn and Bone Jewelry

The only thing you need to do is wipe them clean with a clean cloth and a bit of vegetable oil.

How Often Should I Clean My Jewelry?

You probably don’t have to thoroughly wash your jewelry every day. Here are some clues to know the time to wash your jewelry! 

1.) When you are wearing it for the first time as you don’t know where it’s been before and who touched it. So take a healthy start by cleaning new piercing jewelry before wearing.

2.) Every few weeks, if you are a person who likes to stick to a few items. This principle applies on all the jewelry but especially for oral jewelry to avoid plaque build up.

3.) Whenever you change it. If you want to maintain your jewellery for years and years to come, it’s worth taking a few minutes every now and then to keep them shiny. 

What cleaners should be avoided to clean piercing jewelry?

Do not use alcohol or chemical-based cleaners to clean your body piercing jewelry that can damage your jewelry causing gash and corrosion. The only exceptions are the solutions made for use with ultrasonic cleaners. Even some mouthwashes have alcohol, therefore, if you are using mouthwash for cleaning oral pieces use a saline-based mouthwash.

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