Cleaning Night-time Retainer

After repeated use of your night-time retainer, it begins to develop an interesting odor. This is a result of days or even weeks of use without cleaning. This leads to a buildup of bacteria that produce the stench and is ultimately unsanitary. This instructable is here to guide you on cleaning and maintaining your night-time retainer.

• Efferdent® tablet (Around $7 for a box on Amazon)
• Small glass or cup large enough to fit your retainer
• Toothbrush
• Microwave 
• Access to a sink

Pour water into your glass or cup. There should be enough water to cover your retainer, so roughly half the volume of your chosen cup. DO NOT put your retainer in your cup yet!

Put your cup of water in the microwave and heat for 1 minute (this is a quick way to warm water). You want the water to be warm, but NOT boiling. DO NOT put your retainer in the microwave.

While the cup of water is heating up, collect your retainer and toothbrush and turn on your sink’s warm water. Water should NOT be hot enough to burn or scald.

Under the faucet of warm water, gently scrub your retainer, ensuring that any specks of food or plaque build-ups are brushed off. Look for white spots like in the picture above. Do this for a few minutes or until you are satisfied that the food and plaque are gone. If you have a container for your retainer, feel free to clean that with the toothbrush as well.

By now your water in the microwave should have finished heating up. Carefully, take your cup out of the microwave and rest it on a flat surface. CAUTION, cup and water will be warm.

Place your retainer in the cup of warm water. Then, put 1 Everdent® tablet in the cup. The Efferdent® tablet will fizz, signifying that it’s working. Wait 5 minutes for the tablet to fully clean your retainer.

After 5 minutes, take your retainer out of your cup and dry it off with a paper towel or clean rag. You can safely pour the Efferdent® water down the sink drain.

Enjoy your clean night-time retainer! Remember to clean every day or every other day, depending on how dirty your retainer tends to get.