How to Clean Piercings: The Complete Guide

Keeping your piercing clean will reduce your chances of infection or other complications. Here is our complete guide to how to clean piercings.

It is most effective to use water, dish soap, and baking soda to clean piercings. The fact that all of these components are hypoallergenic means 99.99% of people won’t develop an allergic reaction to their piercings after cleaning with this method. Continue reading the article to find out how piercing cleaning works.

women with piercings — Women with piercings. Photo by Marcelo Chagas

Table of Contents

How to Clean Piercings?

Time needed: 10 minutes

We all know how to maintain a clean environment and body that contributes to our health. When cleaning your piercings, there are many different ways to do so. But here is the most effective way we have found to How Clean Piercings:

First, wash your hands before touching your piercings to avoid infection or irritation from bacteria on your fingers.
Second, put your piercing in a glass with clean water, dish soap, and baking soda.
Leave the piercing in the cup for 5 minutes.
Gently rinse the pricing. It is best to close the maintenance hole cover in the sink, so the jewelry does not fall accidentally.
Wipe the piercing well with a dry, clean cloth.
It is recommended to store the piercings in sealed boxes to avoid dust accumulation.

Keep your piercings clean with these tips

Keep your piercing clean and healthy with these tips.

When you do not use the piercings you have, keep them in a clean and sealed box. This will ensure that they will not get dirty due to dust or other identifiers that circulate and become dirty.
To keep your piercings clean, wash them regularly, about once every month to twice a month.
It is always wise not to touch the piercing with dirty hands. Even when our hands seem clean, they may contain pollutants that are contaminated with toxins, so try your best not to touch your piercing with dirty hands.
If you have piercings, don’t let anyone touch them without washing their hands first.

How to Clean Piercings — To keep the piercing clean and hygienic, it is recommended to use gloves or washed hands when touching it.

How to clean a new piercing?

It is recommended to get clear instructions from your piercer on how to clean your new piercing thoroughly in the first few days after it is done.

In the first few days, it is normal to see a little blood around the piercing.

Clean the piercing area twice a day with a saltwater solution (morning and evening).

How to make a saltwater solution? It’s simple, pour about half a cup of hot water into a sterilized jar, add a teaspoon of salt, and mix well until the salt melts. Let the solution cool before using on your body.

Taking Care of Your Cartilage Piercings

Cartilage piercings are often more challenging to take care of than regular piercings because the cartilage is softer and more porous. Here are some tips and tricks for taking care of your cartilage piercings.

Clean your piercing with water and a bar of mild soap at least once daily.
Use saline solution to rinse your piercing.
When you’re not wearing jewelry, cover your piercing with a bandage or other protective covering so that it doesn’t get dirty or rubbed against anything that might irritate it.

A man does a piercing, Photo by Brett Sayles.

Taking Care of Your Oral Piercings

It is critical to note that oral piercings (those found on your tongue, lip, or cheek) can cause problems if they are not appropriately maintained. To avoid these problems, you should clean your mouth with water after eating or drinking anything. This is because saliva contains enzymes that can break down tissue and result in infection.

FAQ

When should a piercing be cleaned?

A piercing should be cleaned regularly. Every day it should be cleaned superficially during the shower, and once a month it should be cleaned thoroughly.