Cleaning Invisalign Braces

Every new set of Invisalign aligners comes in it's own factory sealed packet.

After removing your aligners from the packet for the first time, examine them closely. You will notice that they are slightly dull, often with an almost chalky looking residue on them. This is quite harmless, and is simply a result of the sterilisation and disinfectant procedure that takes place at the end of manufacture. Some people, however, can be allergic to this residue so an important first step before inserting your new aligners is to rinse them thoroughly under the tap. I like to remove it because I sometimes feel that it gives me a sore throat.

One of the most inconvenient aspects of Invisalign is that they must be removed before eating or drinking anything other than water. Whilst in an ideal world it would be advisable to clean your aligners thoroughly every time you remove them, in many places such as the workplace, restaurants etc. this simply isn't practical or possible.

One of the best ways to keep your aligners fresh in this instance is to run them under running water immediately after removing them. This washes away any saliva and other residue whilst it is still wet and means that they will be a lot fresher when it comes to reinserting them.

Having run them under water place them in their case whilst you eat. Then just before putting them back in, after brushing and flossing your teeth, rinse them again. This will prevent them smelling and in turn giving you bad breath.

Many people find that using disposable brushes or prepasted disposable brushes is much easier when they are out and about. Just below you will find images of disposable brushes that can be used when out of the house.

If you are at home and are able to thoroughly clean your braces the best solution is a very soft toothbrush. Giving your braces a quick once over under running water will keep them fresh and fragrant whilst you are eating.

Dr. Collins Prepasted Disposable Toothbrush, Mint Flavor, 12 Brushes
(Pack of 2)

Colgate
Wisp
Peppermint,
16-Count
(Pack of 2)

BRYTONPick -3 Pack INTERDENTAL CLEANER
Great for use with Braces & Invisalign!

Invisible
Braces
Retainer
Removal Tool
Outie

Dental
Retainer Box
Tray Denture
Mouth
Night Guard
Case

Whilst rinsing your aligners provides a quick and easy way to keep them clean when out and about, more thorough cleaning will be required at other times to keep the aligners fresh and odour free.

This can be done with a soft toothbrush and cold running water. It is important that aligners aren't placed in or under hot water as it can cause them to warp. Also, don't use toothpaste on the aligner as it can make tiny scratches that can hold germs.

Holding the aligner firmly in your hand use a soft toothbrush to gently clean each individual tooth space within the aligner. One important thing to note is that a lot of the white film that collects on the aligners is actually on the outside of the aligner not just on the inside surface that is in contact with the teeth, so make sure you clean the outsides too!

Pay particular attention to the sides of the teeth and also any areas where there are gaps between the teeth when cleaning the aligner.

Removing all of this white film regularly will mean that it does not harden and become impossible to get off.

Many people find (although this is not recommended by Invisalign) that a daily soak in Steradent (or Polident) solution or similar denture cleaner can help to keep aligners much fresher. Often these solutions have a pinky colour and on first removing the aligner from it they can look slightly pink, however a quick rinse under running water soon gets rid of this. Retainer brite although not available in every country, seems to work even better.

For a really thorough clean, the best product I have found is the SonicBrite Professional Cleansing System (see the link to it below) This means that you don't actually have to do any brushing, and it gets right into the little dents formed for your attachments.

DenTek
Denture &
Retainer Bath
1 ea

Polident 3-Minute Anti-Bacterial Denture Cleanser Tablets, Triple Mint Fresh, 108-Count Boxes
(Pack of 3)

RETAINER BRITE
Cleaning
Tablets
Box of 36

Oral-B
Vitality
Precision
Clean
Rechargeable
Electric
Toothbrush

Oral-B
Advantage
123
Twin Pack
Toothbrush,
Soft
2 ea

Invisalign cleaning crystals aren't even available in many countries where Invisalign itself is offered. Even in the US the Invisalign system was used for many years before the new cleaning crystals became available.

My orthodontist recommends the methods used above and says that the crystals are not necessary and are far too expensive relative to other cleaning methods without offering any improvement over other methods in how clean they get your aligners. Feel free to save your money to spend on whitening or something that will make a difference to how great your teeth look at the end of treatment.

In my experience Polident and retainer brite work just as well and are far cheaper.

Check out this dedicated Invisalign Braces Store

Not cleaning your aligners results in them quickly becoming smelly and unpleasant. However what many people forget is that the cases that aligners are stored in also need to be kept clean.

Invisalign provide to each customer two cases. These are where aligners are stored when eating or drinking. However, what many people fail to realise is that aligners are usually wet when placed in the case, with a mixture of water and saliva. This quickly causes the cases to start to smell and build up germs although most people don't notice until the problem gets fairly serious.

This means that large amounts of bacteria are collecting inside the case and getting transferred onto the aligners on a daily basis.

The best way to counteract this problem is to rinse and dry your case daily. I also give the inside of mine a quick wipe over with a paper towel too and sometimes put a little dishwashing liquid in the water just to get them really clean.

When I first got my Invisalign braces. I struggled to remove them. Removing them once I had my Invisalign attachments was almost impossible. Luckily I did find out that there are a few tips and tricks to removing Invisalign that really helped me get the hang of it.

The most useful of these was that there is actually an implement expressly designed to remove Invisalign. Called the "outie" it is an aligner removal hook. Looking similar to a crochet hook it lets you remove your Invisalign without damaging them.

You can see examples of the outie below. Click on the outie pictures for more details.

Did you know that you can do tooth whitening with Invisalign aligners? You use your Invisalign trays and add some gel to them. The most popular gel for doing this is Nite White gel and was recommended to me by my own dentist.

Important! Do not whiten if you have Invisalign attachments on your teeth. Either whiten in the first four weeks of Invisalign before your attachments are fitted, or in the final weeks when they have been removed.

This is because the attachments stop parts of your teeth being whitened and you would get a patchy result.

I wrote this article to share what I have learned about keeping Invisalign clean over the last two years. If you found it helpful please share it with your friends or if you are a squidoo member please click the small thumbs up button to show you enjoyed it at the top and bottom of this page. If you need more information about your invisalign please check with your Invisalign dentist.

Thank you for reading!