How to Clean Your Mouthguard Properly
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Your mouthguard spends six to eight hours a night in a warm, moist environment. If you're not cleaning it properly, bacteria, plaque, and calculus build up on it fast — sometimes faster than on your own teeth. A dirty guard can cause gum irritation, bad breath, and accelerated material degradation. And if you're wearing your guard as part of a long-term structural process, you want it in good condition for the long haul.
The good news: cleaning a mouthguard correctly takes less than two minutes once you have a routine down. Here's exactly what to do, what to avoid, and how to store it so it stays clean between uses.
The Nightly Routine (After Every Use)
This is the baseline — what you should do every single morning after taking your guard out.
Step 1: Rinse immediately. As soon as you take the guard out, rinse it under cool or lukewarm running water. This removes saliva, loose plaque, and any debris before they have a chance to dry onto the material. Don't skip this step even if you're half asleep — dried-on residue is significantly harder to remove.
Step 2: Brush gently with a soft toothbrush. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush — not the one you use for your teeth — and brush the guard gently on all surfaces. Inner arch, outer surface, biting surface. The goal is to remove the soft biofilm layer that accumulates overnight.
What to use instead of toothpaste: Plain mild dish soap or a dedicated retainer/guard cleaner is better than regular toothpaste for most guards. Standard toothpaste contains mild abrasives — they're designed to be used on enamel, not on softer thermoplastic or rubber materials. Over time, toothpaste can create tiny scratches in the surface of the guard, and those scratches become places where bacteria can hide and accumulate.
If you only have toothpaste available, use a very small amount and rinse thoroughly. It's better than nothing.
Step 3: Rinse again thoroughly. Rinse off all soap or cleaner completely. Any residue left on the guard goes into your mouth the next time you wear it.
Step 4: Let it air dry before storing. This is the step most people skip, and it matters. Storing a wet guard in a closed case creates the exact warm, moist, low-oxygen environment that bacteria and mold prefer. Shake off excess water and let the guard air dry on a clean surface for at least a few minutes — ideally 15–20 — before putting it in its case.
Weekly Deep Clean
Once a week, give the guard a more thorough cleaning beyond the nightly routine.
Option 1: White vinegar soak. Soak the guard in a 1:1 mixture of white distilled vinegar and water for 15–30 minutes. Vinegar is mildly acidic and effective at breaking down mineral deposits (calculus buildup) and killing bacteria without damaging most guard materials. After soaking, brush gently and rinse very thoroughly — vinegar has a strong smell and taste that lingers if not rinsed well.
Option 2: Baking soda paste. Make a paste with baking soda and a small amount of water, apply it to the guard with your brush, scrub gently, and rinse. Baking soda is a mild alkaline abrasive — gentle enough not to scratch most guard materials but effective at neutralizing odor-causing compounds and loosening buildup.
Option 3: Dedicated retainer or guard cleaning tablets. Products like Retainer Brite or similar effervescent cleaning tablets are designed specifically for dental appliances. They're convenient and effective. Follow the product instructions — typically dissolving a tablet in water and soaking the guard for 15–20 minutes.
What not to use:
- Mouthwash: Many mouthwashes contain alcohol, which dries out and degrades rubber and thermoplastic materials over time. Some also contain artificial dyes that can stain lighter-colored guards. Skip it.
- Boiling water: Boiling water will deform or warp most night guards, particularly boil-and-bite thermoplastic types and rubber appliances. Always use cool to lukewarm water.
- Bleach or hydrogen peroxide (undiluted): Too harsh for prolonged contact with most guard materials. Some diluted hydrogen peroxide products are formulated for dental appliances — if you use hydrogen peroxide, use a diluted, appliance-safe product only.
- Dishwasher: The heat will warp or melt most guards. Don't do it.
Cleaning a Rubber Mouthguard (Like the RevivOne)
Rubber appliances have a few specific considerations worth noting.
The rubber material is durable and holds up well to regular cleaning, but it's more porous than hard acrylic guards. That porousness means bacteria can embed more deeply in the surface over time, which is why the nightly routine matters — letting residue dry onto a rubber guard makes it harder to clean fully the next time.
The good news is that rubber guards are also more forgiving than boil-and-bite thermoplastic guards when it comes to water temperature. They won't deform or lose their shape from lukewarm water. Still avoid boiling water and high heat.
Mild dish soap and a soft brush works very well on rubber. The vinegar soak is also a good weekly option. Avoid harsh chemical cleaners that aren't specifically formulated for dental appliances — rubber can absorb certain chemicals in ways that hard acrylic won't.
One thing worth knowing: if you're doing the Reviv process properly and your structural health is improving, you may notice your guard and your teeth staying cleaner than you'd expect. This is a pattern reported consistently in the Reviv community — as the skull structure improves and the dentition normalizes, oral hygiene seems to require less effort to maintain. It's one of those downstream effects that surprises people. The guard cleaning routine stays the same, but the results are better.
Storage: The Overlooked Part
How you store your guard matters as much as how you clean it.
Use a vented case. A fully sealed case traps moisture. Look for a case with ventilation holes or slotted sides that allow air circulation. If your guard came with a case, check whether it has venting — if not, it's worth getting one that does.
Let it dry before closing the case. As mentioned above: don't store a wet guard. A few minutes of air drying before casing it makes a real difference in bacterial buildup over time.
Keep the case clean too. The case itself accumulates bacteria, particularly in the corners and around any ridges. Rinse it with water and let it air dry regularly — at least weekly. If it's showing visible discoloration or buildup, it needs replacing or a proper clean.
Don't leave it in a hot car or sunny windowsill. Heat deforms most guard materials. A parked car in summer can reach temperatures high enough to warp thermoplastic guards. Room temperature storage is always the right call.
Keep pets away from it. This sounds like an obvious one but is worth saying — mouthguards have a scent from saliva that dogs in particular find interesting. A chewed guard is an expensive mistake.
Signs It's Time to Replace
Even with perfect cleaning, guards don't last forever. Signs that replacement is due:
- Visible cracks, tears, or thinning in the material
- Persistent bad odor that doesn't resolve after a thorough clean — the bacteria are embedded deep in the material
- Discoloration that won't clean off, particularly yellowing or white mineral deposits that have hardened
- Noticeable change in texture — stickiness, brittleness, or a rough surface where it was once smooth
For active nightly users, most rubber guards and boil-and-bite thermoplastic guards have a functional lifespan of 12–24 months with proper care. Custom acrylic guards last longer but require the same regular cleaning attention.
The RevivOne is designed to be worn long term — months and years, not weeks. Taking two minutes each morning to rinse and brush it is the simplest thing you can do to protect that investment and keep the structural process uninterrupted.
Get the RevivOne at getreviv.com
RevivOne is an occlusal guard designed to help reduce bruxism (teeth grinding) and jaw tension during sleep. Individual results vary. The observations and community patterns described in this article reflect the founder's personal experience and reports from community members, and are not intended as medical advice.