What Lube To Use With Silicone Sex Toys
You’ve got a brand new toy. You’re excited. You want to get going straight away, but if you’re reading this, a thought has probably popped into the back of your head. And it was right to! The case of what lube to use with silicone dildos and sex toys isn’t as easy as ‘whatever is available’, unfortunately. Life is too complicated for that I'm afraid. If you don’t go on to read anymore, remember this: do not use silicone lube with silicone toys.
Still with us? Good, we’ll dive into this a little deeper and explain why, along with what alternative lubes are best for you and your new silicone toy!
Why can’t I use silicone lube with silicone sex toys?
Without getting into an in-depth chemistry lesson, the easiest way to explain this is that silicone solids are soluble in silicone liquids. Simply put, they’ll begin to dissolve. This isn’t necessarily as simple as stirring a little bit of salt into a glass of water, but imagine putting a tiny amount of water onto a huge block of salt and you get the idea. Your silicone dildo will start absorbing the silicone lube and gradually become more and more deformed and less solid with each use.
Now, when it comes to platinum silicone dildos, like our Twisted Beast toys, it’s a bit of a different story. Platinum silicone is far more chemically stable than ordinary silicone toys. Realistically, silicone lube should be fine to use, but will stick to your toy incredibly well. You’ll need one hell of a cleaning after. While there’s not necessarily a chemical reason for silicone lube to damage a platinum silicone toy, there’s quite a bit of general unconfirmed anecdotal stories out there. For this reason we would still recommend favouring other lubes over silicone lube when using a platinum silicone toy.
So, what else can I use instead?
Using water-based lubes with silicone toys
Water-based lubes. A jack of all trades but master of none. Basically, water-based lubes are pretty much inert as far as lubes go, and are applicable in any and every scenario. So yes, they can be applied to silicone and platinum silicone toys without any issue. But does that make them the best choice?
Water-based lubes will dehydrate and get absorbed by your body relatively fast compared to other lubes. They’ll begin to get tacky and dry. Keep an eye on your comfort levels when using water-based lubes and reapply regularly. This is particularly important when using larger toys. Smaller silicone toys may be fine with water-based lubes, but you certainly don’t want to use water-based lubes with xxl monster dildos, for instance. The amount of constant reapplying would drive you insane.
Fisting lubes - the holy grail
Fisting lubes, such as Xlube, are the gold standard, the holy grail, everything you could want from a sex toy lube. If we’re getting technical, they’re water-based. They can be used similarly in every situation that regular water-based lubes can, but their consistency and formulation stops them from drying out. All the benefits of water-based lube without any of the drawbacks. These lubes provide maximum glide, making them ideal for those aforementioned larger silicone dildos.
Xlube does come with the caveat that you mix it yourself at home. Fear not though, it’s relatively easy - we even made a guide on how to mix Xlube for you!
What about cum lube?
At its core, cum lube is simply water-based lube with a few extras thrown in to make the colour and consistency mimic cum. You’re perfectly fine to use cum lube on all your silicone toys!
What about oil based lubes?
Oil and oil based lubes come with a few caveats. In theory, things like coconut oil or crisco are A-OK to use with silicone toys. They’re not inherently the same chemical formula as silicone so won’t react with a silicone toy and degrade it.
What you need to be careful with is if you’re wearing latex or vinyl (e.g. clothing made from oil) - as the oil then will begin to degrade your clothes (instead of the toy). For the same reason, oil-based lubes will also degrade condoms!
Another thing to be aware of is the purity of the oil. Virgin coconut oil? Perfectly fine. You begin getting into murky water when preservatives are added, at that point it begins getting difficult to be sure. To be safe, avoid these. Specifically, oil-based lubes should be fine. If you are planning on using a coconut or other oil-based lube product, we still recommend double checking the lube’s website that your lube can be used with silicone sex toys.
If you take anything from this blog, for all that is bad and unholy, do not use silicone lube with silicone toys. That being said, you should now be fully equipped to make the right decision on which lube to use with your silicone dildos and sex toys. Go forth and penetrate.