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Ways to take care of your Invisalign aligners
· 18/01/2023 · Invisalign in Dubai
18/01/2023
Taking care of your Invisalign aligners comes down to five habits: rinse them every time you take them out, clean them twice a day with a soft brush and clear antibacterial soap, never eat or drink anything but water while wearing them, keep them in their case when they are out of your mouth, and wear them 20 to 22 hours a day. One question we hear constantly at our Dubai clinic is whether you can use toothpaste on Invisalign. The short answer is no, and the reason surprises most patients. Toothpaste is mildly abrasive, and those tiny scrubbing particles carve invisible grooves into the plastic that later trap stain and bacteria.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Reji Moideen, Specialist Orthodontist at Mint Dental Care, Dubai.
Mint Dental Care is a Diamond Provider of Invisalign, which means our orthodontists have planned and finished a high volume of aligner cases. We have also seen every way a set of trays can go wrong. Cloudy plastic. A tray that smells by Thursday. A pair of aligners wrapped in a serviette and binned at a restaurant on Sheikh Zayed Road. None of it is dramatic, and all of it is avoidable once you know the rules. If you are still researching before your first Invisalign treatment consultation, reading this now tells you exactly what the daily routine looks like.
Can you use toothpaste on Invisalign, and what should you clean aligners with instead?
No, skip the toothpaste. Most pastes contain silica or calcium carbonate as a polishing agent, which is fine for enamel and rough on soft aligner plastic. Whitening formulas are the worst offenders. Under a scratched surface the tray loses its glassy look within a few weeks, and once the surface is rough, pigment from coffee and karak has somewhere to hold on.
Use a small amount of clear, unscented liquid antibacterial hand soap and a soft bristled toothbrush kept only for your aligners. Clear soap, not coloured, because dyes can tint the plastic. Brush gently in circles, inside and out, then rinse until no soap taste remains. Lukewarm water only. Hot water warps thermoplastic, and a warped tray no longer fits the tooth movements your orthodontist planned, which can cost you a refinement round.
The cleaning options ranked
- Clear antibacterial hand soap plus a dedicated soft brush: our default recommendation, roughly AED 15 to AED 30 for a bottle that lasts months.
- Invisalign Cleaning Crystals: a 15 minute soak that lifts biofilm, around AED 90 to AED 130 per pack in Dubai pharmacies. Good once or twice a week.
- Retainer or denture cleaning tablets: a reasonable substitute, around AED 35 to AED 60. Choose a clear, non whitening formula.
- Denture brushes, whitening toothpaste, boiling water, mouthwash with colouring, alcohol wipes: avoid all of them. They scratch, warp, or stain.
How to take care of aligners in a daily routine
Build Invisalign care into the two moments you already brush. Morning: take the trays out, brush and floss your teeth, clean the aligners with soap and a soft brush, rinse, reinsert. Evening: same sequence, then let the trays soak while you finish your night routine. That is it. Two minutes, twice a day.
The part people underestimate is the middle of the day. Every time you remove your aligners, rinse them under cool water straight away, before saliva dries on the surface. Dried saliva forms a film that goes chalky and white, and that film is what most patients mistake for permanent staining. A quick rinse prevents nearly all of it.
Remove your aligners before eating or drinking anything except water
Always take the trays out to eat, and take them out for any drink other than plain water. Chewing with aligners in traps food particles against your enamel and pushes sugar into a warm, sealed environment where bacteria multiply happily for hours. That is how patients end up with white spot lesions along the gumline, or with tartar that only a hygienist can remove. Hot drinks are the other risk, because coffee or tea can soften the plastic while dark pigment settles into it. Our guide to eating and drinking with Invisalign covers the grey areas, and if you want the specific list of things that damage trays or slow treatment, see what foods to avoid during Invisalign treatment.
Brush before you put the trays back in. If you cannot, rinse your mouth vigorously with water. A tray sealed over unbrushed teeth after a shawarma is a bad night for your enamel.
Case or soak, never a napkin
When aligners leave your mouth they go in one of two places: the case, or a soaking solution. Nowhere else. The single most common reason we issue replacement trays is a folded napkin at a restaurant table that got cleared away. A replacement aligner typically costs around AED 300 to AED 500 and takes days to arrive, and in the meantime you drop back to your previous tray, which stalls your progress.
Keep a spare case in your bag or car. Do not leave the case on a dashboard in July, because Dubai summer heat inside a parked car is more than enough to distort the plastic. If a tray does warp or crack, call us before you force it back on.
Wear time is the part that actually decides your result
Invisalign only works if the trays are in your mouth 20 to 22 hours a day. Clean, pristine aligners sitting in a case do nothing. Most people manage the wear time easily once they accept that meals plus brushing account for the two hours off. Where it slips is with grazing, a coffee here, a snack there, five removals a day that quietly add up to six hours out.
If a tray feels tight after a few hours out, that is the tooth movement telling you it lost ground. Push through with firm seating for a day rather than skipping ahead. Chewies help. So does switching trays at night, so the tightest hours happen while you sleep. Consistent wear is also what keeps your case on schedule, and you can see realistic timelines in our breakdown of how long Invisalign takes in Dubai.
What to expect at each stage of Invisalign care
Care habits shift slightly as treatment progresses, and knowing the pattern saves a lot of second guessing.
- Week one: trays feel tight and speech is odd for two or three days. Cleaning routine starts now, not later. Expect a mild lisp that resolves.
- Weeks two to eight: the routine becomes automatic. Attachments (the small tooth coloured bumps) collect plaque at their edges, so angle your brush around them.
- Mid treatment: aligners may start looking duller. Add a crystal or tablet soak twice weekly. Bring your case to every review appointment.
- Final trays: keep the last set. If a retainer is delayed, that final aligner is your safety net.
- After treatment: care does not stop. Teeth drift without support, which is why retainers after Invisalign are non negotiable and follow almost the same cleaning rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get rid of the smell from my aligners?
Odour means bacteria are living in the tray, usually because it was reinserted over unbrushed teeth or left dry between wears. Soak the aligners in a cleaning crystal or clear retainer tablet solution for 15 minutes, brush gently with clear soap, and rinse well. If the smell returns within a day, the source is often the mouth rather than the plastic, so book a hygiene visit. Cleaning appointments at our Dubai clinic usually run around AED 350 to AED 600 depending on what is found.
Why are my Invisalign aligners cloudy or stained already?
Cloudiness is almost always dried mineral film from saliva, and it responds to a soak plus a soft brush. True staining comes from coffee, tea, turmeric, or red wine consumed with trays in, and from surfaces already scratched by toothpaste. Scratched plastic cannot be polished back at home. Each tray is only worn a week or two anyway, so a slightly dull set near the end of its cycle is normal and not a treatment problem.
Can I use mouthwash to clean my aligners?
We advise against it. Coloured mouthwashes tint the plastic, and alcohol based formulas can make it brittle over time. If you like the idea of a rinse, use plain water for the trays and keep mouthwash for your mouth after the aligners are out. A dedicated aligner cleaner is safer and not expensive.
What happens if I lose an aligner in the middle of a set?
Call the clinic the same day, then go back to your previous tray so your teeth hold position. Depending on how far into the set you were, our orthodontist may advance you to the next aligner or order a replacement, typically around AED 300 to AED 500. Do not simply leave the trays out and wait. A week without any aligner can undo weeks of movement.
How much does Invisalign care actually cost per month?
Very little. Clear soap, a spare brush, a case, and occasional cleaning crystals come to roughly AED 40 to AED 80 a month, and the soap and brush are the only items you truly need. The far larger cost is a lost tray or a delayed case. These are indicative Dubai figures and vary by product and pharmacy, so book a consultation with our team if you want a plan tailored to your treatment.
