Zen and the Art of Onahole Maintenance

I wanted to write this article for quite some time, mainly because I wanted to use this great title, but also because we get a lot of questions about how one should approach onahole maintenance, and how to ensure your onaholes are clean and safe to use.

Onaholes, of course, are the name given to Japanese masturbation aids which simulate a vagina or other orifice for male solo sexy time. The name comes from the words “onanism” and “hole.” The combination of Japanese quality and the extreme creativity seen in the world of 2D erotic fantasy has made onaholes a treasure for modern otakus, and J-List has had a lot of fun making everyone’s waifus real, if that’s what you’re into. In this article we’ll explore how to get the best use out of them!

How to Maintain an Onahole

If you read the ridiculously extensive reviews I write about these products, you’ll know that I always put a paragraph at the bottom about how to clean and maintain each toy. Basically, there are several possible approaches to the problem of onahole maintenance and how to remove liquids from an onahole after use.

Some users might be concerned about bacteria and prefer to clean their onaholes with soap and water after use. Some onaholes, like the innovative Tenga Fliphole Zero and Tenga Moova [review links], are specifically designed so that you can open them easily, allowing you to clean inside and dry the toy. These are excellent products, and will serve their owners faithfully for many years.

Another option is to flip the onahole inside out, so you can clean it with tissues easily. While this is okay for some products—especially Tenga Eggs [review link], which are egg-shaped masturbation sleeves that are perfect for this kind of cleaning—in general I advise that people not turned their onaholes inside out, to avoid possible tearing, or at least making your onahole unpleasantly loose and reducing its life expectancy.

The advice I always give is this; you don’t need to worry about it as long as you dry the inside of the toy with a tissue, then let it air dry. As long as you wipe out the inside of an onahole you just used four or five times with tissues, so that it completely dry inside, I think you’ll be fine.

Onahole Maintenance & Starter Kit

Another option is to use an onahole maintenance kit, which is a kit an onahole manufacturer has made containing the things you need to clean your 2D waifu.

The onahole maintenance set comes with several items: a microfiber cleaning rod to remove liquids, an additional microfiber cleaning towel that covers the onaholes completely while you clean it, antibacterial spray, “hole drying powder” plus a maintenance manual (in Japanese).

Onahole Maintenance Kit items

These are the items in the kit. Remember, this might be a nice set to own, if you’re concerned about onahole maintenance issues, but it’s optional, not required.

Questions from Readers

I asked our followers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to submit their onahole-related questions, and here are some of the questions we got.

What lotion should I use with my onahole?

All onaholes come with a small bottle or a packet of “starter lotion” (which is generic lotion of good quality) but if you want to buy a larger bottle and experiment with different kinds, J-List has many varieties in stock. We have an Onahole Lotion Buyers’ Guide on our blog, too. Personally I find the “scented” Onatsuyu or Gichy Gichy Virgin Lotion are both amazing.

My onahole tore when I used it.

I hear these comments from readers from time to time, though I’ve never had the experience myself. Obviously onaholes will sometimes tear if you’re well-endowed (high five dude!), or if they’re too small (like the “starter onaholes” we sell), or if they’ve reached the end of their lifespan. If an onahole does tear, you should buy a new one and perhaps try a larger size, or perhaps a different manufacturer. I usually recommend the Sujiman line from Magic Eyes, which are all very large and sturdy (but a little more expensive).

How should I store my onahole? Is it okay to store it in a sealed bag?

Where to store (and how to hide) one’s onaholes is a question with many answers. Personally, I recommend a plain box with a lid, but I don’t think an airtight bag like a Ziploc bag is a good idea, as onahole should have air to dry.

When should I replace an onahole?

My own experience is that, with care, you can get months or up to a year of use out of a good-quality onahole. Along the way, they will start to show signs of wear and tear, perhaps becoming unpleasantly loose, or showing discolor, or becoming sticky on the outside, which I assume is from a build-up of lotion. If you leave an onahole by itself for several weeks or months, it might get dark or discolored inside, so you should clean it again before use. One customer asked about the outside of an onahole flaking off in his hand, which is another sign that it’s time to buy a new toy. Happily, Japan’s onahole makers always have something fun and new to try out!

How should I throw away an onahole?

I love living in Japan, but one small negative about life here here is a bit of “gomi fascism,” in which everyone is required to separate their trash between burnable and non-burnable, plastics and “dangerous items” like batteries or lightbulbs. You often can’t just throw away items wherever you want.

The “Japanese” way to dispose of an old onahole is to cut it up as shown below so it can’t be used, then dispose of it in the garbage.

For (amusing) reference, I found a Japanese website that asked its readers how they dispose of their onaholes. The responses are below:

Dispose of as burnable garbage (26.4%)
Cut into pieces and throw away (13.8%)
Secretly throw away at a convenience store (10.9%)
Eat it slowly over time (8.8%)
I don’t throw them away! It’d be such a waste! (9.2%)
Travel to China and plant it in the ground so people will think it’s a legendary mushroom (3.3%)
Leave it on a bicycle in my neighborhood (2.9%)
Dispose of it at the train station (1.6%)
Melt it down and turn it into a new companion (1.6%)
Leave it as an offering at a grave (1.6%)
Gift it to a friend so we can be connected forever as “brothers” (1.2%)
Sneak into my old junior high school and leave it for a student to find (1.2%)
Use it until it tears and becomes useless (1.2%)

Zen and the Art of Onahole Maintenance

Onaholes are a great way to relax at the end of a hard day and engage in a little healthy solo time. They’re also probably good for your health, as masturbation and frequent orgasm is said to reduce the danger of prostate cancer. So why not visit the J-List site now, and browse for a male sex toy that’s right for you?

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All J-List adult orders are shipped in a discrete and careful manner, with no indication of any adult contents. Also, we have a new, higher level of privacy for you too: an Anonymous Shipping Service in which your order will be carefully repacked in generic packaging, with the outer box removed.