Short answer: warm water and a mild soap after every single use, then dry it properly with a soft cloth. Thirty seconds. That is the entire routine.
The reason to bother is oil. You have just spread facial oil over your skin and then moved a stone through it. Whatever was on your face is now on the stone, and it stays there until you wash it off.
The routine
- Rinse under warm water. Not hot — sudden temperature changes are hard on natural stone.
- A drop of mild soap. Hand soap or a gentle face cleanser. Work it over the whole surface with your fingers, including the notch, where residue collects.
- Rinse thoroughly. Soap residue on the stone means soap residue on your face tomorrow.
- Dry completely with a soft cloth. Do not leave it to air dry on a damp bathroom surface.
Every use. Not weekly.
What to avoid
- Boiling water or a dishwasher. Thermal shock cracks natural stone. It will also ruin any finish.
- Alcohol or harsh disinfectants on porous stones. They strip the polish over time and the stone starts to feel rough. Fine occasionally on steel or titanium.
- Abrasive scrubbers. You will scratch the surface, and a scratched stone drags.
- Leaving it wet. Water sitting in the notch is how you get a film.
- Soaking it. Brief contact with water is fine. Leaving it submerged is not.
Porous vs non-porous
This is where material genuinely matters.
Natural stones — jade, blue aventurine, tiger's eye — have microscopic surface porosity. Oil can sit in it. With proper washing after each use this is a non-issue for most people, but it does mean the cleaning step is not optional.
Non-porous — stainless steel, titanium, and obsidian, which is volcanic glass — has nothing for residue to sit in. Wipes clean in seconds. If your skin is acne-prone, this is the more forgiving choice, and the reason we recommend steel for breakout-prone skin.
If you have been neglecting it
A stone with built-up oil feels tacky rather than smooth, and it will drag no matter how much fresh oil you use.
Warm water, a proper amount of gentle cleanser, and work it over with your fingers for a minute or so. Rinse well, dry fully. If it still feels tacky, repeat. If it feels rough or scratched rather than tacky, the surface is damaged and no amount of cleaning will fix it.
Storage
Dry, and somewhere it will not fall. Natural stone chips on tile.
The pouch it arrived in is the safest option. A drawer works. The edge of a basin does not — that is how most stones die.
If you keep yours in the fridge for the cold, put it in a small container or bag rather than loose against food.
The titanium stone has a magnetic core specifically so it sits flat against a fridge door or metal shelf instead of rolling somewhere it can be knocked off.
Do you need to disinfect it?
For a tool one person uses on clean skin, washing properly after each use is sufficient. Do not share a gua sha — that is the actual hygiene rule, and no amount of cleaning makes sharing a good idea.
If you have been using it over active breakouts, which you should not be, wash more carefully and consider a non-porous stone.