Your newly made tattoo is your prized possession on your skin that represents your inner self in the most permanent manner. Your tattoo lines are essentially cut open wounds filled with tons of ink. The degree of ink depends on the level of saturation of the design, and the depth of the cuts vary accordingly.
Immediately after drawing a tattoo on your skin, the region becomes very delicate and vulnerable to all sorts of bacteria and fungus that are roaming around you. This isn’t the case for your regular skin in general, but since the tattoo area is basically an open skin region, it’s highly likely that you might catch something if you don’t follow proper procedures.
Saniderm is a lifesaver in this regard. Once your tattoo is finished, using Saniderm can help you prevent such infections and offer you safety during the initial healing process of the tattoo marks. Our article tells you exactly how long to leave Saniderm on tattoo, along with how to take care of those wounds till they heal up properly.
So if you want a healthy journey from a new tattoo to cured wounds, make sure to read till the end of this article. Because this article contains all the necessary details, process and guidelines to save your skin and spare you any sort of infection.
What Is Saniderm?
Before jumping the guns, you might wonder what Saniderm actually is. Saniderm is a brand that specializes in making bandages which is highly useful in situations like a post-tattoo wound. It has adhesive that keeps it stuck to the skin nicely, is able to provide enough airflow for the wound to heal properly and doesn’t suffocate the area like other bandages.
Saniderm ensures that the wound area has the environment of natural healing and soaks up excess fluid that may seep out of the cut marks. Also, Saniderm is able to prevent water from touching the skin, so it’s a useful solution that can help you shower or bathe with your freshly made tattoos conveniently.
Some even use Saniderm as an accessory to swim with new tattoos, and if you’re interested in learning more about it, you should follow our article that covers the procedure in detail.
How Long To Leave Saniderm On Tattoo?
This is one question that we often receive from tattoo enthusiasts once they get a fresh tattoo done. Although the question may be simple, the answer is anything but. To properly understand what we mean, explore our 4 step guide below to treat your tattoo wounds appropriately with Saniderm.
Step 1: First 24 Hour Guide
The first 24 hours are the most crucial time after getting tattooed. Your tattoo expert probably has already told you how to proceed this phase, we are here to re-state these precisely for the sake of your safety.
Immediately after your tattoo work, apply the first Saniderm over the wounded area. Make sure to thoroughly cover the region, otherwise you won’t get maximum protection from germs and bacteria.
The first Saniderm should support you between 8 to 24 hours, depending on your condition and metabolism. Each takes different time for healing, and tattoo wounds vary based on depth of the design to the area it takes.
This first step is usually the time when your tattoo wounds should discharge blood and plasma the most due to the cuts being very raw. Technically, this time is called the ‘weeping duration’, and you need to be the gentlest at this phase.
Step 2: Post 24 Hour Care
The beginning of step 2 has two indicators – one is the 24 hour mark and the other is the loosening of the Saniderm bandage. If you see that the adhesive that has been holding the Saniderm to your skin is coming off, you’ll know that there’s something wrong and it needs immediate attention.
It could be a number of things – your Saniderm might have been breached, your skin’s built-up dirt and residue may have weakened the glue – no matter what, your wounds are now open to getting infected.
And if such loosening doesn’t happen, you should still remove your first Saniderm at the 24 hour mark nonetheless. Because the initial phase discharges a lot of fluid that needs to be cleaned up, so make sure you don’t leave your first Saniderm on for more than 24 hours.
If things are right, then your second Saniderm that you’ve put on after the 24 hours mark should last you up to 5 to 7 days. But you must always make sure to check on your wounds to see if the discharging is still continuing, or if the adhesives are coming off.
Step 3: Third Saniderm [If Necessary]
In some cases, you might require a third Saniderm bandage if the situation calls for it. For instance, if you see your first Saniderm is filled with blood and liquid within a few hours of application, you must get it removed, get the liquid mopped and apply a second Saniderm.
The second one needs to be applied for the following 24 hours. Because the first Saniderm in this case is rendered redundant, and the healing process hadn’t begun then due to the massive discharge.
So 24 hours into the second Saniderm, you have to replace it with a third one, which should be kept on for around 5 to 7 days, depending on where you are in the healing process.
Step 4: Saniderm Aftercare
After getting through with your second or third Saniderm, you can finally remove the bandage at the 7 day mark. Once you’re there, you have to gently wash your tattoo wounds with lukewarm water and antibacterial soap to minimize any chances of infection.
Remember, your wounds aren’t fully healed yet, and you need to be absolutely gentle while dealing with your tattoo spots. After the washing process, lightly mop and dry up the area using soft napkins or towels, preferably made of cotton to ensure proper dryness.
At this stage, you can use moisturizer or tattoo lotions to keep your tattoo hydrated to remove dryness, but make sure you don’t apply excessively, because then it can backfire into delaying the healing process by developing build ups and residues.
DOs & DON’Ts After Removing Saniderm
In this section, we’ll take a look at what to do and what not to do after receiving a clear idea about how long to leave Saniderm on tattoo.
What To Do
The to-do tasks are as follows:
- Be patient with your tattoo wounds. It’s not an instant heal process, and you’ll have to give it enough time to properly cure
- In low humidity areas, apply a thin layer of tattoo moisturizer between your Saniderm applications to keep your tattoo wounds hydrated and moist
- Wear clothes that aren’t too tight around your tattoo areas. Friction with clothes can delay the process of drying
- Avoid direct sunlight after removing your Saniderm. Direct sunlight at this sensitive phase can cause severe damage to your skin
- If you must face the sun, make sure to apply ample amount of sunblock before heading out of your house
What Not To Do
The Not To Do list is much bigger than the To Do list, since there is much you can’t do than you need to do after removing your Saniderm.
- Don’t keep your Saniderm on for more than 7 days. The official Saniderm instruction prevents you from using one unit beyond this duration of time. If you must, put on a new one after dismissing the old
- Don’t constantly touch your tattoo wounds, pick, scratch or any other kind of tactile interaction. Frequent touching can delay your healing process, and may even open up the wound in which case you’ll have to restart from step 1
- Avoid swimming unless it’s of utmost importance. Swimming leaves your fresh tattoo open to bacterial infections, so not entering the pool until your wounds have completely healed is the wiser option for you
- Don’t consume alcohol or any sort of antibiotics during the fresh tattoo healing process. Because such consumptions have a high probability of hampering with your curing and it may require a longer amount of time before you’re properly healed
If you follow these DOs and DON’Ts steps properly, your post-Saniderm phase should go perfectly well and your tattoo wounds should be healed in less than no time!
Thoughts
So we hope our article has been able to provide you with all the information that you’ve needed regarding how long to leave Saniderm on tattoo. Our experts have broken this article down into brief & effective steps in a convenient manner so that you can easily follow along.
Remember, your tattoo is basically an open wound and requires more attention than you can actually think of. Having Saniderm knowledge is a multifaceted asset on your account that you’ll be able to utilize at separate occasions not only regarding tattoo wounds, but any sort of wound in general.
We wish you all the best in your journey into the world of tattoos, and we’d be glad to have contributed to a healthy healing process for your tattoo wounds. Peace!
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