How to care for your hot stone massage Stones

Proper cleaning and sanitation are important when using hot stone massage stones in your massage practice.

It is important to wash the stones well after each session, between clients. All that is required is washing in warm soapy water and rinsing thoroughly. If you have stones that are pitted or have a porous surface texture, you may want to use a small brush to ensure all the oil is removed from the stones.

The sooner you wash the stones after a treatment, the easier it will be to remove the oil and any bacteria that may have been picked up from your client’s body.

There is nothing worse than a masseuse showing up for a hot stone massage only to find the stones still dirty from their last use. I worked at a spa that used a chlorine shock product in the water from the heating unit as a way to kill bacteria, so they only had to clean the stones at the end of the day, rather than after each session.

I do not recommend this practice at all. It’s much better to take the time to clean the stones between sessions (it doesn’t take that long!), or have a second set of stones heated up and ready to go if your clients are back-to-back busy.

When the stones are not in use, it is useful to recharge them in nature. I found my stones became sluggish after using them for a couple of months, so I would leave them out in my backyard overnight as a way to revitalize them. Another great idea is to sit them in a stream and let the running waters of nature wash them clean.

Other practitioners recommend charging your massage stones with crystals such as Amethyst, when not in use. Simply place a crystal on top of the massage stone set and let it do the rest.