How Are Condoms Tested

Condoms are very sensitive products. If they won’t work, monumental issues would arise. First, there’s the possibility of unintended pregnancy. Second, there will be the possible transmission of diseases. Many couples count on a condom for protection. And plainly because of that, these products are not supposed to fail at all.

To ensure their effectiveness, condoms have to be duly tested for endurance and performance. The most ideal way to test a condom is of course, through a human model. But since there are many health and ethical considerations to that, animal models are used instead.

However, condoms can be tested without the use of living entities. The electrical conductance test, for one, is a non-destructive test that is applied to all the condoms sold in the market. In this test, the condom will be subjected to electricity and will be duly checked if it can block its flow. Condoms that are intact enough will be able to insulate electricity completely.

But then again, there are condom tests that can be destructive. As such, these tests are normally done only on the model condom in order to test its material and construction. These tests are not supposed to be done on condoms that will be sold in the market. Examples of these tests are the water leak test, tensile test, and the airburst test.

Some laboratories test condoms with fake penises. They try to simulate the condition with dildos and rubber vaginas. This mode of testing is not very popular though, as not a lot of labs support this kind of a testing model.

The testing of condoms is a very important method that guarantees the effectiveness of the product. Be sure to know how your condom is tested. Then use it properly. That is how you get peace of mind every time you use it.